Michelob Ultra has officially taken the crown as the nation’s best-selling beer – dethroning Modelo Especial.
It claimed the top spot as the best-selling beer during the 52 weeks ended Sept. 14, its parent company, Anheuser-Busch InBev, said on Monday, citing data from Circana.
The light, lager-style beer also reigned supreme as the top seller in bars and restaurants over the past year, according to Nielsen IQ data.
It’s a big comeback for AB InBev, whose star child Bud Light fell from grace after its disastrous collaboration with transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney.
Loyal customers blasted the partnership and called for a nationwide boycott of the beer. Sales of Bud Light continued to suffer months after the campaign.
Anson Frericks, a former Anheuser-Busch executive, told Fox News Digital at the time that the collaboration failed because “they just were not an authentic partnership at all.”
That slip allowed Constellation Brands’ Modelo Especial to become the top-selling beer in the US in 2023.
It was a brutal blow to Bud Light, which had held the title for more than two decades.
Constellation – which also owns Corona beers – has continued to suffer from a sales slump, which its CEO has blamed on declining demand among Hispanic consumers, who account for roughly half of the beer giant’s business.
Bill Newlands, chief executive of Constellation, said Hispanic buyers are pulling back due to economic concerns, like higher food prices and a weak job market, and immigration issues amid Trump’s mass deportation efforts.
“Beer is quite a ways down the list, but it’s certainly on the list because things like social gatherings, an area where the Hispanic consumer often consumes beer, are declining today as part of these overarching concerns that they have,” Newlands said during an investor call.
Tariffs on aluminum and Mexican imports have also challenged beer makers.
Constellation slashed its full-year forecast earlier this month to a 2% to 4% drop in net beer sales, down from previous expectations of flat sales to a 3% rise.
Shares in AB InBev have jumped 17% so far this year, while Constellation has fallen 40%.
