Ballast Point Brewing Company

Beer continues to be the big growth driver for Constellation Brands. On Thursday, the wine, spirits and beer maker reported its annual earnings, which were boosted by $4.2 billion in net beer revenues for the fiscal year ending February 28, a 17 percent increase over the prior year.

Constellation Brands laid a plank in its succession plan on Wednesday with the appointment of Bill Newlands to the newly created position of chief operating officer, effective January 30.

The board of directors for Constellation Brands — the high-end maker of Ballast Point and import brands Modelo and Corona — has approved a share buyback program of up to $1 billion of the company’s common stock.

Constellation Brands has negotiated its “most comprehensive arena sponsorship” for popular Corona, Modelo and Ballast Point beer brands, yesterday announcing the signing of a lucrative “marketing alliance” with Barclays Center and the Brooklyn Nets.

Just days after it was revealed that a pair of top Ballast Point Brewing executives would leave the organization to “pursue other interests within the beverage alcohol space,” two more key figures are also headed out the door. Founder Jack White Jr. and chief operating officer Yuseff Cherney — who also served as the company’s head brewer and distiller — have officially departed, according to Michael McGrew, a spokesman with Ballast Point’s parent company, Constellation Brands.

A key pair of Ballast Point Brewing executives have departed the San Diego-based brewery less than nine months after its $1 billion sale to Constellation Brands, a spokesperson from the larger company confirmed to Brewbound. Ballast Point president and CEO, Jim Buechler, and chief commercial officer Earl Kight have left Ballast Point to “pursue other interests within the beverage alcohol space,” according to Constellation Brands spokesman Michael McGrew.

Ballast Point today confirmed plans to purchase a massive 259,000 sq. ft. building in Botetourt County, Virginia, where it will build its first East Coast production facility. According to a press release from the office of Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe, the company plans to spend $48 million to build the new outpost.

Currently slated for an early July opening, The Alchemist’s new brewery and visitor center in Stowe, Vermont will once again give thirsty beer travelers an opportunity to purchase the popular Heady Topper double IPA directly from the source. San Diego’s Ballast Point is heading north and will move into an 11,000 sq. ft. restaurant in Long Beach, according to the LA Times.

The Brewers Association (BA) today released its annual rankings of the top 50 U.S. breweries based on 2015 sales volumes, and once again Ballast Point Brewing emerged as the biggest mover amongst the industry’s largest craft producers. Climbing 20 places from 31 on the “Top Craft Brewing Companies” list, Ballast Point is now ranked as the 11th largest U.S. craft brewery, according to the BA. Although the organization’s official production figures will not be made available until next month, the San Diego-based brewery had projected 2015 volumes to be about 290,000 barrels.

About two and a half hours north of Miami, there’s a small brewery where every beer on tap is made with citrus. Calling itself a “grove to glass craft beer project,” Orchid Island Brewery views itself as the Floridian equivalent of a Belgian farmhouse brewery. The company pays homage to Florida’s rich history of citrus growers by sourcing grapefruit, oranges and other citrus fruits from local growers.

Constellation Brands will borrow $400 million to help finance the $1 billion purchase of San Diego’s Ballast Point Brewing, the company said in a statement. The cross-category beverage alcohol producer has tapped a banking syndicate that includes Bank of America Merrill Lynch, J.P Morgan Securities, Rabo Securities, Wells Fargo Securities, SunTrust Robinson Humphrey, Mitsubishi UFJ Securities, Goldman, Sachs & Co., Scotia Capital, Barclays Capital and BBVA Securities.

It took some time, but Constellation Brands (NYSE: STZ) has officially entered the craft beer business, today announcing the $1 billion acquisition of San Diego’s Ballast Point Brewing & Spirits. It’s a blockbuster transaction — the largest ever in craft — and represents an astonishing $3,500 per barrel multiple, as Ballast Point is expected to produce 290,000 barrels in 2015.

Constellation Brands is officially entering the craft beer category, and in a big way. The Corona and Modelo maker today announced it would acquire San Diego’s Ballast Point Brewing for a whopping $1 Billion. “The purchase price values the acquisition multiple of the projected calendar 2016 Ballast Point EBITDA in the mid-to-high teens range,” Constellation said in a press statement.

Mims Distributing Company, a wholesale beverage distributor in North Carolina, has announced that Ballast Point Brewing & Spirits’ The Commodore American Stout is now available in six-pack form. Previously only available in draft, The Commodore six-pack features 12-ounce bottles full of the flavors of roast coffee and chocolate, with light citrus hop aromas and a bitter crisp finish. Craft beer lovers can also purchase the craft brew in 24-count cases and kegs.