Don’t call it an ugly sweater.
Blue Moon’s getting into the holiday apparel game with its Vax Card-igan, a festive cardigan sweater that includes a transparent pocket holder for easy access to this season’s must-have accessory: proof of vaccination.
“With more bars and restaurants requiring vaccination cards to enter, Blue Moon’s Vax Card-igan is fashionable and functional, and a cool, festive sweater to brighten the season,” says Samantha Wolkowicz, brand manager for Blue Moon. “The best way to enjoy a Blue Moon Belgian White is on draft with that Valencia orange peel, so we want to make it easier for people to get inside and hang with their friends.”
Coming in three styles, Blue Moon’s first-ever holiday sweaters are bright and merry, and are available beginning Dec. 9 at bluemoonvaxcardigan.com for $20.21, “in the hopes that this is only year we’ll need them,” Wolkowicz says. All proceeds will benefit the U.S. Bartenders Guild, an organization that supports bartenders during difficult times; since March 2020, Molson Coors has donated more than $1 million to the organization.
The limited-quantity cardigans will begin shipping the week of Dec. 13.
The sweaters also help to celebrate Blue Moon’s return to the all-important on-premise, where it sells about half of its volume. Climbing back from the pandemic that virtually shuttered all on-premise sales in 2020, the brand has regained about 91% of its pre-pandemic volume, Wolkowicz says.
Not only that, but its share of draft has also jumped to 6.7% this year, up from 6.3% last year, making it the third-largest share gainer among beer brands, Beer Business Daily reported, citing data from Draftline. That’s the most share of draft Blue Moon has held since 2019, when it held 6.6% share.
“We’re seeing the trends go in the right direction. Blue Moon is known as a beer to drink in bars, and the brand has a lot of momentum right now going into the holidays,” Wolkowicz says.