St. Ides
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St. Ides is a
malt liquor Malt liquor is a type of mass market beer with high alcohol content, most closely associated with North America. Legally, it often includes any alcoholic beverage with 5% or more alcohol by volume made with malted barley. In common usage, it ...
manufactured by the
Pabst Brewing Company The Pabst Brewing Company () is an American company that dates its origins to a brewing company founded in 1844 by Jacob Best and was, by 1889, named after Frederick Pabst. It is currently a holding company which contracts the brewing of over ...
. The beverage contains 8.2%
alcohol Alcohol most commonly refers to: * Alcohol (chemistry), an organic compound in which a hydroxyl group is bound to a carbon atom * Alcohol (drug), an intoxicant found in alcoholic drinks Alcohol may also refer to: Chemicals * Ethanol, one of sev ...
by volume, which is stronger than many high-alcohol malt liquors. It was launched by the
McKenzie River Corporation McKenzie River Corporation is a beverage marketing firm based in San Francisco, CA. Founded in 1987 by Joseph Wessinger with the help of his father, Fred Wessinger, the McKenzie River Corporation has launched a number of successful beverage produc ...
in 1987. St. Ides gained prominence during the late 1980s and early 1990s through the use of
celebrity endorsement Celebrity branding or celebrity endorsement is a form of advertising campaign or marketing strategy which uses a celebrity's fame or social status to promote a product, brand or service, or to raise awareness about an issue. Marketers use celebr ...
s by rap artists. The beer is also available in a number of "St. Ides Special Brews" which have a variety of
flavoring A flavoring (or flavouring), also known as flavor (or flavour) or flavorant, is a food additive used to improve the taste or smell of food. It changes the perceptual impression of food as determined primarily by the chemoreceptors of the gusta ...
s, including various
fruit In botany, a fruit is the seed-bearing structure in flowering plants that is formed from the ovary after flowering. Fruits are the means by which flowering plants (also known as angiosperms) disseminate their seeds. Edible fruits in particu ...
flavors.


Marketing

The St. Ides brand has used
celebrity endorsement Celebrity branding or celebrity endorsement is a form of advertising campaign or marketing strategy which uses a celebrity's fame or social status to promote a product, brand or service, or to raise awareness about an issue. Marketers use celebr ...
s by
rappers Rapping (also rhyming, spitting, emceeing or MCing) is a musical form of vocal delivery that incorporates "rhyme, rhythmic speech, and street vernacular". It is performed or chanted, usually over a backing beat or musical accompaniment. The ...
and was unique in its early use of hip hop to build the brand's identity.
DJ Pooh A disc jockey, more commonly abbreviated as DJ, is a person who plays recorded music for an audience. Types of DJs include radio DJs (who host programs on music radio stations), club DJs (who work at a nightclub or music festival), mobile ...
was brought in to design advertisements for the liquor and was given broad artistic license. In such contexts, the beer was often referred to as the "Crooked ".
Chuck D Carlton Douglas Ridenhour (born August 1, 1960), known professionally as Chuck D, is an American rapper, best known as the leader and frontman of the hip hop group Public Enemy, which he co-founded in 1985 with Flavor Flav. Chuck D helped creat ...
took a stance against malt liquor advertising and sued the brand's then-owner, the McKenzie River Brewing Company, for using his voice without his permission. The controversy generated significant publicity for St. Ides, placed it on the average hip hop listener's radar, and was settled out of court. Another lawsuit was filed in 1991 by the New York State Attorney General's Office for advertisements allegedly targeting underage minority children. While the lawsuit was settled out of court and without admitting any guilt, the company agreed to pay the state $50,000 to cover the cost of the investigation and stop touting its alcohol content. The brand was also fined and shutdown for three days in 1991 by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms. While the brand maintained that it has not purposefully targeted minors, it agreed to produce advertisements warning against underage drinking, drunk driving, and public service announcements promoting safe sex. In 1994, a free promotional tape was released featuring the music in advertisements from Snoop Doggy Dogg, Warren G, Nate Dogg, MC Eiht, Scarface, Ice Cube and Wu-Tang Clan. St. Ides also released "St. Ides Special Blend Freeze And Squeeze" in July 1997, but had to suspend sales and marketing nationwide 24 days later due to concerns over underage consumption, marketing, and product placement.David M. Halbfinger
"Producer, Under Siege, Drops Icy Malt Drink"
''
New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...
''. 25 July, 1997. Retrieved 16 August 2022.
McKenzie discontinued the brand in 1998 before it was purchased by Pabst Brewing Company.


