Zima Clearmalt was a clear, lightly
carbonated
Carbonation is the chemical reaction of carbon dioxide to give carbonates, bicarbonates, and carbonic acid. In chemistry, the term is sometimes used in place of carboxylation, which refers to the formation of carboxylic acids.
In inorganic ch ...
alcoholic beverage
An alcoholic beverage (also called an alcoholic drink, adult beverage, or a drink) is a drink that contains ethanol, a type of alcohol that acts as a drug and is produced by fermentation of grains, fruits, or other sources of sugar. The c ...
made and distributed by the
Coors Brewing Company
The Coors Brewing Company started as an American brewery and beer company in Golden, Colorado. In 2005, Adolph Coors Company, the holding company that owned Coors Brewing, merged with Molson, Inc. to become Molson Coors.
The first Coors b ...
. Introduced in 1993, it was marketed as an alternative to beer, an example of what is now often referred to as a
cooler
A cooler, portable ice chest, ice box, cool box, chilly bin (in New Zealand), or esky ( Australia) is an insulated box used to keep food or drink cool.
Ice cubes are most commonly placed in it to help the contents inside stay cool. Ice packs a ...
, with 4.7–5.4%
alcohol by volume.
Its production in the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
ceased in October 2008, but it was still marketed in
Japan
Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
until 2021. On June 2, 2017, MillerCoors announced a limited release of Zima for the U.S. market. It was sold again in the U.S. in the summers of 2017 and 2018, but did not return in 2019.
History
Zima
Zima may refer to:
* Zima (drink), an alcoholic beverage
* Zima (town), a town in Russia
* Zima (surname)
* '' Zima Blue and Other Stories'', a collection of short works by Alastair Reynolds
* Zima, a character in the anime series ''Chobits
...
means "winter" in many Slavic languages. It was launched nationally in the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
as Zima Clearmalt in 1993 after being test-marketed two years earlier in the cities of
Nashville
Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the seat of Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the most populous city in the state, 21st most-populous city in the U.S., and the ...
,
Sacramento
)
, image_map = Sacramento County California Incorporated and Unincorporated areas Sacramento Highlighted.svg
, mapsize = 250x200px
, map_caption = Location within Sacramento ...
, and
Syracuse. The lemon-lime drink was part of the "
clear craze
The clear craze was a marketing fad from the late 1980s to early 2000s, often equating transparency with purity. Inspired by Ivory's "99 and 44/100 percent pure" campaign for bath soap, and by low-calorie or "light" beverages, sodas were redesig ...
" of the 1990s that produced products such as
Crystal Pepsi
Crystal Pepsi is a clear cola soft drink made by PepsiCo. It was initially released in the United States and Canada from 1992 to 1994. Online grassroots revival efforts prompted brief re-releases throughout the mid-2010s. It was briefly sold ...
and
Tab Clear.
Early advertisements for Zima described it as a "truly unique alcohol beverage" and used the tagline "Zomething different".
Zima offered an alternative to the then-successful
wine cooler
A wine cooler is an alcoholic beverage made from wine and fruit juice, often in combination with a carbonated beverage and sugar.
Traditionally home-made, wine coolers have been bottled and sold by commercial distributors since the early 198 ...
category. Coors spent $50 million marketing Zima in its first year, persuading nearly half of American alcohol drinkers to try it. ''
Brandweek
''Brandweek'' is a three-day brand marketing symposium and a part of Adweek, LLC. It was also previously a weekly American marketing trade publication that was published between 1986 and April 2011.
Profile
Brandweek is a part of Adweek, coverin ...
'' magazine reported that at Zima's peak in 1994, 1.2 million barrels of the beverage were sold. It was originally popular among young women. Coors made its first attempt at attracting young men to the brand in 1995 by marketing Zima Gold (an amber-colored beverage that promised a "taste of bourbon"). The drink was unpopular and disappeared from store shelves within the year.
[
In describing ''The Long, Slow, Torturous Death of Zima'', writer Brendan Koerner cited Zima's perceived reputation as a "girly-man" beverage and its persistent parodying by late-night TV host David Letterman.][ The '']Chicago Tribune
The ''Chicago Tribune'' is a daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, United States, owned by Tribune Publishing. Founded in 1847, and formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper" (a slogan for which WGN radio and television ar ...
'' reported that distributors were asked to stock "caffeinated alcoholic beverage Sparks on retail store shelves to make up for Zima’s absence".
In the late 2000s, the beverage was marketed in additional flavors: citrus, tangerine, and pineapple citrus.[
On October 20, 2008, MillerCoors LLC announced that it had discontinued production of Zima in the U.S., choosing instead to focus on other "malternative" beverages.][
In February 2017, MillerCoors announced that they were in negotiations to bring Zima back to the U.S. market. On June 2, 2017, it was announced that Zima would have a limited release beginning on July 4 weekend.]
See also
* List of defunct consumer brands
This is a list of defunct consumer brands which are no longer made and usually no longer mass-marketed to consumers. Brands in this list may still be made, but are only made in modest quantities and/or limited runs as a nostalgic or retro style i ...
References
{{reflist
External links
Zima brand profile on Brandchannel
Products and services discontinued in 2008
Zima
Zima may refer to:
* Zima (drink), an alcoholic beverage
* Zima (town), a town in Russia
* Zima (surname)
* '' Zima Blue and Other Stories'', a collection of short works by Alastair Reynolds
* Zima, a character in the anime series ''Chobits
...
Defunct drink brands
Zima
Zima may refer to:
* Zima (drink), an alcoholic beverage
* Zima (town), a town in Russia
* Zima (surname)
* '' Zima Blue and Other Stories'', a collection of short works by Alastair Reynolds
* Zima, a character in the anime series ''Chobits
...
Products introduced in 1993