Tap Handle #856: Blue Dawg Brewing Company (Anheuser-Busch)

10/02/2025 10:49:00 PM

Tap Handle #856: Blue Dawg Brewing Company (Anheuser-Busch) - Wild Blue Blueberry Lager

Tap size: 11.25"

Rarity: 10 or less seen, beer no longer produced, special event

Mounting: 3/8" ferrule on 5/16" anchor bolt

I missed out on this tap the first time I saw it several years ago and put it on my wish list. I adored the cartoonish blue bulldog mascot who was pictured kicking a blueberry off of his back foot. In fact, I was able to grab a large tin Wild Blue sign, which also featured mascots for Rascal's Wild Red and Shadow's Wild Black, other varieties offered by Blue Dawg. I was fortunate to pick up the tap a few years later. I've only ever seen a handful of these taps, including mine. They date back to the 2005-2007 era when the beer was being tested at special events and beer festivals; when the beer went into production in 2008, it was only produced in six packs and not on tap. This explains why so few of these are to be found, and why similar taps do not exist for Wild Red or Wild Black, as those beers weren't released until 2012 (also exclusively in six packs and not on tap). Price data is hard to peg; the last couple of these taps that I saw sold for just over $100 on the secondary market, but that was back in 2020.

There's really not much information to be found regarding Blue Dawg Brewing Company or Wild Blue Blueberry Lager. While it was first released to the American beer market in 2008, it actually traces its roots back to 2005-2006. During that time, small batches were brewed and tested at special events and beer festivals in Ann Arbor, Grand Rapids, Holland, and Muskegon, Michigan; Madison, Wisconsin; and Bloomington, Illinois. Final testing was done in St. Louis, Missouri in 2007. Wild Blue was awarded a gold medal by the North American Brewer's Association at the 2006 North American Beer Awards. It was produced by Blue Dawg Brewing Company, a subsidiary of Anheuser-Busch, at the A-B Brewery in Baldwinsville, New York, and distributed on a national level. In 2012, Blue Dawg added Rascal's Wild Red Raspberry Lager and Shadow's Wild Black Blackberry Lager to their lineup. There was some controversary around the packaging, as some people felt that Wild Blue, Wild Red and Wild Black's imagery bore a strong resemblance to Flying Dog's package imagery. Blue Dawg's website was active only in 2008; in subsequent years an error was encountered when navigating to their website. The Facebook page listed on the beer's packaging never materialized. Despite this lack of promotion, all three beers remained in production until 2018, when they were finally discontinued.

Wild Blue beer was a fruit-style lager with 8% ABV, brewed with a blend of two- and six-row barley malt, classic Aroma hops from the Willamette Valley in the Pacific Northwest, and German hops from the Hallertau region in Bavaria, as well as all-natural blueberry syrup made from real blueberries. Its aroma, flavor, and taste were of blueberry. The beer was light-bodied, with high carbonation and a sweetness that lasts all throughout. There was a very slight maltiness at the base without any hop presence, which made the taste more akin to a wine cooler than a beer. Recommended food pairings were pork rib roast with fig and pistachio stuffing or pork tenderloin with apricot mustard, fruit salad with ginger syrup, or a mixed-green salad with dried fruit.