Hard Seltzer’s Summertime Softening Disappoints Analysts; Cowen Downgrades Boston Beer to ‘Underperform’

Hard Seltzer’s Summertime Softening Disappoints Analysts; Cowen Downgrades Boston Beer to ‘Underperform’

Hard seltzer’s late summer slowdown has pushed several financial services firms to adjust their forecast for the sparkling segment’s performance. “We are incrementally more cautious on the beer and hard seltzer category based on feedback from our beer distributor contacts in our new proprietary ‘Beverage Bytes’ survey,” Goldman Sachs equity research analyst Bonnie Herzog wrote in a report published today.

Mission Brewery Sold; Former CBA Exec Dan Partelow Appointed CEO

Mission Brewery Sold; Former CBA Exec Dan Partelow Appointed CEO

San Diego-based Mission Brewery was sold in late July to a California holding company led by Kenneth Little, a partner in Brandes Investment Partners, according to documents filed with the California Secretary of State’s Office.

New Glarus CEO Vows to Fight Minority Shareholders’ Lawsuit

New Glarus CEO Vows to Fight Minority Shareholders’ Lawsuit

New Glarus Brewing co-founder and CEO Deborah Carey called a lawsuit filed last week against her and her Wisconsin craft brewery by three minority investors “slanderous,” and she said she plans to file a counter complaint. The three original investors in New Glarus claim in their lawsuit, filed in Wisconsin’s Dane County Circuit Court, that Carey breached her fiduciary duties and the company has oppressed minority shareholders.

Beer Industry Trade Groups Respond to White House Executive Order to Increase Competition

Beer Industry Trade Groups Respond to White House Executive Order to Increase Competition

Leaders from the Brewers Association (BA), Beer Institute (BI), and National Beer Wholesalers Association (NBWA) submitted comments to Amy Greenberg, regulations and rulings division director of the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB), detailing each group’s purview of the market and specific requests that would benefit or mitigate harm against their respective members.

New Hampshire Lifts To-Go Sales Cap, Allows In-State DTC Shipping

New Hampshire Lifts To-Go Sales Cap, Allows In-State DTC Shipping

New Hampshire breweries gained direct-to-consumer intrastate shipping rights and several other new privileges when Gov. Christopher Sununu signed a bill of alcoholic beverage reforms into law earlier this month. “They built their businesses: Our job is to get out of the way and let them thrive and grow,” Sununu said