A new Dos Equis, with a 50 pct twist

THE NEWS


There’s Dos Equis Ambar, Dos Equis Lager, and now . . . Dos Equis Radler.

Mexico’s No. 2 brewery, Cuauhtémoc Moctezuma, is looking to attract new consumers to the beer-drinking world, and to that end officially launched a new product Wednesday — Dos Equis Radler.

Targeting consumers who aren’t necessarily used to the taste of beer, Dos Equis Radler distinguishes itself by being made up of 50 percent natural lemonade.

Radler, which means cyclist, has long been a popular beer-based mixed beverage in the German-speaking world and much of Eastern Europe. It is, as its name implies, a favorite of cyclists and other athletes, a segment that Cuauhtémoc Moctezuma is going after.

“In fact, it was made famous by cyclists,” Leandro Berrone, the brewery’s vice president of marketing, told the Mexican news agency Notimex in an interview. “They drink it after a race.”

Berrone also made the point that Radler-style beer is “easy to drink,” a trait he described as important for the Mexican market.

“Dos Equis Radler will attract new consumers,” he said.

Many of those new consumers, he said, will be people who normally don’t drink beer. It’s association with sports activity will be a draw, he said, as will be its place within the well-known Dos Equis brand.

Cuauhtémoc Moctezuma CEO Juan Manuel de la Vega acknowledged that the development of Dos Equis Radler has been a challenging task for the company. The required lemonade component is not commonly produced, and has to be imported from Germany.

The German supplier, however, is developing a plant in Colima, and will soon be producing the lemonade in that Mexican state.

According to the company, Dos Equis Radler will be available beginning March 27 wherever Dos Equis beer is sold.