(Photos: North Maverick Brewing Co. Ultra Right Beer, Minocqua Brewing Company)
What, you may ask, constitutes a "woke" or "anti-woke" product?
Over the past few years, an avalanche of brands hawking razors, vitamin pills, cars and everything in between have latched onto partisan discord in the U.S., typically accompanied by bold proclamations of whom consumers should and shouldn't be giving their money to. In 2023, the genre was taken into overdrive after Bud Light partnered with transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney. The ensuing boycott inspired a wave of politically charged beverages on both sides of the spectrum, some more overt in their intentions than others.
Hulk Hogan's recently launched Real American Beer, now on sale at Hooters locations across the country, perfectly exemplifies the concept. Elsewhere, politician-themed ales have begun popping up with increasing frequency. Unsurprisingly, beers featuring the likeness of President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump have emerged at the front of the pack, despite the fact that both are famously teetotalers.
Ahead of the first presidential debate on Thursday evening, we're taking a look at a series of beers — an unexpected lynchpin of the American culture wars — that have been used to fundraise, monetize and otherwise commemorate the looming 2024 election.
Conservative Dad's Revenge
[caption id="attachment_73575" align="aligncenter" width="600"] (Photo: Ultra Right Beer)[/caption]
By design, Conservative Dad's Revenge is the type of product destined to stir up endless puff pieces and critical commentary in the annals of the Internet. Plastered with a black-and-white rendition of Trump's mug shot, the 4.8%-ABV ale/political statement certainly achieved its desired effect.
Its brewer, Ultra Right Beer, was founded by Sean Weathers in 2023 as an explicit retort to the then-trending Mulvaney boycott. In a video announcing his "100% Woke-Free" brand, Weathers grinned ear-to-ear as he bludgeoned a can of Bud Light with a baseball bat. Frequently eager to capitalize on buzzwords of the day, the brand has also released a line of swimwear, Conservative Daddy-branded merch and a "Real Women of America" calendar.
Ultra Right Beer eventually stared down an "F" rating from the Better Business Bureau over widespread complaints alleging unfulfilled orders. Nonetheless, Conservative Dad's Revenge was an immediate hit with its fanbase, selling out $500,000 worth of product within 12 hours of launch. Cans are now being resold online at ludicrous prices, sure to be placed on the display shelves of collectors right alongside their Trump sneakers, Trump Bible and bedazzled Trump clutch bags.
Biden Beer Kolsch
[caption id="attachment_73577" align="aligncenter" width="600"] (Photo: Minocqua Brewing Company)[/caption]
Introduced immediately after Biden's electoral win in 2020, Biden Beer has since become a staple in Minocqua Brewing Company's catalog. The beer — which reportedly saved the brewer from near-bankruptcy – reads on each can: "Inoffensive & Not Bitter Kolsch Style-Ale."
Though the tagline could easily be interpreted as a jab against the sitting President, Minocqua Brewing apparently intends it as an endorsement, though admittedly a tepid one. The beer's product description declares that Biden "hasn't hit every to-do item on the progressive agenda" but that he's still "GOOD ENOUGH to save us from Trump a second time!"
Doubling down on the concept, the Wisconsin-based brewer has followed up with a smorgasbord of politically-themed beverages. On its website, you'll find La Kamala Vice Presidential Stout, an anti-gerrymandering Fair Maps 2.0 IPA and a recently unveiled Dark Brandon Espresso Stout that plays off of Biden's memetic alter ego. Some releases are especially on the nose; the brewer also produces a Woke Nitro Coffee that donates a percent of proceeds to Democrat reelection efforts in the state.
Chinga tu Pelo Blonde Ale
[caption id="attachment_73578" align="aligncenter" width="600"] (Photo: 5 Rabbit Brewery/Instagram)[/caption]
The story behind Chinga tu Pelo, which translates to "F--k your Hair" in English, mirrors the changing tides of political activism in the years after Trump's presidency.
