Stonewall Inn Removes A-B Products for Pride Weekend to Protest Donations to Anti-Trans Lawmakers
The owners of the Stonewall Inn — the historic bar in New York City where a 1969 uprising sparked the LGBTQ community’s fight for equality and is commemorated every June during Pride month — are removing Anheuser-Busch InBev offerings from the bar in advance of New York’s annual Pride march on Sunday, June 27.
Co-owners Stacy Lentz and Kurt Kelly plan to pour out A-B’s Bud Light, Michelob Ultra and Stella Artois on Wednesday, June 23, in protest of A-B’s financial support for politicians who support anti-LGBTQ bills, according to The Guardian.
“You can’t turn your logo rainbow on social media, call yourself an ally, and then turn around and make donations that fuel hate,” Lentz said in a statement. “There are really no excuses, and companies like Anheuser-Busch need to own up to what they’ve done.”
A-B has donated $35,350 in 48 donations to 29 anti-LGBTQ legislators, according to Corporate Accountability Action, an organization that says it “holds large companies accountable for their responsibility to promote equity and inclusion in this country.”
Corporate Accountability Action launched the Keep Your Pride campaign to call out companies that claim to support the LGBTQ community in marketing material, but donate to politicians who back bills seeking to curtail the community’s rights. In addition to A-B, Keep Your Pride is also targeting AT&T, Coca-Cola, General Motors and NBC Universal.
Since 2015, A-B has donated to 29 legislators in Florida, Tennessee and Mississippi, according to Corporate Accountability Action.
Among those recipients are Florida Rep. Cord Byrd, Tennessee Rep. Susan Lynn and Mississippi Sen. Joey Fillingane, who all co-sponsored bills in their respective states to ban transgender student athletes from participating in school sports, according to Corportate Accountability Action.
An A-B spokesperson told Brewbound in a statement the company seeks to “support candidates that support the beer industry and the millions of jobs that it creates.”
“Our company and our brands are focused on making a positive and lasting impact when it comes to issues of equality,” the statement continued. “We’re proud of our 22 year partnership with GLAAD, an organization working to shape the narrative and encourage dialogue around LGBTQ+ acceptance, and we are proud to have received a perfect 100% score from the Human Rights Campaign’s Corporate Equality Index for LGBTQ Equality.”
Flying Embers Names Nick Lundquist New Chief of Sales
Hard kombucha maker Flying Embers has named former Sierra Nevada sales leader Nick Lundquist its new chief sales officer (CSO).
In his new role, Lundquist will be a “key member of the Flying Embers leadership team,” working closely with CEO and founder Bill Moses, managing and developing the company’s sales force, developing its wholesaler network, and leading national retail strategy, according to a release.
“I am thrilled to join Bill and the Flying Embers family,” Lundquist said in the release. “Bill is a visionary, and he is assembling an impressive team to help guide the company forward. … I knew instantly that this was a rocketship brand, and the kind of opportunity that I had been searching for.”
Lundquist brings 25 years of experience in the beverage industry, including 17 years with Sierra Nevada Brewing Company, resigning from his role as VP of sales last month. He served various roles in wholesaler management for the Chico, California-headquartered craft brewery, including building its national accounts team as director of national sales, according to the release.
“Nick brings the highest level of sales expertise and industry-wide respect to our team, which will help us continue to cater to today’s consumers and position Flying Embers as the leader in beyond beer and modern alcohol fermentation,” Moses said in the announcement.
Connecticut Legalizes Cannabis for Recreational Use
Connecticut became the 19th state to legalize cannabis for recreational use with the stroke of a pen by Gov. Ned Lamont today.
In addition to legalizing cannabis for adults age 21 and older, the bill, which goes into effect July 1, will expunge past convictions for possession and will reserve half of all licenses to grow and sell cannabis to low-income applicants.
“It’s going to give folks who otherwise sometimes don’t have access to capital the capital they need to start up their own businesses,” Lamont said during the bill signing, adding that the law is “focused on the most distressed communities, those communities who are hardest hit by the war on drugs.”
The state’s Department of Consumer Protection said it plans to begin issuing licenses for growers and sellers by the end of 2022, according to the New York Times.
