Brewbound Podcast

Simply Spiked – the hard lemonade Molson Coors launched this summer in partnership with Coca-Cola – has taken the FMB corner of the bev-alc world by storm. Joy Ghosh, VP of marketing for above premium brands and FMBs at Molson Coors, joins the Brewbound Podcast to discuss the company’s launch strategy, new campaigns and plans to recruit new drinkers. Plus, the Brewbound team breaks down July 4 off-premise sales and craft beer at the midpoint of 2022. Listen to the episode above and on popular platforms such as iTunes, Google Play, Stitcher and Spotify. Have questions, feedback, or ideas for podcast guests or topics? Email [email protected].  

Convergence is all the rage as big beverage companies (Pepsi, Coca-Cola, Monster) dive into bev-alc and lean into becoming “total beverage” producers. Nik Modi, managing director for RBC Capital, and Marty Caballero, editor for BevNet (Brewbound’s sister publication), join the Brewbound podcast to discuss the latest beverage partnerships, what has caused the trend, and if a “complete collapse” of the lines between bev-alc and non-alc is ahead. RBC Capital has been writing about beverage convergence since 2016, and Modi noted he was surprised the large partnerships that are occurring didn’t happen sooner. He credits part of the reason why it’s happening now to companies with large market share in their core beverage categories needing to look elsewhere for growth. “It’s about increasing your use occasions and being more dynamic,” Caballero added. And the blurring lines between beverage categories is just the beginning. “If you were going to ask me what is going to happen in 2032, do I think that we’re going to see combinations of beverage and food companies? Absolutely, no question,” Modi said. “And I think cannabis potentially could bind them.” In this episode, the Brewbound team discusses some of this year’s Super Bowl ads, their fear of robots, and Twisted Tea’s new year-round marketing strategy. Listen to the episode above and on popular platforms such as iTunes, Google Play, Stitcher and Spotify. Have questions, feedback, or ideas for podcast guests or topics? Email [email protected].

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.

Nearly a year into the COVID-19 pandemic, state guild leaders from California, Oregon and Minnesota discuss their legislative priorities in 2021 and the challenges ahead for their members. Featured guests include: Lori Ajax, the new executive director of the California Craft Brewers Association Leia Ostermann Bailey, associate executive director of the California Craft Brewers Association Lauren Bennett McGinty, executive director of the Minnesota Craft Brewers Guild Christina LaRue, executive director of the Oregon Brewers Guild The guild leaders share their key legislative agendas, the challenges of educating public health officials, looming state excise tax battles and more. The Brewbound team also breaks down the latest news stories, including Boston Beer’s Super Bowl ad, Pabst pausing production of Olympia, the legacy of Untappd and much more. Editor’s Note: This podcast was recorded prior to the resignations of executives Jeff Krum and Natalie Gershon from Duvel Moortgat USA and Boulevard Brewing Company and additional accusations of management’s mishandling of workplace and sexual harassment came to light. Listen to the episode above, or find it 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, comments or suggestions for future shows and guests.

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. “There’s really these seismic shifts at the consumer level,” Nesin said. “The changes are particularly among the consumer groups that alcohol companies have either ignored or actively avoided in some cases in the most terrible way. “A lot of it has to do with economic empowerment, and a lot of it has to do with shifting cultural norms,” he continued. In 2019, women accounted for 50.1% of alcoholic beverage drinkers younger than 25, surpassing men for the first time ever. Since 2004, the number of women of color regularly consuming alcoholic beverages has increased 84%. People of color represented 31% of alcohol consumers in 2019, increasing 8% over the past decade and a half. Nesin shares insights gleaned during interviews with executives at beverage alcohol companies and discusses the evolution of beer marketing. The Brewbound team and Nesin also discuss the Capitol Hill riot and its implications for the beer industry, including how the largest beer manufacturers and trade organizations are approaching future political contributions. Other topics covered include Jim Beam’s new campaign to recruit beer drinkers, the Brewers Association’s decision to move Craft Brewers Conference to Denver in September, FIFCO USA shuttering of Portland Brewing Company after 34 years and Molson Coors’ partnership with Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson to launch a new energy drink. Listen to the episode above, or find it on popular platforms such as iTunes, Google Play, Stitcher and Spotify. New episodes of the Brewbound Podcast are published every other Thursday. Email [email protected] with questions, comments or suggestions for future shows and guests.

