Pabst Brewing Company today announced a number of executive changes, including the departure of chief executive officer Simon Thorpe, whose time with the company lasted 21 months. In a press release, the company said Thorpe, along with chief operating officer Brian Bousely, had stepped down from their roles.

Recognized for creativity and artistry, New Holland’s Dragon’s Milk stout exemplifies the brewery’s commitment to craftmanship. The stout boasts flavorful, rich, robust characteristics that lend themselves to unique seasonal flavor combinations. The updated packaging, retail elements and branded merchandise will shift to a premium all-black base, allowing the hallmark dragon emblem to serve as the visual focus in place of the brewery’s own logo.

In this week’s edition of Last Call: Pabst and MillerCoors are headed to trial in November; Amazon adds beer delivery in Texas; the Florida Brewers Guild claims big beer is pushing small brands out of Publix; and more news.

In the latest edition of Press Clips: Yuengling adds Golden Pilsner to its year-round lineup; Pabst launches new legacy brand offerings; fire shutters Rogue’s San Francisco pub; and more.

National Bohemian Beer Company today announced the release of National Bohemian Crab Shack Shandy, its first new beer to hit the market in over 30 years. The seasonal shandy is now available in select areas throughout the Mid-Atlantic through the end of the summer.

Irish cider company C&C Group plc., owner of the Vermont Hard Cider Company, today announced that it will end its 2-year-old U.S. marketing and distribution agreement with Pabst Brewing on April 1. In a letter to distributors and retailers, Vermont Hard Cider — whose brands include Woodchuck, Gumption, and Wyder’s, among others — said the two companies mutually agreed to terminate the strategic partnership forged in December 2015.

For the second time in as many years, Pabst Brewing Company will undergo a major round of layoffs, today announcing that it has eliminated a total of 70 positions from the company. The cuts — which impacted employees across all areas of the organization, including sales, marketing, operations and administration — are being made to help the company reduce its cost basis by 15 percent.

Ten months after Pabst Brewing Company terminated agreements with three Washington wholesalers, an arbitrator has determined that Columbia Distributing — which was awarded the distribution rights to several Pabst brands last February — owes a combined $21.2 million to The Odom Corporation, Craig Stein Beverage, and Marine View Beverage.

As the end of 2017 draws near, U.S. beer volume sales remain roughly flat, according to recent data from Chicago-based market research firm IRI Worldwide. IRI, which tracks beer sales at off-premise retailers, reported that total beer sales through the first 11 months of 2017 exceeded $31.8 billion in the firm’s multi-outlet and convenience. Through December 3, U.S. beer volume sales declined 0.5 percent while total beer dollar sales increased 1.1 percent.

The entrepreneurs behind the once-caffeinated and controversial flavored malt beverage, Four Loko, are diversifying. Following the April launch of Four Loko Shots, a line of flavored spirits checking in at 35 percent ABV, Four Loko parent Phusion Projects, via its Innovative Wine & Spirits subsidiary, last week struck a deal with Pabst Brewing Company to market, sell and distribute its first bourbon brand under the Not Your Father’s label.

In a move toward diversifying its portfolio and reaching spirits consumers, Pabst Brewing Company today announced a foray into the crafts spirits space with the launch of Not Your Father’s Bourbon. The 86 proof (43 percent ABV), small-batch bourbon is the first product to be launched in a new line of spirits under the Not Your Father’s label, which includes the popular Not Your Father’s Root Beer flavored malt beverage as well as hard vanilla cream and ginger ale offerings, among others.

Generation Z is coming, and brewers and wholesalers need to figure out to speak to the next group of legal drinking age consumers, Pabst Brewing Company CEO Simon Thorpe told an audience of beer industry professionals during a Brew Talks meetup last week in Las Vegas.

Brewbound is pleased to announce speakers for its upcoming Brew Talks meetups, taking place alongside the Great American Beer Festival (GABF) in Denver and National Beer Wholesalers Association (NBWA) convention in Las Vegas. The two events give brewers and distributors attending the GABF and NBWA meetings a chance to engage in thought-provoking business discussion alongside their industry peers.

New Holland Brewing announced last week that it would begin shipping beer to a network of wholesalers in Florida, Maine and New Hampshire while also expanding its coverage in upstate New York as part of a sales and distribution partnership inked last year with Pabst Brewing Company.