Presidente (beer)

Presidente is a Pilsner beer brand produced by Cervecería Nacional Dominicana (CND) at multiple breweries in the Dominican Republic. While it is widely consumed domestically, the beer is also exported to a long list of countries, including the United States, Panama, Honduras, Spain, Germany, Switzerland, Italy, Andorra, Aruba, Cuba, Curaçao, Antigua, Belize, Martinique, Guadeloupe, Turks and Caicos, The Bahamas, Saint Martin, British Virgin Islands, and Puerto Rico. The brand offers several varieties: Presidente (5.0% ABV), Presidente Light (4.3% ABV), Presidente Black (6.0% ABV), The One (4.7% ABV), Bohemia (5.0% ABV), Bohemia Light (3.8% ABV), Bohemia Especial (7.2% ABV), Bohemia Especial Light (4.3% ABV), Bohemia Light (4.3% ABV), and Brahma (3.8% ABV).

The brewery was founded in 1929 by U.S. industrialist Charles H. Wanzer and other partners, and brewing of Presidente began in 1935. The beer was named after the Dominican president at the time, Rafael Leónidas Trujillo. Originally launched as a dark beer with limited success, it was reformulated into the pilsner known today during the 1960s. In 1986, the brewery was bought by Dominican cigarette company Grupo León Jimenes. In 2012, AmBev, the Brazilian unit of Anheuser-Busch InBev, acquired a controlling stake in CND from Grupo León Jimenes for over $2 billion, creating the largest beverage company in the Caribbean. The version of Presidente sold in the United States is brewed in St. Louis, Missouri, with the label noting it is made “for a fresher taste.”

Presidente has sponsored several Miami sports teams, including the University of Miami Hurricanes, the Miami Marlins, and the Miami Heat. In 2007, it was the official beer of the Hurricanes football team and the now-defunct Orange Bowl. In 2009, it became the official imported beer of the Miami Heat, and in 2012, an official sponsor of the Miami Marlins. That same year, former Marlins manager Ozzie Guillén jokingly cited the beer as a cure after a 15–5 loss to the Boston Red Sox. Since 2007, the brand has also hosted the Festival Presidente de Música Latina, a three-day event in October at the Estadio Olímpico Félix Sánchez in Santo Domingo, showcasing Dominican and international musical talent.