After a brewing battle, Coors Light is celebrating as they’ve passed up Budweiser in 2011 for the No. 2 selling beer in the country. Bud is the only full-calorie beer in the top five, so to lose ground to a lighter offering is kind of a big deal.

The Chicago Tribune cites data from market research firm Symphony IRI, adding that Budweiser has been on the decline for years. It had been sitting as second-best to Bud Light, which is the country’s top-selling beer.

Miller Lite and Natural Light are fourth and fifth, respectively, as of October 21, 2011. Coors Light’s parent company, MillerCoors, has been creeping up on Budweiser steadily, showing 18.3 million barrels in sales, and they’re already crowing about their victory.

“Dethroning the King is a great accomplishment so early in the history of MillerCoors,” a MillerCoors spokesman wrote in an email. “We will be appropriately celebrating this achievement with our employees and distributors who have worked so hard to deliver an impressive 7 consecutive years of growth on Coors Light and then getting back to work to deliver an 8th consecutive year of growth.”

Anheuser-Busch is staying mum for the moment on its 4.6 percent slide in sales to 17.7 million barrels. This also marks the first time since 1993 that the company hasn’t held the top two spots. Extra burn!

Coors Light surpasses Budweiser as No. 2 U.S. beer [Chicago Tribune]

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