Advertising and Marketing A blue-collar beer goes upmarket 
 
 The above advertisement appears on the inside front cover of the current issue of Window of the South (南风窗), a respected biweekly business magazine. At first glance it looks like an ad for a wine or a brandy, but closer inspection reveals the actual brand: Pabst Blue Ribbon Beer 1844. 1844 was the year that the Pabst Brewing Company was established in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. In the US, the beer's lack of pretension led to a recent upswing in popularity among hipsters. With 1844, the brand seems to be targeting a different demographic in the Chinese market. The ad copy (on the facing page) begins with comparisons to the finest of alcohols: It's not just Scotch that's put into wooden casks. There's also Pabst Blue Ribbon Beer 1844 Many world-famous spirits 
 
 Are matured in precious wooden casks 
 
 Scotch whisky, French brandy, Bordeaux wine... 
 
 They all spend long days inside wooden casks It goes on to describe how the premium wood and craftsmanship of the casks creates the beer's wondrous color and flavor, and ends by calling Pabst "truly a treasure among beers." Does Pabst Blue Ribbon 1844 truly merit such comparisons? It'll cost you around 300 RMB to try a bottle for yourself, according to a Beijing Youth Daily article from last November, when the product was launched. The article quoted Ni Chunlin, head of Blue Ribbon Beer, which produced Pabst in China: "China's beer market has an annual sales volume of 40 million tons. So why is the price of beer always around 5 or 10 yuan?" 
 
 ... 
 
 Ni Chunlin said that the release of Blue Ribbon 1844 is aimed at changing consumers' ideas about beer. "The high-end market is occupied by baijiu and wine. Chinese people can afford to drink baijiu that costs tens of thousands, and I believe that a 300-yuan beer won't be a problem either." Update (2010.07.21): Evan Osnos points to an interview with Alan Kornhauser, Pabst Brewmaster-Asia, from the July issue of All About Beer magazine: I still like formulating specialty beers. In fact, with Pabst, I just made the first specialty beer in Mainland China. There’s almost no ale in China: I had to smuggle the yeast into the country. I formulated a special high-gravity ale called “1844.” It’s all malt, and we use caramel malts from Germany. The initial aging is dry-hopped rather heavily. Then we do a secondary aging in new uncharred American oak whiskey barrels. We bought 750 brand new barrels to the tune of $100,000. This is a very special beer; it’s retailing for about over $40 U.S. for a 720 ml bottle. There’s an audience there for it? There’s the nouveau riche, and in China, perception is everything—look at me, I’m rich. Then also, there is another group that may be part of our market, and that’s state banquet dinners. Normally, you’d drink brandy, and this beer kind of has the look of brandy—it’s a reddish-brown color, but it won’t hurt you as much. Links and Sources Blue Ribbon Beer website (Chinese): 1844 
 
 Beijing Youth Daily via Xinhua (Chinese): At 300 RMB a bottle, who is Blue Ribbon 1844 meant for? 
 
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Vault The Thomas Crampton Channel The department of deranged foreigners The department of scary Santas The passing of the old guard Theater Tourism Translation Transport Trends and Buzz Typography Video Visas Wildlife Wireless and mobile Internet ||||| In the U.S., Pabst Blue Ribbon (or PBR) is a cheap, unpretentious beer popular among hipsters. In China, it's "Blue Ribbon 1844," costs about $44 a bottle, and is called a "world-famous spirit." It also comes in a funny bottle. 
 
 Chinese media blog Danwei found the above ad in a "respected biweekly business magazine" called Window of the South. That fancy-looking bottle all by itself in a dark room? It's PBR, reborn as Blue Ribbon 1844 (well... kind of—see update below) and accompanied by some very flowery ad copy: 
 
 It's not just Scotch that's put into wooden casks. There's also Pabst Blue Ribbon Beer 1844 Many world-famous spirits 
 
 Are matured in precious wooden casks 
 
 Scotch whisky, French brandy, Bordeaux wine... 
 
 They all spend long days inside wooden casks 
 
 Uh-huh. 1844 is, of course, the year the Pabst Brewing Company was founded in Milwaukee. The New Yorker's Evan Osnos attributes the rebranding to China's newfound use for alcohol as a "prime tool for conspicuous consumption," and, of course, "the Chinese fondness for trophies and ribbons." Here's another poster, from the beer's official website: 
 
 Update: A tipster points out that Blue Ribbon 1844 isn't actually the same beer you and me and everyone in Williamsburg drinks. From the March 5 issue of Modern Brewery Age (PDF): 
 
 Alan Kornhauser, who started his brewing career at Jos. Huber, and subsequently worked at Anchor Brewing Co., Portland Brewing Co., August Schell and elsewhere, now works for Pabst in China six months of each year. Interestingly, he reports that Pabst China has started expanding its horizons beyond Blue Ribbon. "We just produced China's first real specialty beer, an all-malt, reddish brown strong (15.7 plato) ale, dry hopped with Cascade (38 IBU) and aged in new uncharred American whiskey barrels," Mr. Kornhauser reports. "It's being bottled in a nice looking 720-ml brown bottle with an enamel label and it is called Blue Ribbon 1844, a reference to Pabst's founding date. It will only be sold in China, and it's going to sell for over $20 a bottle!" 
 
 [Danwei via Evan Osnos]
– Pabst Blue Ribbon is known as a cheap beer beloved by hipsters…in America. In China, it goes by “Blue Ribbon 1844,” gets compared to Scotch, and will run you $44 a bottle. Gawker points to the beer’s official website—where you can see the fancypants bottle it’s packaged in, a far cry from the familiar PBR cans found in the US. (1844, by the way, is the year the Pabst Brewing Company was founded.) Chinese media blog Danwei points to an ad for the beer from a business magazine, reading, “It's not just Scotch that's put into wooden casks. There's also Pabst Blue Ribbon Beer 1844,” and going on to call Pabst “truly a treasure among beers.” Need more evidence of PBR world domination? A tech startup is offering a free year's supply to successful job applicants. Click for that story.