Believe it or not, the blonde ale was originally sold as Trump Gold at the Trump International Hotel in downtown Chicago. Its maker, 5 Rabbit Cervecería, a Latin-owned and -inspired craft brewery, had a radical change of heart after Trump hit the election trail with anti-immigration rhetoric. The brewer pulled its beer and rechristened it Chinga tu Madre Donald, Spanish for "F--k your Mother, Donald."
Following trepidation from the community, it was ultimately renamed Chinga tu Pelo. Branding was adjusted once again after Trump was sworn into office, this time going by La Protesta, or "The Protest." The statement splashed into bars across the city before being brought back with its previous hair-lampooning name. Throughout the years-long odyssey, the liquid once known as Trump Gold remained exactly the same within the can.
In a New Yorker interview published on the same day as the 2020 election, 5 Rabbit partner Mila Ramirez commented with a hint of unforeseeable irony:
“If Trump loses, that’s it. We’re done, once he’s gone. I hope we never brew Chinga tu Pelo ever again.”
Rail Car One: Wilmington to Washington
[caption id="attachment_73580" align="aligncenter" width="600"] (Photo: Wilmington Brew Works)[/caption]
Wilmington Brew Works, based out of Biden's home state of Delaware, celebrated the President's election with an unexpectedly railway-centric IPA. Paying homage to the senator's frequent Amtrak trips to and from the capital, the beer chugged onto shelves with the name Wilmington to Washington.
Designed in the likeness of a vintage travel advertisement, the beer's packaging featured an Acela train decked out in the colors of Air Force One. On the back, a logo featuring Biden's oft-seen aviator sunglasses. In a news release announcing the launch, Wilmington Brew Works CEO Craig Wensell remarked:
“I had joked around with my partners, wondering if there was an official designation for a Presidential Train Car, like there is for an Airplane. It’s just fun to think of the President traveling back to Delaware on a special train car just for him.”
The beer made a brief jaunt around local news outlets, sold out and was then retired from production. Amid a sea of politically charged ales, Wilmington Brew Works seemed content to celebrate the smaller things before moving on with its life.
Fake News Ale
[caption id="attachment_73582" align="aligncenter" width="600"] (Photo: North Maverick Brewing)[/caption]
Two hours north of the American border, Toronto's Northern Maverick Brewing Co. set to work on a tongue-in-cheek Fake News Ale in the months after Trump was inducted into office.
The beer featured all the hallmarks of late-2010s Trump parodies; the then-president was pictured with a scrunched face and tiny hands, gesturing an "OK" sign sometimes interpreted as a dog whistle for the white power movement. Expectedly, the ale was accompanied by the slogan "Make Beer Great Again." A news release proclaimed that the beverage paired well with "striking comb-overs, huge egos and all things Mexican."
Fake News Ale was reportedly the first release from Northern Maverick's brewpub, with 5% of proceeds from each can going to charity. These days, it looks like the brand is leaning harder into more classically Canadian motifs, releasing a variety of beers featuring polar bears, red maple leaves and hockey players.
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(Photo: Ultra Right Beer)[/caption]
By design, Conservative Dad's Revenge is the type of product destined to stir up endless puff pieces and critical commentary in the annals of the Internet. Plastered with a black-and-white rendition of Trump's mug shot, the 4.8%-ABV ale/political statement certainly achieved its desired effect.
Its brewer, Ultra Right Beer, was founded by Sean Weathers in 2023 as an explicit retort to the then-trending Mulvaney boycott. In a video announcing his "100% Woke-Free" brand, Weathers grinned ear-to-ear as he bludgeoned a can of Bud Light with a baseball bat. Frequently eager to capitalize on buzzwords of the day, the brand has also released a line of swimwear, Conservative Daddy-branded merch and a "Real Women of America" calendar.
