malt liquor

I was doing some research on malt liquor for a writing piece, here are some of the interesting facts I found:

Pro-Drinking Messages and Message Environments for Young Adults: The Case of Alcohol Industry Advertising in African American, Latino, and Native American Communities


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-"Malt liquor" was first documented during Roman times, and was produced without preservatives, thus inducing people to consume it while still fresh. Malt liquor and other Germanic beverages, were scorned by the rich. They were considered the drink of the poorer classes in Gaul, the Barbarians and mountain people.

-A content analysis examined 1,000 of the most popular songs in 1996-97 across five genres of music popular with youth. This study found that 17 percent of all the lyrics contained references to alcohol and that alcohol was mentioned more frequently in rap music (47 percent) than in other genres such as country-western (13 percent), top 40 (12 percent), alternative rock (10 percent), and heavy metal (3 percent). Overall, 22 percent of songs with alcohol mentions referred to beer or malt liquor, 34 percent to wine or champagne, 36 percent to hard liquor or mixed drinks, and 31 percent to generic terms such as “booze.” A common theme was getting intoxicated or high (24 percent), although drinking was also associated with wealth and luxury (24 percent), sexual activity (34 percent), and crime or violence (13 percent).

-There is an energy drink called Four Loko Malt Liquor Energy Drink

-Malt liquor, in particular, is heavily advertised and promoted to African American young adults. Malt liquor brews typically contain between 4.5% and 6% alcohol compared to 3.4% to 4% for regular beers. While the beer industry has seen declines, the U.S. beer market share of malt liquor went from 5.7% in I980 to 9.5% in I995. Malt liquor sells best in African American and other ethnic minority markets.

-Gangsta rap performers such as RUN-DMC and N.W.A. have made the image of the 40 oz. malt liquor bottle a popular symbol of masculinity. A particularly explicit advertisement featured Ice Cube asserting that St. Ides "Gets your girl in the mood quicker" and "Gets your Jimmy thicker."

The following is a radio ad for St. Ides malt liquor:

Mmmmm,I need some refreshin'

when I finish manifessin'

Too cold to hold Bold like Smith and Wesson ...

Ice Cube's in the house don't you know me

Pour out on the curb for the homies.

-In March I992 Hornell Brewing Co. of Brooklyn, New York intro-duced "Crazy Horse" malt liquor as part of its celebration of the American West themes. Subsequently, the American Indian Movement (AIM) and Honor Our Neighbors Origins and Rights (HONOR), Inc., called for a nation-wide boycott of "Crazy Horse" malt liquor. The brewers have stated that they are honoring the memory of Crazy Horse with the product and that they are not targeting Native Americans.