What do you think of when I say “orange slice with a wheat Mohawk?” Of course, I’m talking about Shock Top! Produced by the biggest beer company in the United States, Shock Top has made its way to the top of the beer industry. However, despite its popularity, not everyone knows where it is brewed and its humble origins. This article will change that, starting with this answer.

Shock Top was first brewed in 2006 in Fort Collins, Colorado, under the name “Spring Heat Spiced Wheat.” Now, the beer is brewed at the Anheuser-Busch headquarters in St Louis, Missouri, United States. The beer is not brewed outside the United States.

Concise as this quick answer may be, there is still a need to know more about the roots and current brewing location of Shock Top beer. As such, we will duly consider that below, as well as other important information about Shock Top. Let’s begin!

Where Was Shock Top Founded?

The Anheuser-Busch beer company is the largest in the United States and was founded in 1852 in St. Louis, Missouri. While the beer company has been serving top-notch beers across the country since then, Shock Top was only founded in 2006 in Fort Collins, Colorado. The beer was brewed using a blend of domestic Cascade, Willamette, and Hallertau hops. When first brewed, the beer was 5.2% ABV and marketed under “Spring Heat Spiced Wheat.”

Interestingly, the ale beer was brewed to be a seasonal offering. However, the beer took first place at the North American beer Awards for its category (Belgian White). The next year, 2007, the beer came in third at the same award and in the same category. The strong showings at the awards were more than enough hints that the beer was good enough to be available all year round. The rest is history.

Where Is Shock Top Brewed In The United States?

While Shock Top was first brewed in Fort Collins, Colorado, reports suggest that it is mainly brewed at the Anheuser-Busch headquarters in St. Louis, Missouri. This is not unsurprising, as Anheuser-Busch has 13 breweries across the United States, with its headquarters in St. Louis, Missouri.

Anheuser-Busch’s brewery in Fort Collins is still very much operational, brewing more than 35 different beers, including Bud, Bud Light, Michelob, Michelob Ultra, Busch, and of course, Busch Light.

Quite clearly, the Fort Collins brewery is one of the 13 concerned with brewing the biggest beers of the Anheuser-Busch brand. This makes sense, too, as you would expect these beers to be in much higher demand across all areas of the United States. Conversely, although boasting dedicated fans, Shock Top does not command the same demand as the stated beers. Therefore, Anheuser-Busch can afford to limit brewing to just its headquarter brewing location in Missouri.

Is Shock Top Available Around The United States?

Yes, Shock Top is available across the United States. Unfortunately, that is no guarantee that the beer will always be present in stores and even bars. In essence, while there is no restriction to the sale of beer in any state in the United States, the demand is not just as high as some other top beers in the industry. This implies that there will be far more frequent “out of stock” messages than the beer’s fans would care for.

However, even if you cannot get the beer in physical stores in your location, there is the option to order online. Shock Top’s official website will allow you to order from platforms like Drizly, Minibar, and Saucey. But even the online method of ordering the beer is not very reliable. Not only can beers take up to five days before it gets to you, depending on your location, but these online platforms may not have the beer available in your particular location.

Nonetheless, the Shock Top brand has put efforts into marketing the beer across the country. For instance, in 2017, the brand rebranded, sporting a new logo and graphics. Shock Top had starred in a Super Bowl commercial a year prior to that.

Is Shock Top Brewed Globally?

No, Shock Top is brewed only in the United States. Of course, you may be able to get the beer in neighboring countries, like Canada and Mexico, but Anheuser-Busch does not brew the beer in those countries. And, frankly, it is unlikely that Shock Top beer brewing will move overseas anytime soon for multiple reasons.

Firstly, Anheuser-Busch is an American Brewing company and is a subsidiary of Anheuser-Busch InBev SA/NV. The headquarters of AB InBev is in Leuven, Belgium. However, the operations of the Anheuser-Busch brewing company is solely in the United States, and there is no indication that will change in the future. Therefore, the production of most American-produced beers, like Shock Top, will remain in the United States.

Further, the demand for Shock Top is not nearly high enough for brewing to commence in other countries. Not to mention that the brand has even had difficulties serving the United States, let alone other countries.

That said, you can still enjoy Shock Top in other countries if you can arrange with distributors or others to send the beer to you. However, there will be more costs incurred in getting the beer.

Worthy of note is that some other beer producers basically make very similar ales to Shock Top. One example is Labatt Breweries in Canada. While you cannot expect the quality of the beers other producers make to be the same as Anheuser-Busch’s, it can definitely go a long way in satisfying the Shock Top cravings of people who cannot easily access it.

Brewmasters can also make clone beers that seek to replicate the properties of hock Top responsible for its flavor and other physical properties. Even non-professionals can make a good clone beer with the right tools in regions where the original beer is unavailable.

Are All Variants Of Shock Top Available Across The United States

Shock Top started in 2006 as a Belgian White and competed at award ceremonies under that category. Now, there is a variety of Shock Top offerings.

The most popular and flagship beer of the Shock Top brand is Belgian White Beer, a direct competitor of MillerCoors’ best seller Blue Moon. Other popular beer offerings of the Shock Top brand are Pumpkin Wheat Beer, Raspberry Wheat Beer, Honeycrisp Apple Wheat Ale, and Lemon Shandy.

You can get all of these variants in the United States. However, considering the lack of ready availability of Belgian White Beer across all states, it isn’t too far-fetched to imagine that these beers will be even less available across all the states in the US.

As with Belgian White, it is also possible to make clones of the other Shock Top variants in the event of poor availability.

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