Jamie Buscher of Narragansett Beer talks about “Buy RI”, and how the company plans to buy every Rhode Islander a beer.
All thirty-nine Rhode Island cities and towns will have an opportunity to grab their complimentary beer, “We are going down the list alphabetically through all thirty Rhode Island cities and towns starting in Barrington and ending in Woonsocket. We host a happy hour, we hand out a free pint glass that you can take home with you, along with a wooden nickel that is good for one beer and the bartender puts it on our tab," says Buscher.
Over the thirty-nine weeks, “Providence being ‘P’ should be in the warmer months” which Buscher is excited about.
Founded in 1890, Narragansett has a rich history, “Founded by six German immigrants who came over to American and found that there were a lot of English pale ales and no German lagers, and they missed it. It was their taste of home, so they tried to recreate it. We were the first beer company to sponsor major league sports with the Boston Braves, which then became the Boston Red Sox. And in the ’30s and ’40s Dr. Seuss did our advertising before he was a children’s book author. We have had a long time to really learn our craft,” says Buscher.
Narragansett Lager is the original, and according to Buscher, “it’s Gansett’s claim to fame. But we also have a whole line of craft beers out now. We just released our Fresh Catch last year, and that’s a really nice drop hopped golden ale. We also have the very famous Del’s Shandy. I am sure if you’re a Rhode Islander you know what Del’s lemonade is and have had the shandy! We also have our Autocrat Coffee Milk Stout and the It’s About Time IPA.”
Narragansett’s signature coasters are a fun, beloved conversation piece, “The coaster idea began because we used to have puzzles on our bottle caps. And since the trend in beer switched over to cans, people really missed the puzzles. So we figured that the best way to bring them back was on the coasters. It has become a really integral part of being a Rhode Islander in the bar scene. It is a fun game to play with your friends while drinking Gansett,” says Buscher.
Visit Narragansett Beer for a full list of locations and dates to find out when Narragansett will be delving out free beers at a bar near you.
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