Jessica Infante joined Brewbound in 2019 after nearly a decade in a variety of marketing roles in the craft beer industry. Prior to that, she was a daily newspaper reporter at the Jersey Shore. Jess holds a bachelor’s degree in magazine journalism from the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse University and a master’s degree in integrated marketing communication from Emerson College. She is a certified Cicerone and lives in Salem, Massachusetts.
Two Floridians are seeking class certification of a lawsuit filed last year against Anheuser-Busch InBev-owned Veza Sur Brewing that alleges that the world’s largest beer manufacturer is deceiving customers by positioning the Miami-based offshoot as a craft brewery.
San Franciscans will have to show proof of vaccination or a negative COVID test result to sit indoors at bars following new guidance from the San Francisco Bar Owner Alliance. “The San Francisco Bar Owner Alliance is extremely concerned by a recent uptick in cases of COIVD-19 among our staff members, especially those who are fully vaccinated,” the organization wrote in a statement.
Two people have died and a third was injured in a shooting at the home of George Taylor III, the chief operating officer of TRU Colors, in Wilmington, North Carolina. TRU Colors, which Molson Coors acquired an equity stake in April, was founded by Taylor’s father, George Taylor — a tech entrepreneur and former Untappd chairman — and leaders of the Bloods, Crips and GD (Gangster Disciples) gangs. The company employs active members of rival gangs “to bridge divides and create economic opportunity, all while teaching life skills with professional training,” according to TRU Colors’ website.
Oskar Blues founder Dale Katechis made waves this month when he announced he was joining Veritas Fine Cannabis as an equity stakeholder and team member. The craft beer pioneer told Brewbound the cannabis industry piqued his interest several years ago, but it wasn’t until a friend from childhood who is now an investment banker introduced him to the Veritas team that he was ready to jump.
The beer category didn’t see fireworks in off-premise retail sales this July 4, market research firm NielsenIQ reported. “For the biggest beer holiday of the year, the category had lackluster performance in the off-premise channels this year, with dollar sales down -5.1% compared to last year, and up +7% compared to 2019, which was driven in great part by beyond beer segments,” NielsenIQ vice president of beverage alcohol practice Danelle Kosmal wrote.
Boston Beer Company adjusted its full-year forecast for shipments and depletions growth after a significant slowdown in the hard seltzer segment in the second quarter. The company previously projected full-year growth of 40-50% in shipments (sales to wholesalers) and depletions (sales to retailers), but has trimmed that projection to 25-40%. Its depletions increased 24% during Q2, decelerating by half from Q1’s growth of 48%, according to remarks from founder and chairman Jim Koch in the quarterly earnings release. “To be totally honest, we’re surprised at the sharpness and the suddenness of the change in trajectory,” Koch said during a conference call with investors and analysts.
Anheuser-Busch plans to sell its wholly owned distribution business in Hawaii to multi-state wholesaler The Odom Corporation, the world’s largest beer manufacturer announced today.
Non-alcoholic craft brand Athletic Brewing has signed a lease for a new facility in Milford, Connecticut, that could triple its capacity. “Once complete, we’ll have over 150,000 barrels capacity on each coast, with the potential to triple in the new facility over time,” CEO and co-founder Bill Shufelt told Brewbound.
The Reyes Beer Division has struck a deal to acquire Greenco Beverage in Greenville, South Carolina. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed. The deal is expected to close on September 24.
Beverage alcohol sales at some convenience stores have begun to decelerate as the on-premise channel reopens, Goldman Sachs analyst Bonnie Herzog reported in her Q2 “Beverage Bytes” survey of c-store retailers. Half of survey respondents reported no impact to alcohol sales during the July 4 holiday weekend. Meanwhile, 33% reported a moderate negative impact, and 17% reported a significant moderate impact.
Oskar Blues founder Dale Katechis will join Colorado-based cannabis company Veritas as a partner who “will play an active role in strategic growth initiatives for the brand,” a spokesperson told Brewbound. Katechis founded Oskar Blues in Lyons, Colorado, in 1997. The brewery grew to become the 14th-largest craft brewery by volume in the U.S. in 2015, when Fireman Capital Partners acquired a majority stake in it.
Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont this week announced the reduction of taxes on beer by 16.7%, effective July 1, 2023.
Boston Beer Company and Beam Suntory today announced a joint venture to extend two of the companies’ most popular brands — Truly Hard Seltzer and Sauza tequila — across categories.
Beer industry depletions (sales-to-retailers) volumes tracked by beverage alcohol invoicing and logistics firm Fintech have increased 9% year-to-date through Week 27 compared to the same period last year, National Beer Wholesalers Association chief economist Lester Jones and Fintech director of distributors Jim Kallies shared yesterday during a quarterly review of the industry’s performance.
