Jill Vaughn

Last updated

Jill Vaughn (born 1968) was a brewmaster at Anheuser-Busch (now Anheuser-Busch InBev) from 1992 to 2018. She developed and released beers such as Bud Light Lime, Michelob Ultra, Shock Top, Bud Light Platinum, Shock Top, and the Straw-Ber-Rita. [1] [2] [3]

Contents

Education

Vaughn was born in 1968 and grew up in Ohio. She obtained a Bachelor of Science in Food Technology and Animal Science from Ohio State University in 1990, and Master of Science in Food Science and Technology from Ohio State University in 1992. [3] In 2015, Vaughn completed a certificate in sensory and consumer science from the University of California, Davis. [1]

While at Ohio State University, Vaughn saw a job notice on a bulletin board with details about a position opening at one of Anheuser-Busch's breweries. She applied and said in an interview that "before my interview I actually went to the library and took out a textbook on the science of brewing to read on the plane. I brought it to my interview, and they were so impressed that I was taking the opportunity so seriously that I got hired." [3]

Work at Anheuser-Busch

Vaughn held many positions at Anheuser-Busch InBev, including Brewing Group Manager, Process Engineer, New Product Development / Corporate Staff Brewmaster, Assistant Brewmaster / Production Manager, Corporate Staff Brewmaster New Product Development, Manager for Process and Product Development in Innovations for North America, and a Manager for Front End Innovation. [4] [5]

Vaughn was instrumental in developing and releasing many of Anheuser-Busch's most popular beers, including Bud Light Platinum, Bud Light Lime, Michelob Ultra, and Straw-Ber-Rita; however, it is her work as the brewers of Shock Top that gained her the most attention. [2] Shock Top is a Belgian-Style wheat ale, which was originally created in 2006 as a seasonal brew under the name Spring Heat Spiced Wheat. [6] She developed both Shock Top and Straw-Ber-Rita with Rebecca Bennett.

Her work releasing new beer brands was time intensive, a process she said took anywhere from six to 18 months from idea to finished product. She noted that “The fun part, the creative part for me, is taking those ideas and words and translating them into a recipe that works. That's where the art and science of brewing intersect.” [7]

Employment after Anheuser-Busch

Between 2017 and 2018, Vaughn worked as the Director for a joint venture between Anheuser-Busch InBev and Keurig Green Mountain, Inc. to develop a new "in-home" alcohol drink system; the following year, she worked for Archer Daniels Midland Company as their Senior Director for Product Development and Application in the WILD Flavors & Specialty Ingredients Business Unit. [4] Since 2019, Vaughn has been the Senior Director for Research and Development at the Balchem Corporation.[ citation needed ]

Professional involvement

Vaughn has been a member of American Society of Brewing Chemists (ASBC), Brewers Association, Institute of Food Technologists (IFT), OSU CFAES, and Society of Sensory Professionals (SSP). [4]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Labatt Brewing Company</span> Belgian-owned brewery in Canada

Labatt Brewing Company Limited is a Anheuser-Busch InBev-owned brewery headquartered in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Founded in 1847, Labatt is the largest brewer in Canada.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Anheuser-Busch</span> American brewing company

Anheuser-Busch Companies, LLC, is an American brewing company headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri. Since 2008, it has been wholly owned by Anheuser-Busch InBev SA/NV, now the world's largest brewing company, which owns multiple global brands, notably Budweiser, Michelob, Stella Artois, and Beck's.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">South African Breweries</span> Brewing company based in Johannesburg, South Africa

South African Breweries is a major brewery headquartered in Johannesburg, South Africa and was a wholly owned subsidiary of SABMiller until its interests were sold to Anheuser-Busch InBev on 10 October 2016. South African Breweries is now a direct subsidiary of Anheuser-Busch InBev SA/NV.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Redhook Ale Brewery</span> American brewery

The Redhook Ale Brewery is a beer brewery operating out of Seattle, Washington, United States. It was founded in Seattle in 1981 by Paul Shipman and Gordon Bowker, and is currently owned by Tilray. Its flagship brewery, the Redhook Brewlab, is located in the Pike Motorworks Building in Seattle's Capitol Hill neighborhood. Redhook also operated a location in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, from the 1990s until June 2018, when it was rebranded under Cisco Brewers from Nantucket, Massachusetts.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Beer in the United States</span> Overview of the beer culture in the United States of America

Beer is manufactured by more than 7,000 breweries in the United States, which range in size from industry giants to brew pubs and microbreweries. The United States produced 196 million barrels (23.0 GL) of beer in 2012, and consumes roughly 28 US gallons (110 L) of beer per capita annually. In 2011, the United States was ranked fifteenth in the world in per capita consumption, while total consumption was second only to China.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Grupo Modelo</span> Large Mexican brewery

Grupo Modelo is a large brewery in Mexico that exports beer to most countries of the world. Its export brands include Corona, Modelo, and Pacífico. Grupo Modelo also brews brands that are intended solely for the domestic Mexican market and has exclusive rights in Mexico for the import and distribution of beer produced by Anheuser-Busch. Until the 1960s, Grupo Modelo used red poppy flowers in most of its advertising.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Budweiser trademark dispute</span> Legal conflict between Anheuser–Busch and Budweiser Budvar Brewery

The Budweiser trademark dispute is an ongoing series of legal disputes between two beer companies who claim trademark and geographic origin rights to the name "Budweiser". The dispute has been ongoing since 1907, and has involved more than 100 court cases around the world. As a result, Budweiser Budvar has the rights to the name Budweiser in most of Europe and Anheuser-Busch InBev has this right in North America. Consequently, AB InBev uses the name "Bud" in most of Europe and Budvar sells its beer in North America under the name "Czechvar". In other territories, one or the other or even both may use the name, depending on local trademark law.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Goose Island Brewery</span> Brewery located in Chicago, Illinois, US

Goose Island Beer Company is a brewery in Chicago. The oldest currently-operating brewing company in Illinois, it began as a brewpub that opened in 1988 in the Lincoln Park neighborhood, and was named after a nearby island. A larger production brewery opened in 1995. A second brewpub, in Wrigleyville, opened in 1999 and closed in 2015.

