Bud Light Lime adds seasonal Apple-Ahhh-Rita flavor to Ritas portfolio

Flavored malt beverage brand’s line extension taps into popularity of apple ciders

Following the successful launch of a winter seasonal last year, Anheuser-Busch, a St. Louis-based subsidiary of Anheuser-Busch InBev, added the fall seasonal Apple-Ahhh-Rita to its Bud Light Lime Ritas lineup of ready-to-drink flavored malt beverages (FMBs).

“As evidenced by the current cider trend, apple is an immensely popular flavor amongst consumers, even more so for the fall,” said Tyler Simpson, director of marketing for Bud Light extensions, in a statement. “In addition to Lime-A-Rita, Straw-Ber-Rita, Mang-O-Rita and Raz-Ber-Rita, we wanted to offer Ritas fans a special drink fitting for the season, similar to last year’s creation of the extremely successful Cran-Brrr-Rita for winter months. Apple-Ahhh-Rita is crisp and refreshing. It’s a Bud Light Lime Margarita twist on a popular apple beverage that’s as simple as ‘pop, pour over ice and enjoy.’”

Anheuser-Busch reports that its Ritas line has been extremely popular and was even named a 2014 Breakthrough Innovation winner by New York-based Nielsen. The permanent core flavors — Lime-A-Rita, Straw-Ber-Rita, Mang-O-Rita and Raz-Ber-Rita — were the Top 4 brands in the FMB category in U.S. multi-outlets from the beginning of the year through June 22, according to Chicago-based Information Resources Inc.

In addition, the company reports that its winter seasonal Cran-Brrr-Rita “flew off shelves” last year, and it anticipates the same popularity this fall for Apple-Ahhh-Rita, which taps into the current consumer popularity of apple ciders.

To support the release of the seasonal line extension, Bud Light extended its “Fiesta Forever” campaign to include a new TV commercial for Apple-Ahhh-Rita:

“We spent the past two years introducing consumers to Ritas with product-focused creative,” Simpson said in a statement. “Now, with four core Ritas flavors in stores and leading the FMB category — as well as two seasonal offerings for fall and winter — the new Fiesta Forever campaign focuses on the spirit of the Ritas brand, encouraging consumers to embrace moments to let go and celebrate. Fiesta Forever is the most significant marketing campaign behind Bud Light Lime Ritas since we first launched Lime-A-Rita in 2012.”

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