Green Beer, Closed Parades And Other “Authentic” Saint Patrick’s Day Observations

Yup, I’m Irish, at least partly.  No really!  Feland comes from O’Phaolin, which means “Son of Wolf.”  My family migrated from Scotland in 1726, so the family lore (and rather detailed genealogy records) state.  When I became of age (ahem) I found I liked to indulge in a pint of that elixir of the ages, Guinness Irish Stout.  When I was deployed to England in 1999, I even made the pilgrimage to St. James Gate in Dublin to see where my favorite brew was, well, brewed!

Not one to miss an opportunity to connect the consumption of beer with a holiday, Budweiser and others found they were lacking an offering in their portfolio to compete with the Irish Stouts on St. Patrick’s Day.  Not all American palates are refined enough to enjoy the rich robustness of the heavy stouts, preferring the lighter lagers and ales, limiting the target market the other 364 days of the year.  Literally borrowing a page of Dr. Seuss, we all cut our teeth on a copy of Green Eggs and Ham, bars and breweries alike began offering green beer to quench the thirst of patrons not partial to the pickings plundered from the Emerald Isle.  Suffice to say, this took off like gangbusters in the United States over the past several years.  Guinness and other stout brands have worked hard to make inroads into the global market to be the “official” brew of St. Patrick’s day through decades of clever marketing campaigns designed to extend demand throughout the year (with decidedly more success than those merchandising 4th of July trees or Thanksgiving fireworks).

Question is, where do the hot spots remain for Green Beer vs. Irish Stouts on that most holy of beeridays, St. Patrick’s Day?  We went to Twitter to found out.

As you can see, the middle of the United States is awash with the green tweets of Green Beer drinks while the major urban areas, both the United States and Europe, tend to be drinking more of the authentic stouts on the day the saint drove the snakes from Ireland.  What is interesting is how the notion of drinking green beer on St. Patrick’s day has expanded beyond the US borders, rearing it’s food safe tinted head in central Europe and Scandinavia.  Could Green Beer be the best way to track Red States?  Could Guinness become the beverage of choice at Democratic fundraisers?  Reach out if you want to know more.  We analyze real people using real data to drive real insights.  And yes, I did quaff a Guinness on Monday to celebrate my heritage and my love of beer you can chew!