The non-alcoholic malt drink produced by Anheuser-Busch during Prohibition was called Bevo. It was a cereal beverage, also known as near beer, created for consumers who wanted a beer-like drink when alcohol was restricted.
Anheuser-Busch began brewing Bevo in 1916, when the United States armed forces prohibited alcoholic beverages. Production increased sharply after national Prohibition began in 1919. At its peak in the early 1920s, Bevo sold more than five million cases annually and became the most successful of the era’s many near beers.
The name was a wordplay on “beverage” and pivo, a Slavic word for beer. Its advertising presented Bevo as a refreshing, healthful soft drink, while bottles and promotional material emphasized its connection to beer culture without the alcohol.
Bevo’s popularity declined as bootleg liquor, homebrew, and illegal beer became more available. Sales fell to about 100,000 cases by 1929, and Anheuser-Busch stopped production. Bevo should not be confused with Moxie, another soft drink, or with “near beer,” which describes a category rather than this specific brand.