New York’s FX Matt Brewing Company has struck a deal to acquire Flying Dog Brewery in Frederick, Maryland, the companies announced today. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed. Flying Dog’s production will begin shifting to FX Matt’s Utica, New York-based production facility over the summer with operations in Maryland expected to stop “sometime in August.”

Alec Mull is returning to Bell’s Brewery as general manager of the Comstock, Michigan craft brewery’s 600,000 barrel facility. Mull will work with Bell’s executive leadership team to oversee the daily operations of the facility and craft new beers to add to the brewery’s portfolio, the company announced today.

Focus was one of the tips for craft breweries from Brewers Association chief economist Bart Watson during last week’s Craft Brewers Conference. Few brewers knocking on the door of 100,000 barrels are as focused as Montucky Cold Snacks. The Bozeman, Montana-headquartered craft brewery has one liquid and four SKUs.

Name, image and likeness (NIL) is bleeding over into the craft brewing industry. Two craft breweries announced partnerships with collectives to support student athletes in their respective states. Des Moines’ Exile Brewing Company is partnering with the University of Iowa’s Swarm Collective to launch Swarm Golden Ale, with 20% of revenue from the beer benefiting the 501(c)3 non-profit corporation. Meanwhile, Cincinnati’s Rhinegeist Brewery is partnering with the University of Cincinnati’s collective, Cincy Reigns, on the release of Cincy Light.

After just barely missing the 1 million case mark in 2022, Montucky Cold Snacks is aiming for 1.4 million cases in 2023, Seamus Gallagher, VP of marketing, and Jeff Courteau, VP of sales, shared with Brewbound.

More than 300 winners were honored during the Brewers Association’s (BA) 2023 World Beer Cup (WBC) during Craft Brewers Conference in Nashville this week. Guinness Baltimore Blonde – the signature offering of brewing operations at Diageo’s Relay, Maryland-based production facility – has become such a local icon that one Baltimore County official wants to invest $500,000 in a local brewer to keep the beer flowing, according to the Baltimore Banner.

The whirlwind that is the Craft Brewers Conference is finally over. Through a haze of honky-tonks and jet lag, I’m still unpacking the week of beer business talk in Nashville.

Brewers Association (BA) government affairs leaders Marc Sorini and Katie Marisic laid out the state of play at the state and federal level earlier this week during the Craft Brewers Conference in Nashville.

Brewers Association (BA) general counsel Marc Sorini previewed the trade organization’s upcoming comments on modernizing trade practice regulations during the Craft Brewers Conference in Nashville on Monday.

The craft brewing industry has entered a “new normal” of slow to no growth, Brewers Association (BA) chief economist Bart Watson shared during the keynote speech of the 2023 Craft Brewers Conference in Nashville.

The first Brew Talks meetup is set for Sunday, May 7, at Nashville Underground. We’re going to start off Craft Brewers Conference week with two big talks, plus beers and networking.

Ball Corporation reported that global beverage can shipments declined -6.7% in the first quarter of 2023. For the full year, the can manufacturer is estimating that its global volume growth will be in the “low-single digits,” with volume in North America “slightly down.” Leaders discuss need for beer companies to launch promotions.

Spirits-based, ready-to-drink (RTD) canned cocktail brand Fishers Island Lemonade has agreed to be acquired by Spirit of Gallo, the spirits division of E. & J. Gallo, the companies announced today in a press release.

Athletic Brewing Company’s Upside Dawn Golden will be served on all domestic JetBlue flights starting in May, the company shared today. The partnership marks the first time that a major U.S. airline has served non-alcoholic craft beer at 35,000 feet.