Cerveza Cristal! The Star Wars Beer Meme, Explained
If you're a die-hard Star Wars fan who's seen the original trilogy more times than you can count, stumbling upon a Chilean version of the original movie from 2003 might give you pause. Check this out: In the scene where Obi-Wan is supposed to give Luke his dad's old lightsaber, he suddenly hollers, "Cerveza Cristal!" and offers Luke a cold one instead.
Yes, it really happened on Chilean TV Channel 13 back in 2003, during the movie's national premiere. OMD Santiago, the marketing company behind this stunt, wanted to avoid cutting the film up with commercials. The company made several ad montages with Cerveza Cristal that matched the movie and spliced them in. The result? Not only did Obi-Wan profess his love on-screen for Chilean beer from a galaxy far, far away, but Yoda and Emperor Palpatine did, too.
Thanks to the internet's knack for digital archaeology, this ancient advertisement was recently revived into a meme. Just search "Cerveza Cristal" on social media platforms like X (formerly known as Twitter) or TikTok, and you'll find a treasure trove of edits. This time around, no movie is spared from this awkwardly-placed product. From Rey and Kylo Ren duking it out over a Cerveza Cristal bottle in the Star Wars sequel trilogy, to Bilbo offering Frodo an elves-made cold beer in an alternative take on Lord of the Rings, the internet has taken this meme by storm and run with it, full speed ahead, for a good laugh.
Is Cerveza Cristal even all that good?
The marketing campaign, although comically bizarre, turned out to be a huge hit, winning the Cannes International Advertising Festival in 2004. This success prompted Compañía de Cervecerías Unidas, the company behind Cerveza Cristal, to apply the same treatment to other popular movies like Gladiator, with similarly funny results. While we can't be sure how much it boosted beer sales, it's undoubtedly a one-of-a-kind success story in Chilean marketing.
But if you're wondering about the taste of the beer, here's the scoop: Most reviews give it a "meh" rating. Some say they would prefer Cristal over American staples like Coors Light or Bud Light, while others claim it's just about the same. Either way, it seems like the beer is only passable for most, and it's pretty much just another light beer. So, don't expect anything too fancy (like an Oregon craft beer, for example) if you happen to find a case of Cerveza Cristal on sale at your local grocery store.