Brewbound — Craft Beer News, Events & Jobs

In Tuesday’s edition of Press Clips: Utah lawmakers consider the end of 3.2 beer; a study finds Michigan has the cheapest cases of beer in the nation; River North Brewery announces return to its namesake neighborhood; and more.

In this week’s edition of Last Call: Wisconsin beverage companies form a coalition; domestic tax paid shipments up 3.8 percent in May; and more news.

On a recent visit to Connecticut, Dan Kenary, the co-founder and CEO of Boston’s Harpoon Brewery, discovered that 60 percent of the unrefrigerated beers at one retail account did not have code dates. “That’s shameful,” he exclaimed to roughly 200 beer industry professionals attending last week’s Brewbound Session business conference in New York City.

Constellation Brand’s continued effort to move Ballast Point Brewing into its so-called “Gold Network” of U.S. beer distributors took a significant leap forward this month when the San Diego-based brewery’s distribution rights were sold in its second largest market — Massachusetts.

Constellation, a cross-category alcoholic beverage company best known for selling Mexican import offerings Corona and Modelo, has confirmed to Brewbound that Ballast Point beers are no longer being sold in Massachusetts by Atlantic Beverage Distributors and the Sheehan Family Companies-owned Craft Beer Guild LLC.

Yet another established craft brewery founder has stepped away from day-to-day CEO responsibilities. Deschutes Brewery founder Gary Fish has turned his CEO position over to Michael LaLonde, who had been serving as the president and chief operating officer for the Bend, Oregon-based craft brewery.

Salt Lake City’s Uinta Brewing Company is headed for a milestone moment as the brewery looks to eclipse the 100,000 barrel threshold this year.

The number of licensed breweries in Virginia has grown 468 percent since 2012, Gov. Terry McAuliffe announced last week. In a press release, Gov. McAuliffe said Virginia was now home to 206 licensed beer companies, ranking the mid-Atlantic state no. 13 in the U.S. for number of breweries.

If you asked Dogfish Head founder Sam Calagione, he’d tell you the reports of a craft beer slowdown have been greatly exaggerated.

Indiana-based Tin Man Brewing Company has been acquired by Neace Ventures, a Louisville-headquartered venture capital and real estate firm.

Despite the growth in “own-premise” sales, executives from prominent beer-centric retail chains Yard House, Old Chicago (Craftworks Restaurants & Breweries) and World of Beer told a room of industry professionals attending last Thursday’s Brewbound Session that the increasing amount of beer flowing through brewery taprooms wasn’t yet a major concern.

Craft beer has an identity crisis, Bell’s Brewery CEO Laura Bell told an audience of nearly 200 industry professionals attending Thursday’s Brewbound Session in New York City.

Armada Brewing emerged victorious in Startup Brewery Challenge 8, a business pitch competition sponsored by Craft Brew Alliance, which was held during Thursday’s Brewbound Session conference in New York City. John Kraszewski, the founder of Armada Brewing, competed against representatives from four other emerging breweries: M.I.A. Beer Company, Good City Brewing, Black Star Line Brewing Company, and Torch & Crown Brewing.

Independence matters to craft beer drinkers. During Thursday morning’s New York version of the Brewbound Session, Nielsen senior vice president of beverage alcohol practice Danny Brager and associate client manager Caitlyn Battaglia revealed the findings of a new 2,000-person Harris Poll survey co-developed by Brewbound and Nielsen examining whether 29 popular buzzwords used to market beer are resonating with regular craft beer drinkers.

In today’s edition of Press Clips: The New Jersey attorney general calls the Hunterdon fine the ‘largest ever imposed’ in the state; Ballast Point opens its Virginia tasting room; Kevin Durant cracks open a few Bud Lights; and more.