Just in time for the Homecoming celebration on campus, Illinois State University is partnering with DESTIHL Brewery to launch two new officially licensed beers, Redbird Ale and Battle Bird Lager. Both beers will debut at Illinois State’s volleyball game on Friday, September 27, against Murray State and at the Homecoming football game against North Dakota State on September 28, 2024.
“We recognize that growing the Illinois State Athletics brand is one of our top priorities and look at this partnership with DESTIHL as continued progress toward that goal,” Illinois State Deputy Director of Athletics Paul Kabbes said. “This partnership provides our fan base the opportunity to support our student-athletes in a unique way by supporting a great local business. Be on the lookout for Battle Bird Lager and Redbird Ale at a retail location near you soon.”
The University-branded craft beer was developed by DESTIHL in collaboration with Illinois State’s trademark licensing and athletic departments, its licensing agency, CLC, and its athletics multimedia rights holder, LEARFIELD. DESTIHL will also serve as a sponsor of Redbird Athletics through an enhanced activation with LEARFIELD’s Redbird Sports Properties.
“We’re excited to partner with DESTIHL to create two unique, locally brewed beers that bring together our fans, alumni, and community in a fun and meaningful way,” Redbird Sports Properties General Manager Matt Moran stated.
Royalties from the sale of Redbird Ale and Battle Bird Lager will go back to the University to support a variety of initiatives. The collaboration provides a unique way for DESTIHL to give back to the community by raising funds for Illinois State and Redbird Athletics, while also providing educational opportunities for business, marketing, entrepreneurship, art/graphic design, and other students to help build the Illinois State brand and a nostalgic connection over time to its alums, staff, fans, supporters, and to the community as a whole.
“Our team at DESTIHL is thrilled to partner on two new officially licensed beers with Illinois State University,” DESTIHL Founder and Chief Executive Officer Matt Potts said. “We look forward to making these beers available to Redbird fans and alumni and cannot wait to be part of the gameday experience at Illinois State athletic events. Given our deep roots in the Bloomington-Normal community, we are proud to support the University and student-athletes through the production and sales of Redbird Ale and Battle Bird Lager.”
The beers will be available at Hancock Stadium and CEFCU Arena for Redbird Athletics events served by Sodexo Live and at DESTIHL Brewery’s Beer Hall and DESTIHL Restaurant. The beers will also be made available through local retailers, bars, and restaurants that want to join in support of Illinois State and Redbird Athletics.
“It’s an honor to work with an award-winning brewery and valued local business like DESTIHL on this exciting, new offering for our alumni and fans,” Illinois State Assistant Director for Trademark Licensing and Project Communications Dani Schroeder said. “We hope Redbirds near and far appreciate the nod to ISU’s history and Athletics traditions incorporated in the can designs, created by University graphic designers Mike Mahle and Evan Walles.”
Redbird Ale is an American red ale brewed in celebration of the Illinois State Redbirds. It is the first beer ever brewed by DESTIHL just before opening its first brewpub location in Normal in 2007, and it has been brewed ever since then. The beer has a medium caramel malt sweetness balanced by pleasant hop bitterness, aroma, and flavor, with an ABV of 5.3%.
Battle Bird Lager is a refreshing Munich Helles-Style Lager with a radiant golden hue, delicate malt sweetness with light biscuit attributes, low bitterness, and a subtle noble-hop flavor that imparts a gentle floral aroma, all resulting in a light-bodied brew with a smooth, crisp finish with an ABV of 5.1%.
Since the founding of DESTIHL Restaurant & Brew Works in November 2007 and its first production brewery in May 2013, DESTIHL has received numerous national and international awards for its beers and has now grown to be a top 100+/- regional brewery by volume out of nearly 10,000 breweries in the U.S., with distribution in nearly 40 states and internationally. To grow even more, DESTIHL Brewery recently expanded its equipment to more than double its production and canning line speed, which helps enable it to form new partnerships, such as the one with the Illinois State University Redbirds.
