Beyond Beer

Keurig Dr Pepper (KDP) has taken a minority stake in non-alcoholic beer maker Athletic Brewing Company, following a $50 million investment in the brand. Athletic co-founder Bill Shufelt shares why KDP was the right partner, what the investment will go toward, and how the company is pacing toward the end of 2022.

Non-alcoholic beer maker Athletic Brewing Company has received a $50 million investment from Keurig Dr Pepper (KDP) that will make the publicly-traded CPG giant a minority equity stakeholder in the business.

Don’t discount alcohol and make sure you have an attorney. That was the core advice from legal experts during the Massachusetts Brewers Guild’s (MBG) Mass Brewers Conference Monday.

Following five years of research and development under the leadership of director of sales and marketing Jessica Gerth, jun maker Wild Tonic has unveiled a revamped visual identity designed to celebrate the brand’s uniqueness and clarify the difference between jun and kombucha for consumers.

Diageo has acquired Waco, Texas-based whiskey maker Balcones Distilling in a cash transaction, the company announced today.

Campari Group is boosting its Kentucky bourbon portfolio by taking a majority stake in Wilderness Trail Distillery, the company announced today. The move comes at a time when American whiskey continues to rise, and particularly higher-priced brands.

Super premium spirits have been outpacing mainstream categories for over a decade, but will a looming recession stall that trajectory? A new report suggests that economic conditions may soften demand for high end wine and spirits, but won’t hinder long term growth.

Traditional beer is expected to decline -2% in the next five years, Boston Beer founder and chairman Jim Koch told wholesalers Tuesday during the company’s annual business plan meeting with northeastern wholesalers. “We say a prayer for the big brewers because they’re the ones that really build the trucks that we can then fill out, but I think the reality is it will probably not grow in the lifetime of the people in this room,” he said.

Constellation Brands is simplifying its approach to the cannabis industry as the company announced plans today to convert its common shares of Ontario-based Canopy Growth Corporation into new non-voting exchangeable shares.

San Diego-based JuneShine – a hard kombucha and ready-to-drink canned cocktail (RTD) maker – is on track to produce more than one million cases (about 72,580 barrels) in 2022.

The Boston Beer Company – parent of Samuel Adams, Angry Orchard, Twisted Tea, Truly Hard Seltzer and Dogfish Head – aims to become the No. 1 beer industry supplier in the fourth category, CEO Dave Burwick said during a conference call with investors and analysts to discuss the company’s third quarter 2022 earnings.

Pernod Ricard is boosting its agave portfolio with another tequila. The global wine and spirits company announced on Monday that it had acquired a majority stake in Código 1530 Tequila, the ultra-premium tequila co-founded by country music singer George Strait.

Government affairs leaders from the largest U.S. beer manufacturers are gearing up for battles with the liquor industry over tax equalization in several states in 2023.

Constellation Brands continues to be the golden child for distributors with the growth of its Mexican imports, Goldman Sachs analyst Bonnie Herzog reported in her Q3 “Beverage Bytes” survey.