Wachusett Brewing Company

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.

Nauti Seltzer is looking to go beyond the hard seltzer category with the announcement of their newest flavor, Nauti Rosé. Nauti Rosé is a refreshing and delightful interpretation of a sparking rosé wine.

Wachusett Brewing Company is expanding their on-site experience by bringing their successful summer Brew Yard concept indoors.  The new indoor Brew Yard extends the popularity of the outdoor version that opened this summer to now create a year-round destination for craft beer fans across New England.

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.

Coming off the most successful brand introduction in company history, Wachusett Brewing Company is following up the launch of their highly touted New England IPA Wally with Wally Juice. “Juice” will be a hazier, juicier, more intense flavor profile entrant in to the much buzzed about New England IPA category.

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.

Wachusett Brewing is taking its recently launched outdoor beer garden, dubbed the “Brew Yard,” on the road. In partnership with Delaware North, a hospitality company owned by Jeremy Jacobs, who also owns the Boston Bruins, the Massachusetts craft brewery will pop up in Boston City Hall Plaza the next three Thursdays.

Wachusett Brewing Company is taking their brewery to the next level. The new Brew Yard promises to be the next great addition to the vibrant New England craft beer destination scene. Guests will now be able to visit the brewery, buy a pint, grab a bite to eat from a local food truck and relax while listening to a wide variety of music.

Wachusett Brewing Company today announced that Christian McMahan, who most recently served as a managing partner of creative agency Smartfish, would join the Massachusetts-based craft brewery as its new president. McMahan, who previously spent 2 1/2 years as the CMO of Heineken USA (2008 – 2010) and worked for six years as the vice president of marketing for Diageo (2002 – 2008), will officially join Wachusett in mid-June.

In a dramatic departure from its established regional craft brewing business, Wachusett Brewing Company (Westminster, MA) is moving into new beverage territory, figuratively and literally. The company has developed a healthy alternative in the hard soda category and will be launching it nationwide in April following an initial rollout in its home state, Massachusetts.

In March, Wachusett Brewing – via its newly established Craft Cocktail Company DBA — will introduce a line of hard seltzer products under the “Nauti Seltzer” brand identity. Positioning it as a “healthy alternative in the hard soda category,” the 110 calorie, five percent ABV Nauti Seltzer offerings – which will come in raspberry, lemon-lime, grapefruit and cranberry flavors — will have a national focus from the onset and are aimed at health-conscious consumers looking for an alternative to traditional beer.

After more than 15 months of investigations, regulators in Massachusetts have determined that Craft Beer Guild LLC — a wholesaler responsible for selling about 200 craft brands from around the U.S. — knowingly violated state laws prohibiting unfair trade practices and illegal pay-to-play activities. News of the decision was first reported by the Boston Globe. In a notice dated Feb. 11, 2016 and obtained by Brewbound, the Massachusetts Alcoholic Beverages Control Commission (ABCC) slapped Craft Beer Guild — a subsidiary of the Sheehan Family Companies, which owns several alcoholic beverage distributorships across more than a dozen states — with a 90-day license suspension for offering inducements and unfair discounts in exchange for guaranteed retail placements.

After investing more than $5 million on brewery infrastructure over the last five years, Wachusett Brewing is turning more attention to the contract portion of its business. But in order for the company to fully capitalize on all of the opportunities coming its way, it says, it needs a little help from Massachusetts state regulators.