In this week’s Last Call: A look at California beer production; Sen. Schumer backs permanent excise tax cuts; TTB accepts $20,000 offer in compromise from Cigar City; and more beer industry news.
The Brewers Association (BA) announced a sponsorship deal earlier this week to feature a Buffalo Wild Wings branded pop-up sports bar on the floor of the Great American Beer Festival (GABF), its marquee tasting and judging event held annually in Denver. The partnership with the chicken wing chain, which was acquired last November by Arby’s for $2.9 billion, is the second major sponsorship deal for the late September festival. In early June, the BA announced that Pernod Ricard-owned Jameson would build a barrel-aged beer garden on the festival floor.
Nearly a full year has elapsed since the Brewers Association (BA) introduced its independence seal, and the not-for-profit trade group that represents the interests of small and independent craft breweries has been keeping tabs on adoption rates across the U.S. A graphical representation of seal adoption across states and U.S.-owned territories, through June 6, which was produced by the BA and obtained by Brewbound, breaks down which regions are using the seal.
Nearly two years after the Department of Justice (DOJ) signed off on Anheuser-Busch InBev’s (ABI) $100 billion takeover of SABMiller, the government agency still has not completed its review of the merger. The DOJ and ABI filed a joint motion on March 15 asking U.S. District Court Judge Emmet Sullivan to approve the “proposed final judgment.” However, several groups have objected to the judgment, as it is currently written, and are now seeking a hearing in order to resolve anti-competitive concerns.
One week after being named the Brewers Association’s new diversity ambassador, Dr. J. Nikol Jackson-Beckham presented to hundreds of Craft Brewers Conference attendees about the challenges of diversifying the brewing industry. “We all want to diversify craft beer,” she said, “but why is doing this so hard?”
In today’s craft beer environment, it pays to be a startup. According to Brewers Association chief economist Bart Watson, breweries founded after 2014 are driving the majority of segment growth. Those breweries collectively added 916,000 barrels to the category in 2017, which represents growth of 52.6 percent versus 2016. Breweries founded before 2014, however, added 285,000 barrels to the craft segment and collectively grew just 1.3 percent.
The Brewers Association (BA) wants more beer companies to adopt the “independent craft brewer seal.” To help the effort, the non-for-profit trade group, which represents the interests of small and independent craft breweries, tripled down on its promotion of the indie badge during this year’s Craft Brewers Conference, taking place in Nashville.
Next week, more than 13,000 beer industry professionals are expected to travel to the 2018 Craft Brewers Conference, held in Nashville, Tennessee. The four-day event (April 30 to May 3), taking place at Music City Center (201 Fifth Ave South), officially kicks off Monday evening with a welcome reception at Fifth Avenue of the Arts (201 Fifth Avenue). Brewbound has selected 11 can’t-miss talks to keep you engaged during the week.
Building on its efforts to promote a more inclusive brewing industry, the Brewers Association (BA) today announced the appointment of Dr. J. Nikol Jackson-Beckham as its first diversity ambassador.
Leaders from the beer industry’s three largest trade associations are vowing once again to unite brewers and distributors in an effort to return the category to growth. Speaking to a group of nearly 700 U.S. beer distributors attending the annual National Beer Wholesalers Association (NBWA) legislative conference on Monday in Washington, D.C., Beer Institute CEO Jim McGreevy called on industry members to work together to curb volume losses.
For the second consecutive year, U.S. craft beer exports grew in the low-single digits. However, growth of international shipments has slowed considerably as the export market has matured and competition from brewers in those foreign markets has increased. The Brewers Association (BA) announced Tuesday that U.S. craft beer exports grew 3.6 percent, to 482,309 barrels, in 2017.
In a move that would have wide-ranging effects on the beer industry, President Donald Trump yesterday announced plans to implement a 10 percent tariff on imported aluminum. The move comes weeks after the Commerce Department recommended tariffs on aluminum and steel as a national security precaution, citing the nation’s inability to build military weapons without foreign steel and aluminum.
The U.S. Congress voted along party lines to pass the Republicans’ $1.5 trillion rewrite of the federal tax code, which includes two years of excise tax relief for alcohol producers and importers. The bill now heads to President Donald Trump, who is expected to sign it into law before the end of the week.
The United States Senate passed a sweeping tax reform bill early Saturday morning that includes a number of changes to the tax code and benefits alcohol producers. With a vote of 51-49 today, the Senate passed H.R. 1, the “Tax Cuts and Jobs Act,” which is the largest tax overhaul in 31 years and includes the Craft Beverage Modernization and Tax Reform Act (CBMTRA).