White Lion To Open Taproom in Springfield
White Lion Brewing will open its first brewery and taproom on Wednesday in Springfield, Massachusetts.
After six years of contract brewing, White Lion began operations in its new brewery last fall, and was set to open the taproom in November 2020, but encountered months of construction delays due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“It’s been a journey, but through perseverance, a good team and good support, we are where we are right now,” Raymond Berry, White Lion’s founder, told Brewbound last October. “We’re going to try to create a very robust taproom environment because we’re in the middle of downtown. Pre-COVID, there was a tremendous amount of foot traffic and activity.”
The 8,000 sq. ft. space has a canning line and the capacity to brew 5,000 barrels annually. Located in the city’s Tower Square development, the taproom is within walking distance of several theaters and hotels, as well as the MassMutual Center and the MGM Springfield casino and resort.
To celebrate the opening, White Lion will host a ribbon cutting ceremony Wednesday, with speakers including Berry, Samuel Adams co-founder Jim Koch, and Springfield Mayor Domenic Sarno.
Berry, one of only a handful of Black brewery owners in the Bay State, founded White Lion in 2014 and began contract brewing at Ipswich Ale Brewery in Ipswich, Massachusetts. Three years later, the company moved production to Brewmasters Brewing Services in Williamsburg, to take advantage of canning services. Since its founding, the company has committed to bringing a full production brewery to Springfield, according to a release.
Mujeres Brew House Opens in San Diego
Mujeres Brew House, a non-profit, woman-operated educational taproom that serves as the home of the Mujeres Brew Club, celebrated its grand opening in San Diego on June 14.
Mujeres Brew Club, a craft beer-centric club for women, was the brainchild of co-founders Esthela Davila and Carmen Favela, co-owner of Border X Brewing, which sponsors the club and brewhouse.
“I wanted to bring more women, especially Latinas, into beer,” Davila said on a July 2020 episode of the Brewbound Podcast. “You don’t have the opportunity really to learn about beer, especially as a Latina — you just don’t.”
Through the Mujeres Brew House, Mujeres Brew Club members will gain access to hands-on learning experiences that will expose them to opportunities in the beer industry.
“We’ll have an actual space that’s going to be a classroom, that’s going to be an event space for us,” Davila said. “If a girl wants to learn how to brew, she can actually be on the system and learn how to brew. A girl wants to learn how to be behind the bar and pour beer, the whole customer service aspect. Everything that you need to know from cleaning lines to marketing — everything. We’re going to be able to do that there.”
Pernod Ricard USA Partners with Drinkworks on Co-Branded Cocktails
Drinkworks, a joint venture between Keurig and Anheuser-Busch InBev, has partnered with Pernod Ricard USA to develop co-branded cocktails for the Drinkworks Home Bar by Keurig.
The spirits leader — whose portfolio includes brands such as Absolut, Malibu and Jameson — will help create cocktail pods that consumers can use to create drinks “at the push of a button” using Drinkworks’ at-home beverage appliance.
The first two cocktails, set to launch in late 2021, will be an Absolut pineapple martini and a Kahlúa espresso martini, according to a press release. A Malibu cocktail is expected to launch in 2022, adding to Drinkworks’ collection of more than 30 varieties of “bar-quality cocktails.”
“As we see an increased emphasis on elevated at-home experiences that bring quality and convenience together, we’re excited to offer Drinkworks Home Bar owners exclusive cocktails at the push of a button featuring brands like Absolut Vodka and Kahlúa, which we know they love and trust,” Drinkworks CEO Nathaniel Davis said in the release.
“The trend of elevated at-home consumption is expected to have a lasting impact on consumption habits,” Kate Pomeroy, head of innovation at Pernod Ricard USA, added. “The partnership between Drinkworks and Pernod Ricard USA, specifically with Absolut, Malibu, and Kahlúa, is consistent with our drive to become a truly consumer-centric organization.”
Pernod Ricard is the third premium spirits company to partner with Drinkworks, joining Heaven Hill (Elijah Craig Bourbon, Deep Eddy Vodka), and Brown-Forman (Jack Daniel’s).