Brewbound today announces its 2020 award winners, companies and individuals that were able to thrive in a challenging year. The Brewbound Awards have recognized large and small beer companies, as well as notable industry figures, for their execution of various business and philanthropic initiatives since 2014.
Nearly two months after the close of its sale to Canadian cannabis company Aphria, Atlanta-headquartered SweetWater Brewing said it will expand distribution to Colorado, the first state to legalize cannabis for recreational use.
Pride and Parquet, Jack’s Abby Craft Lagers’ Boston Celtics themed beer, hit retailers in early January, and early shipments of the hoppy lager have quickly sold out. For the Framingham, Massachusetts-headquartered craft brewery, the partnership with the iconic Boston sports franchise is part of a strategy to go deeper at home with a focus on off-premise sales in 2021, co-owner Sam Hendler told Brewbound.
Hard seltzer dollar sales topped $4.14 billion in 2020, increasing 160.4% compared to 2019, according to Bump Williams Consulting (BWC), citing NielsenIQ all-outlet, plus convenience and liquor data through December 26, 2020.
Cincinnati-headquartered Rhinegeist Brewery will be launching its offerings in Chicago in March. “It’s the biggest city we’ve launched in a long time, arguably the biggest city we may ever launch,” vice president of sales Matt Steinke told Brewbound. “We’re poised to grow it for a long time; we want to be in the city for a long time.”
Brewbound today announced its 2020 class of Rising Stars, as part of the build up to the 2020 Brewbound Awards show, which will stream for free on Brewbound.com at 3 p.m. ET Thursday, January 21.
Bell’s Brewery has appointed Carrie K. Yunker to the newly created role of executive vice president. Yunker, who has worked at Bell’s for nearly two decades and most recently served as VP of human resources, will work with Bell’s founder and president Larry Bell to oversee all aspects of managing the company, as well as leading Bell’s senior leadership team and acting as a go-between to the Michigan craft brewery’s board of directors.
Following a marketing campaign intended to lure beer drinkers away from their beverage of choice to Jim Beam, the leaders of the industry’s largest trade groups issued a joint statement in defense of ales and lagers.
A peach on a beach, packed in a bag in a box. Not a Dr. Seuss couplet, but the latest collaboration from non-profit organization Beer Kulture, which teamed up with Belgian-inspired, Longmont, Colorado-based Primitive Beer. Peach on a Beach is a spontaneously fermented ale aged in bourbon barrels on Colorado peaches and Tahitian vanilla beans packaged in Primitive’s signature bag-in-box.
Defying the predictions of many industry analysts, Monster Beverage Corporation offered no official confirmation of nor announcement for its rumored alcoholic hard seltzer product during its 2021 Virtual Investors Meeting on Thursday.
San Francisco-based Fort Point Beer Company has ended its 6-year-old self-distribution operation and sold the rights to distribute its brands to Matagrano Inc. in the Bay Area. Offerings from Bell’s Brewery will be sold by Classic Beverage in Southern California, following the acquisition of Bell’s brand rights by the City of Industry-headquartered wholesaler, which purchased Craft Beer Guild from Sheehan Family Companies.
Rabobank beverage analyst Bourcard Nesin joins the Brewbound Podcast to discuss his new report that details how drinker demographics are changing and how beverage companies can welcome these new consumers, who are more female, more diverse and older.
Everything’s bigger in Texas and America’s oldest brewery is hoping that beer sales will be too. This fall, the Lone Star State will be the first new market to receive D.G. Yuengling & Son beer as part of the Pennsylvania brewery’s joint venture (JV) with Molson Coors Beverage Company, the companies announced in a press release.