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.
In an effort “to further align” its distribution relationships in California, Sierra Nevada terminated three wholesalers yesterday: Antioch-based Markstein Sales Co., Imperial-based Alford Distributing and Milpitas-based Bottomley Distributing Co.
On-premise sales over Labor Day weekend received “an uplift in velocity” on Sunday (+16%) and Monday (+54%) compared to the previous week, NielsenIQ’s on-premise tracking arm, CGA, reported today.
A tentative deal between the remaining two railroad worker unions and the rail carriers has been reached. Early Thursday morning, U.S. Department of Labor Secretary Marty Walsh tweeted that ”a tentative agreement that balances the needs of workers, businesses, and our nation’s economy” had been agreed upon by the rail companies and union negotiators after “20 consecutive hours of negotiations.”
A looming railroad worker strike could be the next supply chain disruption on the radar for the brewing industry and the overall economy.
The Consumer Price Index (CPI) for beer increased +4.9% in August 2022 compared to August 2021, its highest point since April, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).
Scout Distribution announced today that it will acquire Classic Beverage beverage-alcohol portfolio in the greater Los Angeles territory, covering LA, Santa Barbara, Ventura, San Luis Obispo, Orange, Riverside, Kern and San Bernardino counties. The transaction is expected to close in November.
Ashland Hard Seltzer is on pace to double its volume in 2022, with expectations to exceed 500,000 cases (around 36,300 barrels).
The largest total beverage wholesaler in the Pacific Northwest and a Southern California-focused independent distributor are linking up to start a distribution operation in Idaho this fall.
Michigan’s Bell’s Brewery continues to fill out its distribution map as part of its goal for national distribution. The Kalamazoo, Michigan-based craft brewery will add Northern California and Montana this month. The brewery’s beer is now sold in 44 states, plus Washington, D.C. and Puerto Rico. The Northern California expansion will begin on Friday, September… Read more »
The Reyes Beer Division will enter its 10th market later this year with the planned acquisition of DET Distributing in Tennessee.
A year after undergoing a change in ownership, Mission Brewery is getting a makeover. The San Diego craft brewery recently received a brand refresh courtesy of CODO Design, which has begun hitting retail shelves.
Sapporo’s $165 million acquisition of Stone Brewing officially closed Wednesday, August 31, giving the Japanese beer maker one of the top 10 craft breweries by volume in the U.S. in 2021 and the 18th largest brewing operation overall.
With the summer selling season’s last gasp just days away, NielsenIQ VP of beverage alcohol though leadership Jon Berg expects ready-to-drink (RTD) offerings and beer “to have positive momentum” this Labor Day holiday weekend. However, Berg cautioned that results may be “slightly muted” compared to 2021 as shoppers are “really starting to feel substantial impact from inflation now.”
Boston Beer Company is launching a multimillion-dollar, multi-channel marketing campaign to support Truly Hard Seltzer, which it recently reformulated with real fruit juice. In the new ad campaign, Boston Beer, which has leaned on singer Dua Lipa in previous Truly ads, has instead turned to fruit flies to help promote the reformulated hard seltzer brand.
