Craft beer industry news.
TailGate Brewery is beating the odds amid a stubbornly down period for craft beer. TailGate’s distribution business – which it bolsters with nine taprooms in Tennessee – has increased 40% year-over-year (YoY) in the first half of 2026, the Nashville-based brewery shared in a recent press release.
The story of craft in 2026 has followed the increasingly repetitive plotlines of the last couple years: Volume is down a mid-single digit at the midway point, scans haven’t been encouraging and craft is on distributors’ cut lists. While the public-facing numbers aren’t encouraging, the vibe around craft is different in 2026.
YOSHI Matcha Liqueur is moving from a two-state test market to national distribution in under a year, testing its thesis that the popularity of espresso martinis and matcha prove there’s demand for green tea-laced cocktails.
The back half of the summer has kicked off with hot weather, but cold bev-alc sales, according to the latest weekly off-premise scans report from market research firm Circana.
Sazerac has signed a binding agreement to acquire Au Vodka, a top-selling ready-to-drink (RTD) canned vodka brand in the UK. The deal continues the Fireball owner’s two-year buying spree and marks its largest push yet into the UK market.
BevNET CPG Media announced today that Bryce McDonald has returned as vice president of sales. He will lead the sales organization and work with partners to develop programs across the company’s media, events, insights and professional resources.
Check out news items initially reported in the Brewbound Insider Newsletter August 13-14, including headlines from Hi-Wire, Appalachian Mountain Brewery, Garage Beer or more.
Believe it or not, we have not one, but two developments in old beer archeology that put the can of now a discontinued “below premium” lager brand from my college days that still resides in my fridge to shame. Yes, it seems the Indiana Joneses of the beer world are at it again!
Workers at the Samuel Adams Boston Brewery in Jamaica Plain, Massachusetts, submitted an intent to unionize to Boston Beer Company on Thursday.
Contract-focused joint venture B3 Beverage looks much different from when it launched last year. Philadelphia’s Yards Brewing has made it official with the platform, which has taken final steps to acquire it. However, other founding member breweries have since departed.
The latest spirits distribution headlines include RTD gin cocktail The Original Southside landing in major retailers, a wave of Southern Glazer’s (SGWS) additions spanning vodka, rum, and scotch, and distributors scooping up new territory in the wake of Republic National Distributing Company’s (RNDC) collapse, among other moves.
The liquor channel has dragged off-premise scans for much of 2025, but it was convenience stores that led July’s year-over-year (YoY) losses, according to the latest weekly report from market research firm NIQ.
Adult Non-Alc (ANA) beverage sales passed $1.08 billion in U.S. off-premise sales in 2026, with the real number likely higher when counting on-premise and alternative channel sales. But more than halfway through 2026, that growth is slowing as the category matures.
Sometimes the key to a craft brewery returning to growth isn’t just cleaning up its portfolio, it’s cleaning up internal operations.
