Three years after acquiring Seattle Cider Company and Two Beers Brewing Company, French agri-business cooperative Agrial Group is suing the beer and cider maker’s founder, Joel VandenBrink, for breach of contract and fiduciary duties for allegedly falsifying sales to increase a payout by $6.8 million. The Seattle Times first reported the story on Friday.
In this week’s Last Call: Patagonia’s Trademark Lawsuit Against A-B Continues; Narragansett to Open Rhode Island Brewery; NBWA’s Beer Purchaser’s Index Expands in August; Anheuser-Busch Donates Canned Water to Hurricane Dorian Relief Effort
Charlotte, North Carolina-based Sycamore Brewing is diversifying its portfolio again with the launch of Beach Shack Coffee. Sycamore, which also makes the Wild Blossom cider brand, has begun selling canned and kegged cold brew, and also plans to offer fresh-roasted beans, said Sycamore Brewing VP of sales Archie Gleason. Sycamore — which was founded by husband-and-wife Justin and Sarah Brigham in 2013 — sees whitespace in the local Charlotte market for craft beer drinkers who like artisan coffee, Gleason said.
Rearrange the blocks, or sell them? That’s the question that Craft Brew Alliance CEO Andy Thomas seemed to be working through in a rare off-cycle conference call with investors and analysts today after his company’s largest playmate, Anheuser-Busch InBev, declined its long-held option to purchase the Portland, Oregon-headquartered craft beer maker.
Anheuser-Busch InBev has until March 2, 2020, to sell through Bud Light packaging that contains language and an icon indicating that the top-selling beer in the U.S. contains “no corn syrup,” a federal judge ordered today. Wednesday’s order is the latest development in the deceptive advertising lawsuit filed in March by MillerCoors against the world’s largest beer manufacturer.
Following last week’s news that Spanish brewer Mahou San Miguel had agreed to acquire a controlling stake in Michigan’s Founders Brewing Company, co-founder Mike Stevens told Brewbound that his goal of building “America’s next great brewery” remains unchanged. In fact, Stevens said Mahou’s investment brings that goal closer to reality.
The awkwardness between Craft Brew Alliance and Anheuser-Busch InBev didn’t end last Friday when the world’s largest beer manufacturer passed on making a qualifying offer to purchase the company. CBA CEO Andy Thomas told Brewbound that the awkwardness has shifted from a will-they, won’t-they-get-married scenario, to one in which the question is if the two companies still want to live together now that they’re no longer engaged.
Spanish brewer Mahou San Miguel has reached a deal to acquire a majority stake in Michigan’s Founders Brewing Co., according to a report by MiBiz.com. Mahou already owned 30% of the fast-growing Grand Rapids-based craft brewery following a 2014 transaction valued at more than $96 million. The company will now hold 90% of Founders following the latest deal, which is expected to close in January.
Everett, Massachusetts-based Night Shift Brewing announced plans Wednesday to open a $10 million, 130,000 sq. ft. production production brewery in Philadelphia. Speaking to Brewbound, Night Shift co-founder Michael Oxton said the company is “committed” to opening the new brewery before the end of 2020. The Philadelphia project is being financed through a combination of cash flow and bank debt, he added.
The final Brew Talks of 2019 travels to Denver, CO, this October and will feature Dogfish Head’s Sam Calagione, as well as executives from Maui Brewing, CANarchy and Odell Brewing. The industry meetup is taking place on Friday, October 4, during the Great American Beer Festival. Presented by Dogfish Head Craft Brewery, Brew Talks gives brewers, distributors, and retailers a chance to come together and take part in honest conversations about the industry.
Call it a scoop. Call it a shill. Either way, Adam Schefter made news today about the relationship between the NFL and Anheuser-Busch InBev. Schefter, the ESPN NFL insider known for breaking the league’s biggest scoops via his Twitter account — including last weekend’s retirement of Indianapolis Colts quarterback Andrew Luck — announced this morning that Anheusr-Busch InBev-owned Bon & Viv is now the “Official Hard Seltzer Sponsor of the NFL.”
Dogfish Head Craft Brewery is just five states away from completing national distribution. The Milton, Delaware-based craft brewery, which merged with Boston Beer Company earlier this year, announced Monday the addition of its 45th state — Mississippi — via Capital City Beverages.
Lighthouse Strategies — the maker of the Cannabiniers and Two Roots lines of cannabis-infused non-alcoholic craft beers – announced today plans to roll out a line of non-infused, non-alcoholic craft beers. Starting in September, Two Roots’ non-alcoholic beers will be available in 145 BevMo! stores throughout California.
Barring a resolution before next week, President Donald Trump’s escalating trade war with China — and increased tariffs on aluminum can sheet — threatens to further impact U.S. beer companies’ bottom lines. On Friday, Trump announced via Twitter plans to increase tariffs on $550 billion of imported Chinese goods over the next two months in retaliation for China saying it would impose $75 billion in tariffs on goods imported from America beginning October 1. And aluminum can producers are bracing for the higher aluminum costs and passing them onto their customers.