Ultra Right Beer eventually stared down an "F" rating from the Better Business Bureau over widespread complaints alleging unfulfilled orders. Nonetheless, Conservative Dad's Revenge was an immediate hit with its fanbase, selling out $500,000 worth of product within 12 hours of launch. Cans are now being resold online at ludicrous prices, sure to be placed on the display shelves of collectors right alongside their Trump sneakers, Trump Bible and bedazzled Trump clutch bags.
(Photo: Minocqua Brewing Company)[/caption]
Introduced immediately after Biden's electoral win in 2020, Biden Beer has since become a staple in Minocqua Brewing Company's catalog. The beer — which reportedly saved the brewer from near-bankruptcy – reads on each can: "Inoffensive & Not Bitter Kolsch Style-Ale."
Though the tagline could easily be interpreted as a jab against the sitting President, Minocqua Brewing apparently intends it as an endorsement, though admittedly a tepid one. The beer's product description declares that Biden "hasn't hit every to-do item on the progressive agenda" but that he's still "GOOD ENOUGH to save us from Trump a second time!"
Doubling down on the concept, the Wisconsin-based brewer has followed up with a smorgasbord of politically-themed beverages. On its website, you'll find La Kamala Vice Presidential Stout, an anti-gerrymandering Fair Maps 2.0 IPA and a recently unveiled Dark Brandon Espresso Stout that plays off of Biden's memetic alter ego. Some releases are especially on the nose; the brewer also produces a Woke Nitro Coffee that donates a percent of proceeds to Democrat reelection efforts in the state.
(Photo: 5 Rabbit Brewery/Instagram)[/caption]
The story behind Chinga tu Pelo, which translates to "F--k your Hair" in English, mirrors the changing tides of political activism in the years after Trump's presidency.
Believe it or not, the blonde ale was originally sold as Trump Gold at the Trump International Hotel in downtown Chicago. Its maker, 5 Rabbit Cervecería, a Latin-owned and -inspired craft brewery, had a radical change of heart after Trump hit the election trail with anti-immigration rhetoric. The brewer pulled its beer and rechristened it Chinga tu Madre Donald, Spanish for "F--k your Mother, Donald."
Following trepidation from the community, it was ultimately renamed Chinga tu Pelo. Branding was adjusted once again after Trump was sworn into office, this time going by La Protesta, or "The Protest." The statement splashed into bars across the city before being brought back with its previous hair-lampooning name. Throughout the years-long odyssey, the liquid once known as Trump Gold remained exactly the same within the can.
In a New Yorker interview published on the same day as the 2020 election, 5 Rabbit partner Mila Ramirez commented with a hint of unforeseeable irony:
(Photo: Wilmington Brew Works)[/caption]
Wilmington Brew Works, based out of Biden's home state of Delaware, celebrated the President's election with an unexpectedly railway-centric IPA. Paying homage to the senator's frequent Amtrak trips to and from the capital, the beer chugged onto shelves with the name Wilmington to Washington.
Designed in the likeness of a vintage travel advertisement, the beer's packaging featured an Acela train decked out in the colors of Air Force One. On the back, a logo featuring Biden's oft-seen aviator sunglasses. In a news release announcing the launch, Wilmington Brew Works CEO Craig Wensell remarked:
(Photo: North Maverick Brewing)[/caption]
Two hours north of the American border, Toronto's Northern Maverick Brewing Co. set to work on a tongue-in-cheek Fake News Ale in the months after Trump was inducted into office.
The beer featured all the hallmarks of late-2010s Trump parodies; the then-president was pictured with a scrunched face and tiny hands, gesturing an "OK" sign sometimes interpreted as a dog whistle for the white power movement. Expectedly, the ale was accompanied by the slogan "Make Beer Great Again." A news release proclaimed that the beverage paired well with "striking comb-overs, huge egos and all things Mexican."
Fake News Ale was reportedly the first release from Northern Maverick's brewpub, with 5% of proceeds from each can going to charity. These days, it looks like the brand is leaning harder into more classically Canadian motifs, releasing a variety of beers featuring polar bears, red maple leaves and hockey players.
[botmc-promo]