The Mexican Duff Beer
Due to the vagaries in international law, sometimes interesting conflicts come up. For example, for years the world had two separate Budweisers. There was the American brand, and one that existed in the former Czechoslovakia (which is now the Czech Republic). Of course, the Czech beer was the better Budweiser, and the people at Anheuser-Busch knew it. After all, Pilsner styled beer was created in Czech republic, in a town called Pilzen. Anheuser-Busch spent years trying to buy out the company. When exported, the beer went under the name Bud-var. Of course, Anheuser-Busch beers in general are usually not of great quality, especially if you compare them to microbrews in places like Denver.
So what does this possibly have to do with The Simpsons, you ask? The vagaries of international law have lead a real Duff Beer. Minerva Brewing, in Mexico, has tried to create such a brand. By doing so, it taps into the global phenomenon that is The Simpsons media empire. Whether on TV, DVD, or in Comic books, Homer drinks a lot of Duff Beer. Sure, one might say that in a work of satire, Duff is really a stand in for all American beer, but in Springfield, it is the dominant brand. As for Minerva, they have planned the usual varieties, like “Lite” – but none of the actual special names used in the Simpsons episodes. The only similarity, really, with the Groening “Duff Beer” is in name only. However, according to some news sources, Minerva has had conversations about paying a royalty and marketing Duff Beer in the United States. However, the Brewery has conceded that is too far out of their scope – the Mexican marketplace being a tough place on it’s own. This sort of publicity stunt is not new, however. More recently, long after their crack at Duff Beer, Minerva tried naming a beer after an infamous narco trafficker.
Beer, Bud-var, Budweiser, Duff Beer, The Simpsons, Moe’s Tavern, Homer Simpson, Barney
August 28th, 2008 at 6:16 pm
That’s pretty interesting! I always wondered why somebody didn’t do that here. Maybe even a special brew or something once a year.
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