Olde English 800#Alcohol content

Olde English 800, also known as 8 ball or Old E (O’ E or Ol' E in some colloquial dialects), was introduced in 1964. It had its origins in the late 1940s as Ruff's Olde English Stout, brewed by Peoples Brewing Company of Duluth, Minnesota.{{Cite book|last= Hoverson |first= Doug |year= 2007 |title= Land of Amber Waters: The History of Brewing in Minnesota |location= Minneapolis, Minnesota |publisher= University of Minnesota Press |pages= 166 }} Rebranded Olde English 600, it was later sold to Bohemian Breweries of Spokane, Washington, and then to Blitz-Weinhard of Portland, Oregon, where it became Olde English 800. By the time Blitz-Weinhard was sold to the Pabst Brewing Company in 1979, Olde English Malt Liquor had become their top brand.

{{quote box|align=right|width=33%|quote = Michael Hagan's idea of a good time is to guzzle a few bottles of Olde English "800" Malt Liquor and smoke PCP with his fellow gang members in the slums of south central Los Angeles. There is no telling what might happen. - The first line of an August 1987 Time magazine story called "Life And Death With the Gangs"{{cite magazine | title= Life And Death With the Gangs | url= https://content.time.com/time/subscriber/article/0,33009,965284,00.html | date= August 24, 1987| magazine=Time | access-date= 2010-10-24}}}}

In August 1989, when the brand was owned by Pabst and targeted by the brewer towards the "urban contemporary market", a coalition of "22 public interest groups involved in minority issues" criticized the marketing of Olde English ﹘which as a malt liquor has a higher alcohol content than most beers﹘ on what they characterized as an "emphasis on Black and Hispanic consumers."{{cite news | title=Groups Plan to Protest Malt Liquor Campaigns | url= https://www.nytimes.com/1989/08/23/business/the-media-business-advertising-groups-plan-to-protest-malt-liquor-campaigns.html | date= August 23, 1989| publisher=The New York Times | work= The Media Business| access-date= 2010-10-24}}

In 1991, 1992, 1994, and 1995, while still owned by Pabst, Olde English was awarded a gold medal in the American Malt Liquor category at the Great American Beer Festival. In 1992, Pabst introduced Old English 800 Draft, a cold-filtered instead of pasteurized "draft-style" malt liquor.{{cite magazine | title= Pabst premieres a malt liquor 'draft' | url= http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-12255229.html | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20121105005410/http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-12255229.html | url-status= dead | archive-date= 2012-11-05 | magazine= Modern Brewery Age | access-date= 2010-10-24 |url-access= }}{{cite web| url= http://consumerist.com/2010/10/is-olde-english-truly-the-worst-beer.html | title= Is Olde English Truly The Worst Beer? | publisher=The Consumerist | work=Ratings| date= 20 October 2010 | access-date= 2010-10-24}} Olde English received the gold medal in the American Style Specialty Lager category in 1997. The 1999 acquisition of Olde English 800 by Miller meant its share of the U.S. malt liquor business grew to 36 percent; it also led to a "less controversial" marketing strategy for the brand, one that by 2000 included the sponsorship of a series of minority business seminars.{{cite web| title= Miller Goes Soft on Marketing Malt Liquor by Sponsoring Minority Seminars | date= October 23, 2000 | url= http://www.accessmylibrary.com/article/print/1G1-121924253 | work= Milwaukee Journal Sentinel | publisher= AccessMyLibrary | access-date= 2010-10-24}}

In 2010, the 3.2% ABV version of Olde English was rated one of "the worst beer[s] in the world" by RateBeer.com, a beer rating website.{{cite web| url= http://www.ratebeer.com/Ratings/TheWorstBeers.asp| title= The worst beer in the world| publisher=RateBeer.com| work=Ratings| access-date= 2010-10-24}}

In 2021 Olde English HG 800 the classic 8% malt liquor 40oz glass bottle was discontinued. It wasn't fully gone from shelves until early/mid 2023 in Western Canada. {{cite web |last1=Kendall |first1=Justin |title=Molson Coors CEO Touts ‘Outcomes,’ Stresses Premiumization in Q2; Rationalizes and Refocuses Economy Portfolio |url=https://www.brewbound.com/news/molson-coors-ceo-touts-outcomes-stresses-premiumization-in-q2-rationalizes-and-refocuses-economy-portfolio/ |website=brewbound}} As of 2024 in the east coast market, Miller has resumed selling Olde English in glass 40 oz bottles after nearly a decade of selling the beer in 40 oz plastic containers.

As of 2010, Olde English 800 is brewed in several versions which vary in alcohol by volume (ABV):

Currently it is available in a 16-ounce [473 ml] pint can, 24-ounce [710 ml] "tallboy" can, a 22-ounce [651 ml], 40-ounce [1.183 liter] or 42-ounce [1.242 liter] plastic bottle, or a 40-ounce glass bottle. It was originally available in 12-ounce [355 ml] or 32-ounce [947 ml] "King Size" (c.1999) cans and 22-, 45- or 64-ounce glass bottles.

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{{cite web | url= http://www.sabmiller.com/index.asp?pageid=493 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20160303174755/http://www.sabmiller.com/index.asp?pageid=493 | url-status= dead | archive-date= 2016-03-03 | title= Olde English 800 Malt Liquor | publisher= SABMiller | access-date= 2010-10-24 }}

{{cite web| url= http://www.millercoors.com/our-beers/nutrition-facts-codes.aspx | title= Nutrition and Codes – Domestic | publisher= MillerCoors | access-date= 2010-10-24}}

{{cite news| title= For Minority Youths, 40 Ounces of Trouble | date= April 16, 1993 | url= https://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9F0CE4DD1E30F935A25757C0A965958260 | newspaper= The New York Times | access-date= 2010-10-24}}

{{cite web| title= Past Winners| url=http://www.greatamericanbeerfestival.com/the-competition/winners/past-winners/ | publisher= Great American Beer Festival | access-date= 2010-10-24}}

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{{Molson Coors Beverage Company}}

{{SABMiller}}

{{Malt liquors}}

Category:American beer brands

Category:1964 establishments in the United States