Inflationary cost pressures and higher year-over-year retail prices have caught up with consumers in North America, especially in the U.S., and the world’s largest can manufacturer is seeing “lower” than expected demand and “less consumption across the board,” Ball Corp. CEO Dan Fisher told analysts Thursday.

Spirits portfolio company Next Century Spirits has acquired XED Beverages, the maker of cocktail-inspired hard seltzer brand Sesh.

Another soda company is testing the beverage-alcohol market – this time with the world’s largest beer manufacturer. Novamex, the maker of Mexican soda brand Jarritos, is partnering with Anheuser-Busch InBev (A-B) to launch Cantaritos Hard Sodas in California and Texas markets next spring.

Molson Coors CEO Gavin Hattersley declared the U.S. consumer “remains resilient,” as trade up to premium offerings continues and there aren’t signs of “significant channel shifting,” during the beverage-alcohol producer’s Q2 earnings report today.

Let’s get this out of the way: The Lost Abbey isn’t going away. The iconic U.S. maker of barrel-aged Belgian-style ales is, however, attempting to sublease half of its 40,000 sq. ft. production space in San Marcos and sell its 30-barrel brewery and fermentation tanks.

This was a heavy Boston Beer news week — which you’ll get on the heels of the company’s Q3 earnings report, the announcement of its first tequila-based ready-to-drink canned cocktail AND one of its annual business planning (ABP) meeting with wholesalers.

Cycling a nearly -9% decline in September 2021 — the biggest decline of last year — U.S. brewers failed to eke out growth in September 2022.

Critiques of PepsiCo’s Blue Cloud Distribution (BCD) arm were plentiful during the National Beer Wholesalers Association’s (NBWA) annual convention earlier this month in Chicago. NBWA leaders criticized the way Hard MTN Dew – which Boston Beer has licensed to produce and is distributed through Blue Cloud – has been merchandised and cross-promoted in some accounts,… Read more »

Boston Beer Company is expanding its ready-to-drink canned cocktail portfolio with the addition of Loma Vista Tequila Soda, the company’s first tequila-based RTD.

Scout Distribution and Columbia Distributing’s joint venture, Scout Idaho, announced its launch portfolio today. The company will begin taking orders in southern Idaho on October 31, with deliveries following on November 1.

This week was all about the numbers as the third quarter data is now in the books. Brewbound managing editor Jess Infante and reporter Zoe Licata hosted a Data Club deep dive into the summer selling season and what’s ahead with 3 Tier Beverages consultant Mary Mills and NielsenIQ VP of alcohol industry thought leadership… Read more »

Boston Beer Company reported a -6% decline in depletions, while shipments increased +1.4% in its third-quarter 2022 earnings report today. Boston Beer recorded a $27.1 million non-cash impairment of intangible assets related to the Dogfish Head brand

The average price per case of craft beer is up +4.6% year-to-date and “continues creeping into the $40+ per case range,” according to Bump Williams Consulting, citing NielsenIQ data through October 1. The average price paid per unit is up +2% compared to a year ago, the firm added.

Off-premise craft beer sales through the first three quarters of 2022 are in the red (-5.1%), although trends have “slowly [creeped] toward break-even” through the summer months (July, August, September), according to the latest craft breakdown from Bump Williams Consulting (BWC), citing NielsenIQ data through October 1.