Atlanta Brewing Company marketing director Cameron Davis knows what it’s like to deconstruct and rebuild a legacy beer brand. That’s what Davis and her colleagues did in 2018, taking Georgia’s oldest beer brand, the former Red Brick Brewing Company, and transforming it into Atlanta Brewing Company, a moniker the company had used until 2010, just in time for the company’s 25th anniversary. Davis recalled that the idea to return to the brand’s roots was born out of “Tuesday Dream Time” brainstorming sessions. “We’d sit in a room for 20 minutes and just say all of the stuff that if you could imagine anything for this company, what would it be?” she said. Those conversations led the brewery’s leaders to wonder what if they went back to the Atlanta Brewing name. “It didn’t make any sense to us why we weren’t already Atlanta Brewing,” she said. There also wasn’t a lot to lose. “We were kind of at the point where we’re rebranding or we might not be around,” Davis said. “Honestly, we had those conversations about ‘If we don’t do this, will we be around in two years? I don’t know?’ I think that’s a question that a lot of breweries ask themselves.” In episode seven of the Brewbound Podcast’s third season, Davis shared the process for blowing up a brand, the advantages of working with an agency such as CODO Design (who recently partnered with Brewbound on a four-part Voices series on when to rebrand or refresh a craft brand) and the risk-reward of alienating existing consumers. “You have to do what you feel is best for your company,” Davis acknowledged. “And if some people aren’t happy with it, sorry.” Davis also shares the realities of rebranding, including the wait for seeing a sales bump. “We’ve just now started to see those sales go up,” she said, adding that core beer sales increased 28% after the changeover and merchandise sales exploded. “It took longer than we expected but now we’re starting to get that payoff, which is great.” Listen to the latest episode of the Brewbound Podcast above, or find it on popular podcast platforms such as iTunes, Google Play, Stitcher and Spotify. Look for new episodes of the Brewbound Podcast on Thursdays. For questions, comments or suggestions, please email [email protected].

Innovation in craft brewing is a lot like a pee-wee soccer game, with all of the players running toward the same ball. At least, that’s how Neal Stewart, the vice president of sales and marketing for Deschutes Brewery, sees it. And that’s not a bad thing. So how do craft brewers differentiate in a crowded and more competitive climate? They need to figure out what their “superpower is” and make that their focus, he explained during Episode 5 of the Brewbound Podcast’s third season. “What do you do really well?” Stewart asked. “Even if that kind of sounds similar to another brand, be OK with that, but really focus on that, and find a unique way of communicating that.” That’s just one of the nuggets of knowledge shared by Stewart, who recently added the VP of sales title and responsibilities to his existing role as VP of marketing for the Bend, Oregon-headquartered craft brewery. Stewart, who joined Deschutes in April 2019, has more than two decades of experience working for some of the biggest beer companies in the U.S., including Pabst, Dogfish Head, Molson Coors, Mark Anthony Brands and Flying Dog. In this week’s featured interview, Stewart discusses his preference for working with people with beer industry experience and who have “been through wars and been in the trenches,” the differences in starting at a large beer manufacturer versus a small craft brewery, and how craft beer has stopped being an “easy business.” Stewart also explains why he’s adopted a wholesaler’s mindset, and why he’s embraced the dreaded question, “How does this help us sell beer?” “For them, it’s all about efficiency and it’s all about moving boxes,” he said. “And I think that craft brewers right now need to be thinking about how do we move boxes and how do we spend our budget to do that immediately.” Listen to the episode above, or find it on popular platforms such as iTunes, Google Play, Stitcher and Spotify. New episodes of the Brewbound Podcast are published Thursdays. For questions, comments or suggestions, please email [email protected]. Editor’s Note: Justin Kendall is well aware that he confused Skynet with Skylab. He regrets the error and apologies to the Terminator.