Full Budweiser Clydsdale Team Visits Ft Collin’s Brewery Saturday

Have you ever seen the Budweiser Clydesdales up close?

To really appreciate how big and powerful this team of horses is, you should see them in person. You have a chance to do that at the Anheuser-Busch Brewery in Fort Collins on Saturday, January 5, from 1 to 3 p.m.

When prohibition ended in 1933, August A. Busch, Jr. and Adolphus Busch III surprised their dad, August A. Busch, Sr., with the gift of a six-horse Clydesdale hitch.

Realizing the marketing potential of a horse-drawn beer wagon, the company also arranged to have a second six-horse Clydesdale hitch sent to New York on April 7, 1933 to mark the event. The Clydesdales drew a crowd of thousands as they clattered down the streets of New York City to the Empire State Building. After a small ceremony, a case of Budweiser was presented to former Governor Alfred E. Smith in appreciation of his years of service in the fight against Prohibition.

Shortly after the hitch was introduced, the six-horse Clydesdale team was increased to eight. On March 30, 1950, in commemoration of the opening of the Newark Brewery, a Dalmatian was introduced as the Budweiser Clydesdales’ mascot. Now, a Dalmatian travels with each of the Clydesdale hitches. Today, Anheuser-Busch owns approximately 250 Clydesdales.

Get out and see this historic hitch of horses while they're in Ft Collins, it will be worth the drive. And you can take the free tour of the Anheuser-Busch Brewery while you're there.