A dispute over which tax relief measure they ultimately support has led to tension between the Beer Institute (BI) and some Brewers Association (BA) board members.

In celebration of American Craft Beer Week (yes it’s a real thing), market research firm Mintel released a few boozy insights that shed a bit of light on today’s beer drinker. According to a recent Mintel survey, craft beer drinkers know what they’re shopping for: 73 percent say that they know what brand they are going to buy before stepping into a retail outlet.

By going against the old “stack ’em high and watch ’em fly” adage, Duvel USA has managed to double its volume and triple its revenue over a three-year period. Simon Thorpe, the president of Duvel USA/Ommegang explained how the company has turned that neat trick during the May 2 Brewbound Session in Boston, presenting a… Read more »

Michael Binstein, the CEO of Binny’s Beverage Depot, has what he calls a battle cry: “If you can’t find it at Binny’s, it’s probably not worth drinking.” That cry is also his company’s motto and a reflection of just how successful the Midwest’s largest, independent beer wine and liquor retailer was last year.

While the large domestic beer companies blamed sluggish first quarter sales on bad weather, the country’s 13th largest craft brewery saw positive volume gains, regardless of the climate. Adam Lambert, the company’s vice president of sales shared earnings details through its first four months of 2013 with Brewbound.com.

A pair of bipartisan, beer-related bills that would reduce federal excise taxes on both small and large brewers were introduced in Congress this week. The Brewers Association (BA) — which represents the interest of America’s small and independent brewers — and the Beer Institute (BI) — which represents brewers and beer importers of varying sizes… Read more »

Remember when the Brewers Association (BA) sparked the “Craft versus Crafty” debate last December? It’s not dead yet. At a gathering of beer companies this week in Chicago, in fact, it seemed pretty alive, as some high-profile craft and mainstream beer company executives tried to hash out the issue.

Despite a decrease in sales compared to last year’s first quarter, the Craft Brew Alliance expressed a positive outlook for the rest of 2013 because of depletion volume growth, average price increases and an approximately $2.4 million investment for updating their pubs and adding brewing capacity and efficiency.

Drinkers looking for the world’s freshest craft beer might want to start frequenting Eataly. In just six years, the company — which purports to be the world’s largest artisanal Italian food and wine marketplace — has expanded globally, with 11 locations in Italy and another four in Japan.

The freshness of beer, for many drinkers, serves as the variable that separates adoration from frustration. Straight from the tap brings the truest form, they say. So while cans have been all the rage, craft beer drinkers also treasure draft. And when they crave freshness from the comfort of their couch, rather than from a pricey trip to the bar, more and more, those consumers want growlers.

Lucky Hawkeyes! Wonder if they’ll get The Abyss? Meanwhile, here’s a job that a lot of craft breweries won’t cop to having: “Expansion Manager.”

We don’t really care that it’s a repost. Sometimes, you’ve gotta do what you can to get through to the end of “Humpday.”

As craft brewers continue chipping away at a U.S. beer landscape primarily dominated by two international mega-brewers, a few rapidly expanding craft beer companies are beginning to consider national distribution models. But building out that national footprint isn’t as simple as just flipping a switch.

As new craft beer brands launch and existing ones continue to develop their products, brands and footprints, Tom Fox said that understanding data can help brewers to expose untapped markets, to stay objective, fact-based and solution-oriented, and to separate themselves from the less-informed majority.