A rogue employee was behind a series of lowbrow tweets that appeared under the beer brand Pabst Blue Ribbon's verified Twitter account early Monday, a company spokesman told Ad Age.

The tweets and several threaded replies referencing sexual acts were removed by the company within hours of their appearance, although some replies were still live as of this story's publication. 

“We apologize about the language and content of our recent tweets,” Nick Reely, VP of marketing for Pabst Blue Ribbon, said in a statement emailed to Ad Age. “The tweets in question were written in poor judgment by one of our associates. In no way does the content of these tweets reflect the values of Pabst and our associates. We’re handling the matter internally and have removed the tweets from our social platforms.”

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The initial tweet, published at 8:31 a.m. ET on Monday, read “Not drinking this January? Try eating ass!” The remark appeared to be a reference to the brand’s Jan. 1 introduction of “Wet January,” a provocative play on the “Dry January” public health campaign meant to limit alcohol consumption in the year’s first month. The Pabst take featured illustrated artwork showing Pabst cans amid a Jet ski and dolphins.

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Ass marketing: it works

— Pabst Blue Ribbon (@PabstBlueRibbon) January 3, 2022

Pabst Brewing Company, based in San Antonio, markets the flagship Pabst brand along with several regional heritage brews including Lone Star, Rainier, Schlitz, Old Style, National Bohemian, Stag, Stroh's and Old Milwaukee.

Numerous brands have been compromised by hackers in various ways in recent months, some more mischievously than others. McDonald's last month fielded complaints that a source code containing a racist message accompanied its release of an NFT commemorating its McRib sandwich. The social media platform Twitch saw its source code exposed and published online in October. Candy maker Ferarra Candy was hacked in October in a move that disrupted its manufacturing capabilities.  

This story has been updated with comments from Pabst.