MILWAUKEE — Molson Coors is appealing a National Advertising Division decision after the organization told Molson Coors it had to stop using the phrase "light beer shouldn't taste like water. It should taste like beer" in its advertisements.
Molson Coors began using the phrase in 2022, and Anheuser-Busch took it as criticism of their beer. They challenged the advertisement through the NAD, according to our partners at the Milwaukee Business Journal.
The NAD looked into the issue and ruled Molson Coors had to stop using the phrase, because, "although no specific competing light beer is identified by name in the challenged videos, NAD determined that tasting 'like water' is a measurable attribute."
Now, however, Molson Coors is appealing the decision.
"Following a complaint from Anheuser-Busch, the National Advertising Division asked us not to publicly state the opinion that light beer shouldn’t taste like water. We vehemently disagree with this decision because we believe light beer should taste like beer, not water, and we are well within our right to share that belief," Molson Coors said in an emailed statement to the BizJournal. "We have appealed the NAD’s decision and will proudly continue to make light beer that tastes like beer."
Molson Coors has a large facility in Milwaukee with about 1,500 local employees, the BizJournal reported.
