Another Canadian first; and IMO some very clever marketing.
Queer Beer
The link for the video
http://www.torontosun.com/2011/05/18...-of-queer-beer
WINNIPEG – It's a little fruity, and 100% fabulous. That's what Winnipeg's new Queer Beer claims. And it could make organizers of the local Pride Festival into trend-setters across Canada.
Queer Beer is a lager heading into distribution on a limited run from Winnipeg's Half Pints Brewing Co., to celebrate the upcoming Pride Winnipeg Festival in honour of the city's gay, lesbian, bisexual, two-spirited and transgendered communities.
"It's light, with a nice dry finish, and with a little bit of fruitiness up top," Zach Mesman, general manager of the Half Pints craft brewery, said.
The special-edition beer — with 4.8% alcohol and a dash of organic raspberry juice — will see 3,000 litres brewed at the small plant in Winnipeg's St. James neighbourhood.
Most of it will be sold on tap at a closing event for the Pride Festival — slated to begin May 27 and run about 10 days — and at a handful of bars holding Pride events during that period.
Some of the beer will be sold beginning Thursday in select Winnipeg locations.
Part of the revenue from the sales will go to the non-profit festival, whose name is on the beer's label.
"We're pretty excited about that being sort of our brand," Barb Burkowski, chair of the Pride Winnipeg Festival, said while pointing to possible future growth in other provinces.
"We haven't had anything quite this innovative. The possibility exists that Queer Beer will be owned by the Pride Winnipeg Festival, and could go Canada-wide for Prides that might be interested in having that beer as part of their festivals."
The idea came from last year's Pride Winnipeg event, when Half Pints supplied beverages at a beer tent. Pride organizers later approached the company about producing the beer.
"They seemed a little bit nervous as to whether a brewery would actually go ahead and do that, and we said, 'Yeah, of course, let's do it,'" said Half Pints president Dave Rudge. "And it's for sale here at the brewery already."
Burkowski stressed that the beer will be around only for a short period.
"When it's gone, it's gone," she said. "There's no more until we do another batch next year."
Clever marketing Queer Beer
