To commemorate 30 years of brewing and to celebrate New Orleans’ distinct identity, Abita Brewing has introduced a new set of packages that will “reflect the culture and heritage of the brewery’s neighboring city.” In a statement, the Louisiana-based craft brewery said it would begin shipping rebranded core products — which have also returned to traditional cardboard basket carriers — this month.
In the midst of a brewery expansion that will nearly double its production capacity, California-based Firestone Walker announced plans to enter eight new states beginning in March. In a press release, the brewery said it had finalized agreements with wholesalers to launch in Connecticut, Iowa, Kansas, Maine, Montana, Nebraska, New Mexico and Vermont. The company will also begin exporting to Canada and Sweden.
Here’s your first craft beer deal of 2016: Victory Brewing and Southern Tier Brewing will combine to form Artisanal Brewing Ventures (ABV), a private-equity backed holding company formed by Southern Tier founders Phineas and Sara DeMink and Ulysses Management LLC. Southern Tier had previously sold a majority stake to the New York-based family office in 2014.
Mississippi representatives Patricia Willis (R-Diamondhead) and Toby Barker (R-Hattiesburg) last week introduced House Bill 846 which, if passed, would give local breweries the right to sell beer directly to consumers. Currently being reviewed by the House Ways and Means Committee, the bill includes a series of allowances aimed at stimulating sales of Mississippi-brewed beer.
Bell’s Brewery will expand distribution into Kansas, Nebraska and South Dakota this year and has begun the process of identifying new wholesale partners in each state. In a press statement, the Michigan-based brewery said no specific launch dates had been set and that distributor selections could “take some time.”
After more than 15 months of investigations, regulators in Massachusetts have determined that Craft Beer Guild LLC — a wholesaler responsible for selling about 200 craft brands from around the U.S. — knowingly violated state laws prohibiting unfair trade practices and illegal pay-to-play activities. News of the decision was first reported by the Boston Globe. In a notice dated Feb. 11, 2016 and obtained by Brewbound, the Massachusetts Alcoholic Beverages Control Commission (ABCC) slapped Craft Beer Guild — a subsidiary of the Sheehan Family Companies, which owns several alcoholic beverage distributorships across more than a dozen states — with a 90-day license suspension for offering inducements and unfair discounts in exchange for guaranteed retail placements.
In this week’s edition of Last Call, New Belgium delays its Asheville brewery opening, a pair of Michigan craft brewers expand their distribution footprints and Asahi Holdings moves to buy the Peroni, Grolsch and Meantime brands.
On the verge of being a nationally distributed craft brand, Oskar Blues Brewery yesterday announced it would expand distribution into three new states. The Colorado-headquartered company, which operates a second brewing facility in Brevard, NC., has signed agreements with wholesalers in North Dakota, South Dakota and Oklahoma and will begin distributing to the new markets over the next two months.
Hoping to capitalize on a slew of successful fruit-forward IPA introductions, Boston Beer Company this week began nationwide distribution of Samuel Adams Rebel Grapefruit IPA. Brewed with real grapefruit and grapefruit peel, the latest Rebel line extension has a “tart, sharp character,” according to the company. In an effort to “round out bitterness from the peel” and add “sweet juiciness,” Boston Beer also adds grapefruit juice before filtering the beer.
Like so many other small U.S. producers, Seattle’s Fremont Brewing is at a crossroads. On the verge of opening a second brewing facility that will eventually enable the company to produce upwards of 250,000 barrels, and flush with interest from distributors around the U.S., brewery founder Matt Lincecum has two options: step on the gas pedal and expand distribution nationwide, or grow in a more controlled fashion, methodically building out distribution into contiguous markets.
Amidst speculation that his company was about to be scooped up by Anheuser-Busch InBev, Cigar City founder Joey Redner responded to questions regarding the future of a company he launched just seven years ago. That speculation, fueled by a blog posting that cited three unnamed sources as providing what it called ‘a credible rumor,’ was only so much noise and speculation, noted Redner, who said “there’s nothing to announce.”
Michigan’s Bell’s Brewery will expand distribution into Arkansas, its 24th state, today announcing agreements with a pair of wholesalers that jointly make up the “Arkansas Craft Alliance.” Bell’s signed with Arkansas Craft Distributors LLC and O’Connor Distributing — which includes Three Lakes Distributing, Three Rivers Distributing and White River Beverage — for statewide distribution of the brewery’s entire portfolio beginning in April
Sam Calagione, an author who sometimes moonlights as the founder of a well-known craft brewery, has written another book about his experiences as a business owner since launching Dogfish Head Craft Brewery 20 years ago. Set to hit shelves February 22, Off-centered Leadership: The Dogfish Head Guide to Motivation, Collaboration & Smart Growth, describes challenges Calagione faced while building Dogfish Head into the nation’s 13th largest craft beer company.
Even with more than 4,100 U.S. craft breweries to choose from, there’s still a group of drinkers who just want to drink a homebrew. Unfortunately (or fortunately), wider access to those products is virtually nonexistent, which means most of us will probably never try Victoria’s Vanilla Chai Imperial Stout. Enter Noble Brewer, an online retailer that aims to digitally connect amateur brewers to thirsty consumers.
