Distribution

Another big wholesaler deal is going down, further consolidating the middle tier. Reyes Beer Division has struck an agreement to acquire the assets of Indianapolis, Indiana-based Monarch Beverage.

The month of August was Boulevard Brewing Company’s “single best month ever,” even with the the company’s on-premise business cut in half, Duvel USA president Jeff Krum told Brewbound. In August, Boulevard shipped 19,000 barrels of product, which Duvel USA VP of sales Bobby Dykstra said was tied for the company’s biggest volume month ever, “but in revenue, blew past any month in our history.”

In the wake of selling its Colorado distribution operations, Anheuser-Busch plans to eliminate 400 jobs at those branches effective December 4.

Two years after the distribution shakeup of 2018, the aftershocks continue to be felt, as Anheuser-Busch InBev continues to reshuffle its network. The world’s largest beer manufacturer today said it struck an agreement to acquire the assets of Ace Beverage in Los Angeles, just two weeks after agreeing to sell off its distribution operations in… Read more »

Philadelphia-based coffee roaster La Colombe has entered into an exclusive partnership with Molson Coors Beverage Company to distribute the brand’s ready-to-drink coffee products in the drug and convenience channels starting in 2021. Eventually, the companies plan to expand distribution over time to all channels via the Molson Coors network.

Anheuser-Busch is selling off its Colorado-based wholly owned distribution (WOD) branch. The world’s largest beer manufacturer today announced an agreement to sell its Colorado distribution operations to Norcross, Georgia-based Eagle Rock Distributing, which will expand its operations to Colorado. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. An A-B spokesperson said the company would transition more… Read more »

The leaders of D.G. Yuengling & Sons Inc. and Molson Coors Beverage Company say the smuggling of beer is alive and well. “Just as is the case with a certain brand out of Golden, Colorado, more than a few people have smuggled Yuengling across state lines in the trunk of their car,” Molson Coors CEO Gavin Hattersley said, drawing a comparison to the demand for Coors beer in the 1970s.

Massachusetts-headquartered Night Shift Distributing is moving into Connecticut in mid-October. Michael Oxton and Rob Burns, who co-founded the brewery in 2012 and the wholesaler in 2016 with Michael O’Mara, told Brewbound today that they plan to build the distribution business in the neighboring New England state from the ground up, similar to how they did in Massachusetts.

Deschutes founder Gary Fish was up-front with wholesalers during the Bend, Oregon-headquartered craft brewery’s virtual distributor summit held earlier this week.

Some Florida bars and breweries that don’t serve food will be able to reopen for service at 50% capacity on Monday. Halsey Beshears, Florida’s secretary of the Department of Business and Professional Regulation, tweeted Thursday evening that Gov. Ron DeSantis had rescinded the executive order that forced them to close in June.

Fresh Squeezed IPA and Fresh Haze IPA, side-by-side on the shelf. Deschutes VP of sales and marketing Neal Stewart made the ask no fewer than 22 times on Wednesday during the Bend, Oregon-headquartered craft brewery’s distributor summit.

Atlantic — a Holliston, Massachusetts-based craft beer, wine and spirits importer and wholesaler — announced today the acquisition of the operations of Bayside Distributors, which is also based in Holliston. The transaction will add 400,000 cases and $10 million in additional revenue to Atlantic’s business. Atlantic currently distributes 1.5 million cases of product.

Craft brewers have availed themselves of several lifelines since the COVID-19 pandemic sent the beer industry into turmoil. They include the U.S. Small Business Administration’s Paycheck Protection Program, curbside beer-to-go sales and, in some cases, delivery to consumers’ homes.

Anheuser-Busch InBev is “remixing” its Bud Light Seltzer variety pack, adding three new flavors — Cranberry, Grapefruit and Pineapple — that will be featured in a second variety 12-pack with its Strawberry flavor. The new mixed packs are expected to be on store shelves nationwide by Monday, August 31.