Coors Light Beer

Origin: United States · Brewer: Molson Coors · ABV 4.2% · Formerly in our Top 10

Coors Light - the "Silver Bullet" - is one of the largest light lagers in the United States and Canada, and remains a top-ten US brand by volume even as the broader light-lager category has come under pressure from hard seltzers and Mexican imports. Outside North America its scale is smaller, which is why it sits just outside our current global Top 10.

From Golden, Colorado

The Coors story begins in 1873, when German immigrant Adolph Coors and partner Jacob Schueler opened the Golden Brewery in Golden, Colorado, drawn to the area by the cold, mineral-poor Rocky Mountain spring water that is still the brand's signature ingredient. Coors Light - the lighter, 4.2 percent ABV version - was launched in 1978 and rapidly became one of the foundational American "light beers".

What's in it

Coors Light is brewed from two-row Moravian-style barley malt, corn (as the adjunct), hops and Rocky Mountain water, fermented and lagered cold and then cold-filtered for a clean, snappy finish. A 12 oz serving contains about 102 calories and 5 g of carbohydrates. The label is famous for its cold-activated thermochromic ink - the mountains turn blue when the beer is at the brand's recommended serving temperature.

Owner and scale

The brewery has changed hands several times: Coors Brewing Company merged with Canada's Molson in 2005 to form Molson Coors, which subsequently struck a joint venture with SABMiller (MillerCoors) for the US market and then took full control after the 2016 AB InBev / SABMiller deal. Coors Light is now the flagship lager of Molson Coors and is sold in around 40 countries, with the United States, Canada, the UK and Ireland its largest markets.

The "Silver Bullet" nickname

The Silver Bullet name comes from the all-silver can introduced in the 1980s, when light beer was still a relatively new category and a streamlined metallic design was used to signal something modern and refreshing. The name stuck and has been a permanent marketing asset ever since.

Sources: Molson Coors Beverage Company annual reports and brand information; product nutrition data published by the brewer.