Anheuser-Busch InBev has struck a deal to sell its Oakland, California-based wholly owned distributor to two independent wholesalers, Markstein Sales Company and Matagrano, Inc.

The sale of Modern Times took another turn Thursday with the ultimate acquirer of the San Diego brewery still in question.

New Jersey craft breweries are “disheartened” after the state Division of Alcoholic Beverage Control (NJABC) moved forward on July 1 with special conditions for brewery license holders that limit brewers’ ability to host food trucks and events or sell beverages not produced on site, among other privileges.

Sonic Hard Seltzer is getting two sibling brands this fall as the license agreement between its parent company, COOP Ale Works, and Sonic Drive-In expands to Sonic Hard Southern Sweet Tea and Sonic Hard Slush.

Pricing was the clear theme of the question-and-answer portion of Constellation Brands’ first quarter FY2023 earnings call on Thursday. More specifically, analysts were wondering why the company is hesitant to increase price in an inflationary environment. CEO Bill Newlands reiterated that Constellation’s “long-term algorithm on pricing is +1%-2%,” although last year it increased beer prices +3.5%.

The life of Bevy Long Drink, Boston Beer’s malt-based foray into the Finnish long drink segment, won’t be very long after all. The company has discontinued the brand, which it launched in 20 test markets late last year and expanded nationwide earlier this year.

Members of Teamsters Local 830 have ratified a new contract with Delaware Valley Importing Distribution Association, ending their nearly week-long strike against three Philadelphia-area beer wholesalers.

In a nearly 2,500-word missive that opened with quotes from Metallica and Roman poet Heraclitus, Stone Brewing co-founder Greg Koch – one of the craft beer industry’s staunchest advocates for independence – reflected on what the sale of his company to Japanese brewing giant Sapporo means for his future… without ever typing the word “Sapporo.”

Stone Brewing Company is being sold to Sapporo Holdings, the two companies announced today.

Court records filed in the wake of last Friday’s auction for San Diego craft brewery Modern Times give a closer look at bidding play-by-play, and the tension between qualified bidders MTD Asset Acquisition and BX MT BAMF LLC. Earlier this week, MTD (the group referred to during the auction as North Carolina brewery Tru Colors), whose $20.1 million bid was not accepted as the winning bid, filed an objection to the sale of Modern Times to BX MT (an affiliate of Brewery X in Anaheim), and submitted a new bid of $21 million. MTD claims priority was given to Brewery X’s bid due to its inclusion of a shorter closing period, despite what it believes was a previous guarantee that such conditions would not be weighted in choosing a winning bid. Those efforts caused a federal judge to table a hearing Monday set to confirm the sale of the brewery.

Members of Teamsters Local 830 have been on strike at three Philadelphia-area beer wholesalers since Sunday. The union – which represents drivers, warehouse and production workers and sales and marketing professionals – established picket lines at Muller Inc. and Origlio Beverage in Philadelphia and Hatfield-based Penn Beer Sales & Service after members voted unanimously to strike following the rejection of a contract proposal from Delaware Valley Importers Distribution Association, which represents the wholesalers.

As middle-tier consolidation marches on, distributors have a new service partner to advise on mergers and acquisitions, as Arlington Capital Advisors (ACA) and the Bump Williams Consulting Company (BWC) announced today the formation of a “strategic alliance” between the two firms.

MTD Asset Acquisition (MTD), the bidder that was not selected during the auction for Modern Times last week, has filed an objection to the court-appointed receiver’s selection of BX MT BAMF LLC (BX), an affiliate of Anaheim, California-based Brewery X, as the “winning” bidder in the auction for the San Diego craft brewery.

The three-way deal through which Harpoon’s parent company will acquire Long Trail Brewing in Vermont and WhistlePig Whiskey will acquire one of the latter’s production facilities, came about through long-standing personal relationships, Mass. Bay Brewing Company CEO and co-founder Dan Kenary explained to Brewbound.