Justin Kendall provides daily coverage of the beer industry on Brewbound.com, conducts live-streamed interviews during Brewbound’s events and co-produces the Brewbound podcast. Kendall is a nearly 20-year career journalist who led alt-weekly newspapers in Kansas City, Missouri, and Des Moines, Iowa.
Russian River co-owner Natalie Cilurzo shared how that release 14 years ago was both a “game changer” and a “nightmare,” during the keynote speech of this year’s Brewbound Live business conference in Marina del Rey, California.
The final Beer Purchasers’ Index (BPI) of 2024 revealed “a slightly cautious outlook for distributor sentiment” heading into the new year, according to the National Beer Wholesalers Association (NBWA).
The shifting brewing landscape permeated Brewbound’s most-read stories of 2024. From job changes to layoffs, acquisitions and consolidation to closures, the most-read stories captured the volatility of the market.
As Dogfish Head’s 30th anniversary approaches, co-founder Sam Calagione shared why he believes the Milton, Delaware-based craft brewery will return both its beer and canned cocktail brands to growth in 2025. Part of that strategy is the launch of a new year-round beer, Dogfish Head and Grateful Dead Juicy Pale Ale, which Calagione shared with attendees of the 2024 Brewbound Live business conference earlier this month.
Cynthia Fisher, the wife of Boston Beer founder and chairman Jim Koch for more than three decades, will one day inherit his controlling interest in the company, Koch told the Wall Street Journal.
The Brewbound Podcast in 2024 featured a mix of interviews with industry heavyweights, analysis and a new roadshow component with stops at the California Craft Beer Summit in Sacramento, the Craft Brewers Conference in Las Vegas and the National Beer Wholesalers Association’s Annual Convention in San Diego.
Incoming Brewers Association CEO Bart Watson and staff economist Matt Gacioch offered a data-filled, crystal ball look at opportunities and challenges for craft brewers heading into 2025. The duo offered predictions for 10 areas of the beer business in the new year during a webinar Thursday.
The California Craft Brewers Association (CCBA) has appointed Kelsey McQuaid-Craig as the state trade group’s new executive director. McQuaid-Craig succeeds Lori Ajax, who announced plans to exit the role at the end of the year.
Norwood, Massachusetts-based Castle Island Brewing Company has acquired the intellectual property (IP) of Cambridge Brewing Company (CBC). The deal closed Tuesday, three days before Cambridge Brewing was set to cease operations.
The Brewers Association (BA) has named Bart Watson as the trade group’s next president and CEO. Watson will succeed Bob Pease, who is retiring from the organization, effective January 3. Watson’s first day in the new role will be January 6.
Global spirits giant Suntory Holdings revealed today the creation of a new business unit, Suntory RTD Company North America, focused on malt-based, ready-to-drink (RTD) offerings with the first release expected to hit U.S. retailers in mid-January 2025.
A second straight year of production declines appears likely, with the full-year craft volume number likely to be “weaker than the midyear estimate” of down -2%, the Brewers Association (BA) shared in the trade organization’s 2024 Year in Beer recap.
Molson Coors measures Blue Moon against the total industry, not just craft, CEO Gavin Hattersley explained Tuesday during the Morgan Stanley Global Consumer and Retail Conference. “We don’t measure it on craft because craft’s really struggling at the moment. And so we’re measuring success with Blue Moon on the total industry,” Hattersley said. “And on… Read more »
Draft beer considerably outperforms package in on-premise outlets that offer both options, according to a report released today by Draftline Technologies and CGA, the on-premise arm of market research firm NIQ.
