MillerCoors' experiment with lemonade-flavored beer has fallen flat, with the brewer planning to pull MGD 64 Lemonade from the shelves. The limited-time offering debuted in May and had been planned to run through Labor Day. But the beverage, billed as "64 calories of crisp, refreshing beer with a lemonade twist," looks more like a lemon, with the brewer not pleased with the results.
"Winning in beer requires testing the bounds of the market with innovation," MillerCoors said in a statement. "With that commitment, however, comes a recognition that not every innovation will succeed. That is the case with MGD 64 Lemonade, so we have decided to discontinue this line extension."
The brewer plans to buy outstanding cases from distributors and "where legal, we will cover destruction costs up to $2.50 per case." The beer is an extension of the MGD 64 base brand, which MillerCoors says it is sticking by , while "asking distributors to redouble their efforts" behind the low-calorie beer, which competes with Anheuser-Busch's Bud Select 55.
Targeted at 24- to 34-year-old females, MGD Lemonade is classified as a "flavored beer," not a flavored malt beverage, because it "maintains the brewed characteristics of MGD 64, with the complementary flavor of lemonade, [which is ] not [the] defining flavor," MillerCoors said when it was launched.
The brew is somewhat similar to MillerCoors-owned Leinenkugel's Summer Shandy, a seasonal summertime brew that has gained popularity among females.
The ad agency for MGD 64 is Publicis Groupe 's Saatchi & Saatchi, New York.