In this week’s Last Call: California ABC Investigates Amazon; US Beer Shipments Down Again in July; Anheuser-Busch’s ZX Ventures Acquires Barbarian; MillerCoors Launches New Blue Moon Campaign

In an effort to bolster sales of its beer at on- and off-premise retail accounts, Westminster, Massachusetts-based Wachusett Brewing Company is leaning into a taproom expansion strategy within its home state. The company today announced it would take over the former John Harvard’s Ale House located in the heart of Cambridge’s Harvard Square.

Wachusett Brewing Company announces its first ever music industry collaboration with its new partnership with reggae and dub music star Stick Figure. The first beer, “COCOANUT IPA”, is a tropical, fruit forward IPA infused with natural coconut.

Friday, Feb. 1 saw the release of Worcester’s Bravest in both the Wormtown Brewery and Wachusett Brewing Company’s taprooms. Wormtown’s event kicked off at noon and Wachusett’s started theirs at 6 p.m. Both breweries anticipated large turnouts all in the name of charity.

“The Fergal Project” Returns To The U.S. in 2019 with “Fergal’s Honey Blonde.” The latest beer in their 1794 Series will once again feature a collaboration with renowned Irish Master Brewer Fergal Murray.

In episode 21 of the Brewbound Podcast, Murray discusses the changes to the American beer scene that he’s witnessed during his long career in beer, his latest collaboration with Wachusett and innovations that could drive future category growth.

Sales of beer, cider and flavored malt beverages topped $38.2 billion in 2018, according to market research firm Nielsen, which tracks category-wide sales at major off-premise retailers.

Two of Central Massachusetts most well-known brewers are coming together for the first time for a very worthy cause. In response to the recent tragic death of Worcester Firefighter Christopher Roy, the two breweries are creating and launching a beer called “Worcester’s Bravest,” with 100% of the proceeds being donated to the Ava Roy Fund.

After only being recognized by the Brewers Association (BA) as an official beer style in March, “juicy or hazy IPAs” have already become the most competitive beer category at the upcoming Great American Beer Festival (GABF) competition. In a post on the organization’s website, BA craft beer program director Julia Herz wrote that 414 different hazy IPA entries were received for the September event. Another 292 juicy or hazy pale ales and double IPAs were also submitted for judging at this year’s event, an indication that the “haze craze” is a beer style trend with legs.

Downtown Boston is getting another summer beer garden, thanks to Mayor Martin Walsh and the City of Boston, Wachusett Brewing Company, and Delaware North, a hospitality company owned by Bruins owner Jeremy Jacobs. Dubbed “Boston Seasons” and located at City Hall Plaza, the new pop-up beer garden, ice cream shop and mini-golf course will open May 4 and operate seven days a week throughout the summer.

Massachusetts-based Wachusett Brewing Company is introducing two new year-round beers to complement their existing portfolio.

The Brewers Association has officially recognized hazy New England-style IPAs as a bona fide beer style. In a press release, the trade group today announced changes to its “Beer Style Guidelines,” a reference for brewers and beer competition organizers that includes style descriptions and product specifications. Among the new styles of beer featured in the 2018 guidebook are three cloudier offerings – “Juicy or Hazy Pale Ale,” “Juicy or Hazy IPA” and “Juicy or Hazy Double IPA” — which over the years have become known as New England-style or Northeast IPAs.

Massachusetts’ Wachusett Brewing has partnered with former Guinness brewmaster Fergal Murray to kick off a new set of collaboration brews that the company has dubbed the “1794 series.” Set to debut on February 23, “The Fergal Project” is a 4.5 percent stout that combines Irish malts with the same American hops used in Wachusett’s “Wally” New England IPA.