Deschutes Brewery has named vice president of marketing Neal Stewart as its next vice president of sales. Stewart’s promotion to VP of sales and marketing was announced Friday during a quarterly “co-owners meeting” of the employee-owned company’s workforce.

Firestone Walker’s 2019 was unpredictable — one of those rare years when a lot of things go right. The Paso Robles, California-based craft brewery projected 485,000 barrels — with a stretch goal of 500,000 — in 2019, strong growth projections after producing 454,261 barrels the previous year. Those projections were tossed with the company finishing… Read more »

Chris Hollod wants to be known as one of the most active angel investors in the alcohol space. After about a decade of making investments with billionaire Ron Burkle and actor Ashton Kutcher, Hollod, a Los Angeles-based venture capitalist, struck out on his own in 2019 and has shifted his focus from investing in tech companies such as Airbnb, Uber, Spotify and Warby Parker, to investing in consumer packaged good companies, specifically “alternative alcohol” companies.”

Dogfish Head Craft Brewery president and COO George Pastrana will exit the company on Friday, February 14. Boston Beer Company, which merged with the Milton, Delaware-based craft brewery last year, confirmed Pastrana’s pending departure from the company.

After 15 years of leading global brewer Heineken N.V., CEO and chairman of the executive board Jean-François van Boxmeer will vacate the top role on June 1, the Supervisory Board of Heineken N.V. announced in a press release today. The board has also zeroed in on van Boxmeer’s successor: Dolf van den Brink, a 22-year veteran of the Dutch beer company who currently serves as president of Heineken’s Asia Pacific region.

As the number of U.S. breweries has grown to around 8,000 and competition has increased among those companies for consumers, it might be time to pull the advertising lever, particularly as they start to compete with a growing number of local wineries and distilleries.

The parent company of Brizzy Seltzer Cocktails has filed a lawsuit against Molson Coors Beverage Company in U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas, alleging that the second largest U.S. beer manufacturer’s Vizzy Hard Seltzer name “is nearly identical to Brizzy in sight, sound and appearance” and infringes upon its trademark.

The U.S. Department of Justice is seeking additional information and documentation from Anheuser-Busch InBev and Craft Brew Alliance (CBA) as the two companies work toward a planned merger that was announced last November, according to a filing this morning with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

In the latest People Moves: Firestone Walker promotes David Macon; Boston Beer appoints a new board member; A-Rod invests in Presidente; and more.

If there was a question about consumer interest in so-called extreme beer, at least in Boston, it was answered with three sold out sessions well in advance of Beer Advocate’s annual Extreme Beer Fest (EBF).

A Milwaukee-based investor group has acquired the 35-year-old Sprecher Brewing Company. Sharad Chadha is leading the investor group, which includes former MillerCoors general manager Jim Kanter, who will serve on the brewery’s leadership team.

The 14,000 sq. ft. Samuel Adams Taproom has been a couple of years in the offing, located about 20 yards from the statue of the beer brand’s namesake, a Founding Father and revolutionary. Historic ground, indeed, but also a bit of a cursed location for previous tenants.

Making good on its promise to invest $100 million by 2028 in businesses founded or led by women, Constellation Brands today announced a minority investment in Press Premium Alcohol Seltzer through its Focus on Female Founders program.

After crossing the 100,000-barrel threshold in 2018, Rhinegeist’s increased production 6% in 2019, to 106,000 barrels, sales director Matt Steinke shared with Brewbound.