Steve’s breakdown: Here’s a classic Ratti Report story. A big brand launches a new product, doesn’t really advertise, the product does well so they launch a sister product. This is when a “congratulations phone call” works twice as hard to get you a foot in the door. Contact: Rob McCarthy, Bud Light vice president

ST. LOUIS, MO: In a bid to replicate the success of its Bud Light Lime-A-Rita, today Anheuser-Busch is launching national sales of the latest flavor in the lineup, Straw-Ber-Rita.

Following its 2012 launch, Lime-A-Rita took the flavored malt beverage crown in less than eight months, selling more than a half million barrels, the company said.

Now A-B is rolling out its newest flavored malt beverage, Straw-Ber-Rita, an 8 percent alcohol by volume drink in 8, 16 and 14 oz. cans, that blends Bud Light Lime with strawberry margarita. A 6 percent alcohol by volume version is available in Maine, New Hampshire and Tennessee.

“The response to Lime-A-Rita, especially among non-beer drinkers, was tremendous, and we knew we’d tapped into a winning insight we could build on,” Rob McCarthy, Bud Light vice president, said in a statement.

Anheuser-Busch InBev is investing heavily on new premium beverages for the U.S. market. A-B’s beer volume in the U.S. last year grew for the first time since 2008, driven by gains in market share of its Bud Light Platinum and Bud Light Lime Lime-A-Rita, which were both released in 2012.

So far this year, A-B’s new additions to its product portfolio include Budweiser Black Crown and Beck’s Sapphire.

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