DRAFT Magazine

Baseball and beer are a far better combination than, say, Jon and Kate. And Tuesday night, the combination of America’s pastime and the world’s beverage will reach a frothy peak.

That’s when the All-Star Game (not just the Home Run Derby and other made-for-TV sideshows) returns to St. Louis. Not only is the stadium’s front affixed with one of the great names in beerland (Busch), there is an Anheuser-Busch brewery tour at 12th and Lynch Streets every baseball fan in town should partake in. If you miss the stable of Clydesdales there, Anheuser-Busch has set up a “Clydesdale hamlet” by the stadium for your viewing pleasure — or wait to see them inside the stadium during pregame ceremonies, which will include Cardinals’ Hall of Famers such as Bob Gibson and Stan Musial.

Not since the All-Star Game visited Milwaukee’s Miller Park in 2002 has there been such a confluence of beer and baseball in summertime. St. Louis itself hasn’t seen an All-Star Game since 1966, when hitting great Ted Williams and longtime manager Casey Stengel (both legendary beer drinkers) served as honorary coaches. And if the weather Tuesday is anything like it was during that game — temperatures reached 106 degrees in a different Busch Stadium during a 2-1 National League win — expect Budweiser sales at the park ($7 for 16 ounces during regular-season affairs) to soar.