Beer drama
No joke: Class action lawsuit charges Bud Light is watered down, but tests say it's . . . real
It's no secret that Bud Light — the preferred beverage of white bros and teenagers teaching themselves to like beer — tastes like a watered-down version of the real thing, but a class action lawsuit claims that Anheuser-Busch InBev has literally been adding extra water to its products for financial gain.
"Our information comes from former employees at Anheuser-Busch, who have informed us that as a matter of corporate practice, all of their products mentioned (in the lawsuit) are watered down," lead lawyer Josh Boxer tells the Associated Press. "It's a simple cost-saving measure, and it's very significant."
Loyal customer Nina Giampaoli has been buying a sixer of Budweiser "every week for the past four years," and she feels "cheated."
Budweiser, Bud Ice, Bud Light Platinum, Bud Light Lime, Michelob, Michelob Ultra, King Cobra, Natural Ice, Busch Ice and Hurricane High Gravity Lager are allegedly among the weakened products. The suit alleges that beer drinkers across the country feel cheated by the diminished return on investment and are requesting recompense to the tune of $5 million per lawsuit.
Loyal customer Nina Giampaoli of Sonoma County, Ca., has been buying a sixer of Budweiser "every week for the past four years," and she feels "cheated" by the dishonesty and the lower alcohol content, according to court papers.
So do brothers Thomas and Gerald Greenberg of Ambler, Pa., who bring home "six cases of the affected Anheuser-Busch products a month" between the two of them — with the intention of getting drunk, no doubt.
"Our beers are in full compliance with all alcohol labeling laws," counters Pete Kraemer, AB InBev's vice president of brewing and supply. "We proudly adhere to the highest standards in brewing our beers, which have made them the best-selling in the U.S. and the world."
NPR — yes, NPR is digging into the Bud Light case — had Budweiser beers tested in a lab and the results showed that the beers' alcohol content is labeled accurately, contrary to the lawsuit's charges.