Trivia

*St. Ides was originally called St. Ides Premium Malt Liquor and was 6.2% and 7.3% ABV, then the brew was reformulated in the early 2000s and the alcohol content became 8.1 & 8.2% ABV and St Ides became St. Ides High Gravity Malt Liquor. *St. Ides has been parodied in the movie ''
Don't Be a Menace to South Central While Drinking Your Juice in the Hood ''Don't Be a Menace to South Central While Drinking Your Juice in the Hood'' (or simply ''Don't Be a Menace'') is a 1996 American black comedy film directed by Paris Barclay in his feature film directorial debut, and produced by Keenen Ivory Wayan ...
'' with the name "St. DiES". *Rappers that have mentioned St. Ides in their music include
Big Daddy Kane Antonio Hardy (born September 10, 1968), better known by his stage name Big Daddy Kane, is an American rapper who began his career in 1986 as a member of the Juice Crew. He is widely regarded as one of the most influential and skilled MCs in hi ...
,
Mobb Deep Mobb Deep was an American hip hop duo from New York City. The duo consisted of rappers Prodigy and Havoc. They are considered to be among the principal progenitors of hardcore East Coast hip hopEdwards, Paul, 2009, ''How to Rap: The Art & Scien ...
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Ice Cube An ice cube is a small piece of ice, which is typically rectangular as viewed from above and trapezoidal as viewed from the side. Ice cubes are products of mechanical refrigeration and are usually produced to cool beverages. They may be produc ...
,
2Pac Tupac Amaru Shakur ( ; born Lesane Parish Crooks, June 16, 1971 – September 13, 1996), also known as 2Pac and Makaveli, was an American rapper. He is widely considered one of the most influential rappers of all time. Shakur is among the b ...
,
Kool G Rap Nathaniel Thomas Wilson (born July 20, 1968), better known by his stage name Kool G Rap (or simply G Rap), is an American rapper from Queens, New York City. He began his career in the mid-1980s as one half of the group Kool G Rap & DJ Polo and as ...
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Dr. Dre Andre Romelle Young (born February 18, 1965), known professionally as Dr. Dre, is an American rapper and record producer. He is the founder and CEO of Aftermath Entertainment and Beats Electronics, and previously co-founded, co-owned, and ...
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Game A game is a structured form of play (activity), play, usually undertaken for enjoyment, entertainment or fun, and sometimes used as an educational tool. Many games are also considered to be work (such as professional players of spectator s ...
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Snoop Dogg Calvin Cordozar Broadus Jr. (born October 20, 1971), known professionally as Snoop Dogg (previously Snoop Doggy Dogg and briefly Snoop Lion), is an American rapper. His fame dates back to 1992 when he featured on Dr. Dre's debut solo single, " ...
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Warren G Warren Griffin III (born November 10, 1970) is an American rapper and producer known for his role in West Coast rap's 1990s ascent.Steve Huey"Warren G: Biography" ''AllMusic.com'', Netaktion LLC, visited May 8, 2020. Along with Snoop Dogg and N ...
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, Scarface,
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Wu-Tang Clan Wu-Tang Clan is an American hip hop group formed in Staten Island, New York City, in 1992. Its original members include RZA, GZA, Ol' Dirty Bastard, Method Man, Raekwon, Ghostface Killah, Inspectah Deck, U-God, and Masta Killa. Close affili ...
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Luniz Luniz (formerly the LuniTunes) is an American hip hop duo from Oakland, California, formed by Yukmouth and Numskull. They were signed to Virgin Records, Noo Trybe Records, and C-Note Records. They were the flagship act for C-Note Records. The g ...
and
KMD KMD ('' K.M.D.'', ''Kausing Much Damage'', or ''A Positive Kause in a Much Damaged Society'') was an American hip hop trio active in the late 1980s and early 1990s. The core of the group was composed of brothers Daniel "Zev Love X" Dumile an ...
. * Macklemore & Ryan Lewis had a song titled "St. Ides" on the album ''
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''. *Comedian
Chris Rock Christopher Julius Rock (born February 7, 1965) is an American stand-up comedian, actor, and filmmaker. Known for his work in comic film, television and stage, he has received multiple accolades, including three Grammy Awards for best come ...
has a line in the song "Champagne", "My baby's father, brought me a case of St. Ides (did you like it?)" *Musician
Elliott Smith Steven Paul Smith (August 6, 1969 – October 21, 2003), known professionally as Elliott Smith, was an American singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. Smith was born in Omaha, Nebraska, raised primarily in Texas, and lived much of hi ...
recorded a song titled "St. Ides Heaven" for his 1995 self-titled album.


References


External links


St. Ides page at Pabst Brewing Company website
{{Malt liquors American beer brands Pabst Brewing Company