Last updated on January 31st, 2013 at 04:20 pm
Budweiser has launched its first-ever Twitter account, which went live Sunday evening.
The brand marked the occasion with another “first” involving the Budweiser Clydesdales—tweeting the first photo of a member of the elite “Budweiser Clydesdales Class of 2013,” a 150-pound baby born the morning of Jan. 16. It was the brand’s first-ever Tweet.
Using #clydesdales, Budweiser also is asking Twitter followers of @Budweiser and Facebook friends to help name the young equine star, who will be seen by an estimated 110-plus million viewers next Sunday, Feb. 3, during Super Bowl XLVII.
“This newest member of the Budweiser Clydesdale family was 7 days old on the day this part of the Super Bowl commercial was filmed,” said Jeff Knapper, GM of Clydesdale operations. “A star was truly born on Jan. 16.”
More than 30 baby Clydesdales are expected to be born this year at the 300-acre Warm Springs Ranch, the state-of-the-art breeding facility for the Budweiser Clydesdales in Boonville, Mo.
On Super Bowl Sunday, the Budweiser Clydesdales will appear in a new 60-second spot, “Brotherhood,” which chronicles the bond a Clydesdale foal shares with his trainer. Partially shot at Warm Springs Ranch, “Brotherhood” will take the Clydesdales advertising into new territory by providing a new level of access to their early years.
This is the Clydesdale’s 23rd Super Bowl spot since first appearing in a big game spot in 1986.
In addition to the baby foal born this month that will appear in the spot, other young Clydesdales, including an 8-month-old and a 2-year-old, will be featured, in addition to a full hitch of eight adult horses.
This year, for the first time ever, Budweiser is releasing its Super Bowl spot early for fans to enjoy before the game. You can see the spot here.
Budweiser’s Twitter channel debuts after the social media platform introduced age verification, allowing the beer to restrict its tweets to users age 21 and older.
2013 a milestone year
The Clydesdales celebrate a major milestone in 2013—the 80th anniversary of their association with Anheuser-Busch. The Budweiser Clydesdales have been an integral part of Anheuser-Busch’s heritage since April 7, 1933, and their strength and majesty symbolize Budweiser quality as well as integrity, achievement, success, perfection and team spirit, according to a news release. They were formally introduced to celebrate the repeal of Prohibition for beer.
“The symbol has become synonymous with Budweiser—‘the quality that goes into the beer, as well as the time, energy and passion we put into taking care of the horses,” Knapper said.
How is the baby Clydesdale featured in the commercial doing? Both mother, 7-year-old Darla, and baby are doing well, reports John Soto, supervisor of the breeding operations at Warm Springs Ranch in mid-Missouri.
“We have had two foals born so far this year and they’re both doing very well,” Soto said.
“We take great pride in each and every one of our horses, and Warm Springs Ranch is a great home,” Knapper said. “The Budweiser Clydesdales are the envy of the equine world. We treat them like royalty, and they are among the best-cared-for animals in the world.”
Anheuser-Busch has about 200 Clydesdales in its herd, with about half of them at Warm Springs Ranch in Cooper County.
