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You are here: Home / Beers / Miller Fortune: Bourbon & Cascades

Miller Fortune: Bourbon & Cascades

January 28, 2014 By Jay Brooks

miller
Okay, this is my third post today about Miller Fortune, the new “bourbon-like lager” from MillerCoors meant to address their loss of market share to distilled spirits. I’ll reserve judgment on the beer itself until my sample arrives and also until after it’s had a chance in the marketplace. Besides, it’s already been well-covered by Beverage Daily, Bloomberg, Business Insider and Time Magazine.

miller-fortune

But there’s certainly some oddities in the way they’re presenting it, whether by the mainstream press or by MillerCoors. As usual, it seems like they’re focusing a lot on the packaging — ooh, it’s black — and other marketing and not as much on the beer itself. One account describes the packaging as “jet-black, angular bottles meant to ‘evoke a guy in a tapered, athletic-cut suit.'” Uh-huh, that’s just what I was thinking of when I looked at it. The beer is 6.9% a.b.v., closer to an IPA than the usual light lager, though humorously Business Insider claims Coors Light is 5.9% instead of its actual 4.2%.

Then there’s trying to get bars and restaurants to serve it in a whiskey glass. Apparently, “[t]he rocks glass is intended to set Miller Fortune apart the same way the orange slice has made Blue Moon one of the company’s fastest-growing brews and its answer to the craft-beer juggernaut.” The idea is, of course, to make it seem more spirits-like, but it just seems gimmicky to me. It’s one thing to design a special glass to enhance the flavors but quite another to just pick a glass meant for something else in the hopes that people will make the association between the two.

miller-fortune-label

I don’t quite get the bourbon association, either. It wasn’t aged in a bourbon barrel, like many beers being brewed these days by smaller breweries, yet it’s referred to as a “bourbon-like lager.” The Bloomberg article says it has a “complex flavor hinting at bourbon” while Business Insider calls it a “bourbon-flavored beer.” The beer labels says it’s a “Spirited Golden Lager” while RateBeer categorizes it as an Amber/Vienna Lager while Beer Advocate has it listed as an American Amber/Red Lager. But apart from MillerCoors trying to draw an association to bourbon and spirits drinkers, and claiming bourbon makers as their inspiration, I don’t know where any bourbon flavors would be coming from.

Bloomberg brings up that they used some Cascade hops, saying it’s “a golden lager brewed in part with Cascade hops to give it a citrusy bite and caramel malt to impart an amber hue” and that “the flavor is moderately bitter with hints of sweetness, resting somewhere between a craft beer and a light lager.” So nothing about bourbon or being bourbon-flavored or bourbon-like, as far as I can tell. And the few people who’ve reviewed it on Beer Advocate and RateBeer likewise make no mention of any bourbon character. But perhaps the most hilarious statement was made by Time magazine, who states that “Miller Fortune is brewed with Cascade hops to give it its bourbon-like flavor.” That must be why Anchor Liberty and Sierra Nevada Pale Ale have all that spirited bourbon character. I can’t wait to see how this one plays out.

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Filed Under: Beers, Editorial, News Tagged With: Mainstream Coverage, Miller Brewing, MillerCoors, Press Release



Comments

  1. A Perfect Pint says

    January 28, 2014 at 9:29 pm

    Yes, all the bourbon-flavors folderol seems to stem from that one Bloomberg article as far as I can tell. Talking to someone from the local Miller distributor, Miller has said nothing about bourbon flavor. They just call it a golden lager. They are trying to make the marketing connection to spirit drinkers, but that’s it.

    • Jay Brooks says

      January 28, 2014 at 9:35 pm

      Agreed, that and putting “Spirited Golden Lager” on the label.

      • A Perfect Pint says

        January 29, 2014 at 6:31 am

        It’s a crazy game of media telegraph. 🙂

  2. beerman49 says

    January 31, 2014 at 3:34 am

    Most likely doomed to failure, like Miller’s attempts from the early 90’s @ stout & amber.

    • Pbrasseaux says

      February 14, 2014 at 9:30 pm

      I work for a MillerCoors distributer in LA. I did an on premise promotion in at three of my accounts and it was a big success. They loved it. Don’t think this one will fail.

  3. Kw says

    February 13, 2014 at 6:52 pm

    I live in il…never heard of it…saw it in the store today and picked up a 12. Will try tomorrow…

  4. spoonie luv from up abuv says

    February 15, 2014 at 8:08 pm

    Yeah just had one, it’s not bad. My first thought was that should have marketed it add an ipa because it’s very hops (cascade) forward. I’m sure all the bearded, thick rimmed glasses types will get there hipster panties in a bunch, but it’s not bad.

  5. james hall says

    March 1, 2014 at 2:22 pm

    just tried one,looked interesting new beer,it,s good,I think with all the selection out there,with marketing and the miller brand it will do ok,but will fade out after time

  6. Alec says

    March 13, 2014 at 5:45 pm

    Actually think it is not a bad beer. Not sure about the ‘rocks’ glass nonsense though.

  7. Bubba Smack says

    November 21, 2014 at 8:34 am

    Had one , absolutely wonderful beer .

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