Boston-headquartered alcohol e-commerce marketplace Drizly announced today that its service is now available to the 4.4 million people in Atlanta and its surrounding suburbs.

A dispute in one of the most prominent families in the beer industry — the Massachusetts-based Sheehans, owners of Sheehan Family Companies, which operates beer wholesalers in 13 states and Washington, D.C. — has spilled into the court system. Timothy G. Sheehan and George L. Cushing, a trustee who represents trusts that benefit Tim Sheehan and his brother John T. Sheehan, filed a civil lawsuit in Massachusetts’ Suffolk Superior Court alleging that the patriarch and matriarch of the family, Gerald (“Jerry”) and Maureen Sheehan, have violated their fiduciary duties and misappropriated company funds.

Brewbound readers in 2020 sought out news about the pandemic, mergers and acquisitions, brewery closures and job changes. 2020 marked a year of shifts for brewers, as well as Brewbound, which shifted its business model to a subscription model. With that in mind, we’ve pulled the five most-read stories before the paywall was introduced and the five most-read stories after.

Reyes Beer Division is expanding its Southern California operations with plans to add two new warehouses for its Gate City Beverage and Harbor Distributing subsidiaries.

U.S. brewers shipped 12.3 million barrels of beer in November 2020, a decline of 0.8% (or 96,000 fewer barrels than in 2019), according to domestic tax paid estimates from the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) shared by the Beer Institute (BI).

Permanent excise tax cuts for brewers and importers was just a signature away. However, getting pen to paper on the $900 billion economic relief package and a $1.4 trillion government funding bill passed by Congress is now in question after President Donald Trump unexpectedly pushed back against the measures.

The Atlanta Hawks have been named Anheuser-Busch InBev’s “NBA Partner of the Year,” team executives tell Brewbound. The difference maker for the Hawks: an in-arena activation with rap superstar Big Boi, who was featured on limited edition 25 oz. Budweiser cans sold within the Atlanta market and at the team’s home arena, State Farm Arena.

A permanent reduction in the federal excise tax for alcohol producers and importers is a signature away. The U.S. House of Representatives and U.S. Senate have both signed off on the $900 billion economic relief package, which includes language from the Craft Beverage Modernization and Tax Reform Act (CBMTRA), as well as additional Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) funding for small businesses, among other measures.

The temporary federal excise tax cuts enjoyed by brewers and importers over the last three years are on the verge of being made permanent. Congress has included language from the Craft Beverage Modernization and Tax Reform Act (CBMTRA) in the $900 billion COVID-19 relief package that is expected to pass in the coming days.

Chicago’s Revolution Brewing has promoted Doug Veliky to chief strategy officer. In his new role, Veliky will be tasked with leading the finance and marketing divisions of the company, as well as helping set the overall strategic direction of the craft brewery.

Brooklyn Brewery co-founder Steve Hindy, one of the famed “Class of ’88” pioneers of the craft brewing movement, has announced his retirement, effective December 31.

The California Craft Brewers Association (CCBA) has filed a lawsuit against Gov. Gavin Newsom and the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) director Sandra Shewry alleging that the state has infringed upon the constitutional rights and denied the state’s beer manufacturers equal protection by requiring them to serve a meal to guests in order to operate their tasting rooms while not imposing the same restrictions upon the state’s winemakers.

Industry watchdog group Alcohol Justice is urging California Attorney General Xavier Becerra to conduct an independent investigation of Anheuser-Busch InBev and Reyes Holdings for what it believes could be antitrust violations related to acquisitions each company has made in the state.

Just two weeks after closing on the acquisition of Atlanta’s Sweetwater Brewing Company, Canadian cannabis company Aphria has reached an agreement to merge with Tilray, forming the world’s largest cannabis company valued at $3.8 billion.