How to Decipher the Date Codes on Natural Ice Beer

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Natural Ice is a Busch beer

Natural "Natty" Ice is a beer under the brand Natural, which is owned by Anheuser-Busch. Because Natural is part of the Busch family it carries the same date code as other Busch beers. Even though beer is a perishable product it is not required to have a shelf life date. Most companies use a "born on" or "freshness" date so that consumers can get an idea of how old the beer is. While old beer will not make you sick it won't taste good. A typical refrigerated beer will taste fresh for about four to six months past the freshness date.

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Step 1

Read the first through seventh digits as one unit. This is the shipping date in the format of DD/MM/YY. Remember that Busch keeps its beers on the shelf for 180 days.

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Step 2

Overlook the next four digits. These numbers are brewery codes and internal information.

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Step 3

Read the next set of three codes separated by dashes to indicate the brand of beer and the type of containers purchased. Many people have confused the last code with the freshness date, believing their beer was expired because the two-digit number at the end of this code is always "07."

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The first two digits is this set of code are for the brand of beer. The next three digits are for the type and amount of containers in the case. For example, 043 stands for a six-pack of 16 ounce beer. The last two digits are always "07."

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