Brewbound Podcast

Beer Institute president and CEO Jim McGreevy joined the Brewbound Podcast ahead of his organization’s annual membership meeting to discuss the most pressing issues facing the trade group, which counts the nation’s largest breweries among its members. Those issues include the spirits industry’s push for equalization to beer in taxation and market access particularly as its ready-to-drink canned cocktails gain share, which McGreevy called the “biggest threat facing the industry.” “Beer is the beverage of moderation — it is significantly lower in ABV than spirits products are as sectors of the industry,” McGreevy said. “We just know that it’s really in the DNA of the spirits industry to want parity with beer and wine, and we’re seeing that more and more in the state legislatures where they’re positing their canned cocktails as the same as beer, both for lower taxes and for market access. “This issue of equalization waxes and wanes,” he continued. “It has peaks, it has valleys. I think we’re headed for a peak in the battle over equalization between spirits and beer.” The Beer Institute, which was founded in 1862 to create an orderly way to collect federal excise taxes to help fund the Union Army during the Civil War, also works to educate lawmakers on the beer industry’s unique needs and the jobs it creates directly and indirectly. “It’s incumbent on folks in beer to constantly tell them why we’re different and why we’re better,” McGreevy said. Other issues discussed include the BI’s efforts against aluminum tariffs and McGreevy’s vision to become the country’s premier trade group for packaging brewers. Listen to the episode above and on popular platforms such as iTunes, Google Play, Stitcher and Spotify. New episodes of the Brewbound Podcast are published every other Thursday. Check Brewbound’s upcoming events schedule for future podcast episodes and streaming video programming. Email [email protected] with questions and feedback.

The Brewbound team recaps the 2021 Craft Brewers Conference, which focused on health, wellness, diversity, inclusion and equity. They share why there may be good reasons for craft brewers to be optimistic heading into 2022, as craft is expected to return to growth by year’s end. The team also discusses the recent slowdown of hard seltzer sales and Boston Beer’s beyond beer moves that on the surface look like swimming against the current. Listen to the episode above and on popular platforms such as iTunes, Google Play, Stitcher and Spotify. New episodes of the Brewbound Podcast are published every other Thursday. Check Brewbound’s upcoming events schedule for future podcast episodes and streaming video programming. Email [email protected] with questions and feedback.

Can the hard seltzer segment outsmart the seasonal slump it typically goes through every fall? Two-thirds of the Brewbound team discuss in the newest episode of the Brewbound Podcast. Anheuser-Busch InBev’s Bud Light Seltzer is betting on it with its new Fall Flannel Variety Pack featuring such autumnal flavors as Apple Crisp, Toasted Marshmallow, Maple Pear and — of course — Pumpkin Spice. Boston Beer Company’s Truly Hard Seltzer will roll out the Truly Holiday Party Pack on November 1 including cocktail-inspired flavors such as Cran Orange Sparkler, Pom Ginger Fizz, Holiday Sangria Style and Spiked Apple Spice. The team also discussed COVID-19 protocols in place at upcoming fall beer industry conferences, including the Brewers Association’s Craft Brewers Conference (which will not require attendees to show proof of vaccination or a negative test result) and the National Beer Wholesalers Association’s annual convention (which will require attendees to show proof of vaccination or a negative test result). Listen to the episode above and on popular platforms such as iTunes, Google Play, Stitcher and Spotify. New episodes of the Brewbound Podcast are published every other Thursday. Check Brewbound’s upcoming events schedule for future podcast episodes and streaming video programming. Email [email protected] with questions and feedback.

The Brewbound team and leaders from Dogfish Head, New Belgium and Bell’s will do something refreshingly novel: talk about beer (no, not hard seltzer). During the final Brew Talks meetup of 2021, Dogfish Head co-founder Sam Calagione, New Belgium CEO Steve Fechheimer and Bel’s executive vice president Carrie Yunker will discuss strategies for their brewers’ flagships and core offerings, such as 60 Minute IPA, Fat Tire Amber Ale and Two Hearted Ale. The second Brew Talks conversation will discuss how brands can forge meaningful connections with legal drinking age members of Generation Z. Panelists include Crowns & Hops co-founder Teo Hunter, New Belgium senior brand manager Dave Knospe and COOP Ale Works marketing director Mary Ann Caram. The Brewbound team also discusses Deschutes’ new partnership with the Pac-12 Conference, a lawsuit minority shareholders have filed against New Glarus Brewing and CEO Deb Carey, and Los Angeles-based hard seltzer brand Nectar’s leveraging of TikTok. Listen to the episode above and on popular platforms such as iTunes, Google Play, Stitcher and Spotify. New episodes of the Brewbound Podcast are published every other Thursday. Check Brewbound’s upcoming events schedule for future podcast episodes and streaming video programming. Email [email protected] with questions and feedback.

From left: Bourcard Nesin and Donn Bichsel The Brewbound team breaks down the new partnership between Boston Beer Company and PepsiCo to produce Hard MTN Dew in a conversation featuring guests 3Tier Beverages founder and CEO Donn Bichsel and Rabobank beverage analyst Bourcard Nesin. The deal marks the second time this summer that the maker of Samuel Adams, Dogfish Head, Angry Orchard, Twisted Tea and Truly Hard Seltzer has formed a partnership with a major player outside of the beer category, following its joint venture with Beam Suntory to produce Truly-branded spirits, among other crossover offerings. Hard MTN Dew, scheduled to launch in early 2022, is the newest of several collaborations between non-alcoholic beverage producers and beer companies. It will join products such as Topo Chico Hard Seltzer from Molson Coors and Coca-Cola, and SunRise Hard Seltzer from Heineken USA and AriZona Iced Tea maker Hornell Brewing. “The bigger story here is the appetite for soft drinks players to move into beverage alcohol, as well as bigger players moving into spirits, and spirits players moving into hard seltzer and, really, what does that mean for everyone else in the industry and consumers as well,” Nesin said. Listen to the episode above and on popular platforms such as iTunes, Google Play, Stitcher and Spotify. New episodes of the Brewbound Podcast are published every other Thursday. Check Brewbound’s upcoming events schedule for future podcast episodes and streaming video programming. Email [email protected] with questions and feedback.

How are Generation Z drinkers incorporating seltzers into their parties? The Brewbound team leans on its Gen Z correspondent to understand how seltzers are replacing economy beers in drinking occasions. The team dives into Molson Coors’ economy beer purge, wonders what it means for those loyal drinkers, and says goodbye to Lil’ Breezy Keezy. The conversation turns to the mainstream media’s false narrative that hard seltzer is dead, as well as the lower-than-expected vaccination levels jeopardizing fall events. Listen to the episode above and on popular platforms such as iTunes, Google Play, Stitcher and Spotify. New episodes of the Brewbound Podcast are published every other Thursday (or so). Check Brewbound’s upcoming events schedule for future podcast episodes and streaming video programming.

The Brewbound team takes on the “Numerator Challenge” in an effort to better understand the differences in the consumption behaviors of Generation Z and millennial drinkers. The team also discusses Boston Beer Company’s tie up with Beam Suntory, gets hit with breaking Reyes news, and dabbles in the various cannabis news of the week. Listen to the episode above and on popular platforms such as iTunes, Google Play, Stitcher and Spotify. New episodes of the Brewbound Podcast are published every other Thursday (or so). Check Brewbound’s upcoming events schedule for future podcast episodes and streaming video programming. Email [email protected] with questions and feedback.