ST. PAUL, Minn. — The Minnesota Wild, Xcel Energy Center and Anheuser-Busch are trying out a new method of serving the fans.

A new "smart" beer vending machine from Anheuser-Busch will be unveiled at Thursday’s Minnesota Wild home game at the Xcel Energy Center against the Chicago Blackhawks.

The vending machine is hailed as the first "BudweiserSmart" vending machine in any venue in the world.

Unlike some of the self-serve tap machines that have appeared around the country, including Minnesota’s Target Field, this machine will carry 25-ounce cans of Budweiser. The expectation is the operation will expand to include Bud Light at the Xcel Energy Center.

For the first night operation, a Levy Restaurants representative will stand by for assistance and to aid in scanning photo identification. The machine will include a touchscreen, which will feature Budweiser promotional messaging as well as social media posts from the Budweiser and Minnesota Wild Twitter accounts.

The machine will be located on the main concourse near Section 113 and the 25-ounce cans, the largest beer sold in the Xcel Energy Center, will cost $13.

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