RTD Cocktails

The inspiration for Shake Up Cocktails didn’t come from a bar or a boardroom …  it struck at a Midwest state fair.

In this episode of the Brewbound Podcast, Mark Anthony Brands president David Barnett details how the bev-alc company is “doing better than most” in today’s challenged marketplace. He spoke about the company’s highlights with Brewbound editor Justin Kendall, in a conversation recorded at the National Beer Wholesalers Association’s (NBWA’s) Annual Convention in Las Vegas.

New Mix, an El Jimador Tequila-based cocktail launched in 1997, has been testing retail shelves across U.S. markets this year, with a wider rollout announced today.

A pair of new ready-to-drink (RTD) offerings are coming from New Belgium in 2026, including Kirin’s top-selling canned cocktail and a vodka cocktail with a “subtle nod” to the Voodoo Ranger franchise.

Longtime brewers Spencer Guy and Max Myers have acquired Atrium Brewing (Louisville, Kentucky) from founders Princeton Hurst and Mark Rubenstein, the brewery announced this week. Casamigos co-founders George Clooney, Rande Gerber and Mike Meldman are launching a non-alcoholic (NA) beer in March, according to Page Six.

Anheuser-Busch InBev’s (A-B) business continues to be primarily driven by its core traditional beer brands, but the company believes it can also be a leader in non-alcoholic (NA) and beyond beer, CEO Michel Doukeris shared Thursday during the company’s Q3 earnings call with investors and analysts.

Bars, restaurants and social gathering spaces are beer’s “moneyball” opportunity, National Beer Wholesalers Association VP of analytics and chief economist Lester Jones shares during the latest edition of the Brewbound Podcast. Jones is the first of two interviews this week. Adam and Amanda Kroener, the founders of spirits-based cocktail brand Carbliss, also join this week’s podcast.

One constant in beverage-alcohol’s rollercoaster 2025 has been growth in the spirits-based, ready-to-drink (RTD) canned cocktail segment. Spirits and cider sales stayed broadly stable in the two-week period ending October 18, while trends for flavored malt beverages (FMB) and seltzer worsened, according to analysis of NIQ data from Goldman Sachs Equity Research.

Global rap star Future and Ohza founder Ryan Ayotte want consumers to drink in style with Roué, a new brand of fine wines and RTD cocktails launching this month.

Vodka soda RTD Sprinter Spirits reported it had secured over $4 million in new investment as part of a $12 million round it is currently raising, per a Securities and Exchange (SEC) Form D filed on Friday.

How does an ready-to-drink (RTD) brand that was built on the beach translate to other seasons? Surfside, Stateside Vodka’s hard iced tea and lemonade canned cocktail brand, is betting big on sports this fall.

Growth is slowing down for spirits-based RTDs, but gains in the on-premise and emerging flavor categories hint at opportunities, according to bev-alc consulting and data firm 3 Tier Beverages.

Ready-to-drink cocktails (RTDs) remain one of the hottest segments in bev-alc, seemingly avoiding the quick rise and fall of the former new kid in town, hard seltzer (for now). Even the previously formidable flavored malt beverage (FMB) segment is starting to see the impact of consumers moving away to the more premium, typically spirits-based offerings.

Summer ended with Dogfish Head riding momentum in both canned cocktails and its beer portfolio.