Schaefer Beer — Brand Relaunch + Partner Content 

Finding a home for New York’s Oldest Lager among a New Vanguard of Food Voices

Agency: The FADER / cornerstone
Client: Pabst Brewing Company (Schaefer)
Publisher/Creative Partner: Cherry Bombe
Role: Strategy Director

Ask

Reintroduce a storied, blue collar beer (once synonymous with a defunct Brooklyn baseball team and the slogan, “the only beer to have when you’re having more than one”) with an updated recipe for new New York foodies at restaurants.

Challenge

COVID-19 happened. Not only has the global pandemic upended the restaurant and hospitality industry (with the elimination of at least 2/3rds of food service jobs), but it has also exposed the toxic cultures to which Black, brown, indigenous, and people-of-colour (POC) are regularly subjugated in a predominantly white food landscape. (The evidence lies in a stream of whistleblower accounts of racism and mistreatment in coverage from the talented journos at EATER).

Strategic Approach

We were not simply re-introducing Schaefer to a new New Yorker audience, but we’re also introducing a new ritual/occasion for Schaefer that’s distinctly tied to the question: what’s now and next in food from the comforts of home. Especially as we continue to bear witness to the crumbling of an old guard of food institutions and gatekeeper media personalities, we sought to connect and re-launch Schaefer - America’s oldest lager - with the faces and resilient voices who are forging the future of food at-home in NYC.

Creative Execution

We partnered with the brilliant folks at Cherry Bombe, an independent and women-owned NYC food publication, to create a custom content launch campaign for Schaefer called Taste Your Way Home. The CB folks brilliantly paired the light-bodied, full flavoured 3.7% ABV lager with a wide spectrum of custom recipes, evoking a sense of conviviality from the comforts of home during lockdown. Some of the legendary local chefs and creatives who shared their Schaefer-inspired recipes include Sicily Sierra (Founder, Food Plus People), Wen-Jay Ying (Founder, Local Roots NYC), Rachel Gurjar (Cook/Writer), Diana Yen (Food Stylist), and Caroline Shiff (Pastry Chef).

Each Taste Your Way Home recipe and story was completed with a live Instagram chat via Cherry Bombe, moderated by Beverage Director Cha McCoy. Each piece of content drove NYC foodies back to taproom.com where they can enjoy a brew of their own.