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Firestone Walker’s 805 Blonde Ale represents 72% of the brewery’s IRI-tracked chain sales and almost two-thirds of its total volume. It’s unquestionably one of the most successful beer brands launched in the past decade. It’s also an accident.
In Josh Noel’s “Barrel-Aged Stout and Selling Out,” he outlines the beer’s history after AB InBev began having success with 312 Urban Wheat: “The dreadful thought of Anheuser-Busch swooping in to grab the local 805 area code motivated central California’s Firestone Walker Brewing to create a new beer as a defensive tactic.”
While the invention of 805 might have been a reactive, accidental success story, many decision makers at breweries around the country have tried to reverse engineer its success for years, but few have captured the same momentum. Is 805 successful because of its style and brewing execution? Branding and marketing? Does the name “805” have some magic?
Even for Firestone Walker, their perspective on 805’s success has evolved over the years. Sign up to read more.
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Words by Bryan Roth