SABMiller was one of the top five global brewing companies, and had a range of over 150 beers, including international beers such as Pilsner Urquell, and Miller Genuine Draft, and local ones such as Gambrinus and Castle Milk Stout.

Anheuser-Busch InBev SA/NV is the largest beer company in the world. It had 200 brands prior to the merger with SABMiller on October 10, 2016. The combined ABInBev/SAB Miller entity has approximately 400 beer brands as of January 2017.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shock Top</span> Belgian-Style Witbeer

Shock Top is an American, Belgian-Style, spiced Witbeer brand introduced as a seasonal beer by Anheuser-Busch in February 2006, however, the beer's popularity quickly grew and was used as a rival to Molson Coors' Blue Moon. The brand entered a decline following a failed rebranding effort in 2017 and, citing financial shortfall in part due to the 2023 Bud Light boycott, Anheuser-Busch sold the brand to Tilray, a cannabis company in August 2023.

Anheuser-Busch InBev SA/NV, commonly known as AB InBev, is a Belgian multinational drink and brewing company based in Leuven, Belgium and is the largest brewer in the world. Additionally, AB InBev has a global functional management office in New York City, and regional headquarters in São Paulo, London, St. Louis, Mexico City, Bremen, Johannesburg, and others. It has approximately 630 beer brands in 150 countries.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brewery</span> Business that makes and sells beer

A brewery or brewing company is a business that makes and sells beer. The place at which beer is commercially made is either called a brewery or a beerhouse, where distinct sets of brewing equipment are called plant. The commercial brewing of beer has taken place since at least 2500 BC; in ancient Mesopotamia, brewers derived social sanction and divine protection from the goddess Ninkasi. Brewing was initially a cottage industry, with production taking place at home; by the ninth century, monasteries and farms would produce beer on a larger scale, selling the excess; and by the eleventh and twelfth centuries larger, dedicated breweries with eight to ten workers were being built.

InBev was a brewing company that resulted from the merger between Belgium-based company Interbrew and Brazilian brewer AmBev which took place in 2004. It existed independently until the acquisition of Anheuser-Busch in 2008, which formed Anheuser-Busch InBev. InBev had operations in over 30 countries and sales in over 130 countries. In 2006, it had a market capitalization of €30.6 billion and net profit of €3.2 billion on sales of €13.3 billion.

Anheuser-Busch, a wholly owned subsidiary of Anheuser-Busch InBev SA/NV, is the largest brewing company in the United States, with a market share of 45 percent in 2016.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Craft Brew Alliance</span> Beer brewing company

Craft Brew Alliance is a beer brewing company that originally was composed of five beer and cider brands:

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Breckenridge Brewery</span> American brewing company based in Littleton, Colorado

Breckenridge Brewery is an American brewing company based in Littleton, Colorado. Select beers can be found in 42 US states. The company was purchased by Anheuser-Busch InBev in 2016 and resold to Tilray in 2023.

Tilray Brands, Inc. is an American pharmaceutical, cannabis-lifestyle and consumer packaged goods company, incorporated in the United States, headquartered in New York City. Tilray also has operations in Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and Latin America, with growing facilities in Germany and Portugal.

Rebecca Bennett has worked in various brewmaster positions at Anheuser-Busch InBev, most recently as a senior quality manager in Baldwinsville, New York. She also held the assistant brewmaster post (2015–2018) at the Baldwinsville facility and previously was a product development specialist (2010–2015) and group manager (2005–2010 at the St. Louis, Missouri, facility. She graduated from Purdue University with a bachelor's degree in chemical engineering in 2005.

A boycott on Anheuser-Busch products, specifically its Bud Light products, the top beer brand in the United States, began in April 2023. The boycott began due to a sponsorship the company conducted with actress and TikTok personality Dylan Mulvaney on April 1, which was part of a larger campaign to address Bud Light's decline in sales and attract younger audiences. Mulvaney, a transgender woman, promoted the company's Bud Light beer brand during March Madness.

References

  1. 1 2 "Anheuser-Bush's Brews Are Born from Innovation". globalbusiness.org. Retrieved 2020-04-27.
  2. 1 2 "AB releases Shock Top Lemon Shandy". Akron Beacon Journal. Retrieved 2020-04-27.
  3. 1 2 3 Smith, Jacquelyn. "How These Women Became Top Brewmasters At One Of The World's Biggest Beer Companies". Business Insider. Retrieved 2020-04-27.
  4. 1 2 3 "Jill Vaughn". LinkedIn. 2019. Retrieved April 26, 2020.
  5. Velázquez, Daniela (2014-07-03). "Meet The Beer Geeks Behind Anheuser-Busch's Research Pilot Brewery". Fast Company. Retrieved 2020-04-27.
  6. Murphy, Regina (26 August 2013). "Shock Top BREWERY". Emporia Gazette. Retrieved 2020-04-27.
  7. Benn, Evan (31 January 2013). "Shock Top brewer is always thinking about new beers". STLtoday.com. Retrieved 2020-04-27.