SABMiller, the world’s second largest beer company, today announced it has acquired Meantime Brewing, one of the fastest growing craft breweries in the UK. Though specific financial terms of the deal were not disclosed, the acquisition will include all of Meantime’s retail sites — the brewer currently operates a number of bars and taprooms.
IBM once rather hilariously summed up society’s perception of millennials thusly: “If the buzz is to be believed, they’re either lazy narcissists or energized optimists bent on saving the world.” Well, if a recent survey conducted by online ticketing service Eventbrite is to be believed, they’re also hedonists at the altar of the beer festival.
Here’s a bold prediction: 25 craft brewery transactions in the next 12 months. At least, that’s what Bill Anderson, the founder and CEO of investment and advisory firm First Beverage Group, believes is the inevitable short-term future for craft.
New Belgium is still in the process of building out its new brewery, packaging hall and tasting room in Asheville, N.C., but one critical component of the expansion project is now complete.
Attention craft beer drinkers in Western Pennsylvania and the Mid-Atlantic U.S.: say “hi” to your new neighbor. Narragansett Beer, the 125-year-old heritage brand out of Rhode Island, has announced plans to expand distribution throughout Maryland, Delaware and previously untapped markets in Pennsylvania, including Pittsburgh, Erie, and Reading.
California’s craft beer industry still has a way to go before it can hold a candle to its celebrated wine trade, but it’s certainly trending in the right direction. In 2014, the market for craft beer in the state continued to flourish, contributing more than $6.5 billion to the economy, according to a newly released report from the California Craft Brewers Association (CCBA).
It took just six months for Anheuser-Busch InBev to expand distribution for 10 Barrel Brewing, the Bend, Ore. craft brewery it purchased last November. The company today announced it would launch in Colorado this month, the fourth state where its beers are currently sold.
A half-million dollars ought to be enough. That’s the point that brewing giant Anheuser-Busch is trying to make in a lawsuit against a New Jersey beer wholesaler over the transfer of Elysian Brewing products to A-B’s own network of distributors in the state.
After investing more than $5 million on brewery infrastructure over the last five years, Wachusett Brewing is turning more attention to the contract portion of its business. But in order for the company to fully capitalize on all of the opportunities coming its way, it says, it needs a little help from Massachusetts state regulators.
This week, a North Carolina Beer & Wine Wholesalers Association (NCBWWA) executive confirmed to Brewbound that a consultant working on behalf of the organization was behind an anonymous online petition that helped to kill two craft-friendly bills in the state. North Carolina craft brewers had been making headway on House Bill 625 and House Bill 278 — legislation that would have cleared the way for contract brewing and raised the self-distribution cap from 25,000 barrels to 100,000 barrels — when the website ncbeerjobs.com made waves last month.
As Brewbound reported yesterday, Craft Brew Alliance (CBA) suffered through a difficult first quarter, which ended on March 31, 2015. Net sales and total beer shipments decreased 5 percent and 8 percent respectively. CBA CEO Andy Thomas summarized the quarter during an earnings call with investors and analysts on Thursday.
Chris Thorne, the Beer Institute’s vice president of communications, has announced his resignation from the organization effective May 29. Thorne plans to open his own “media and issue advocacy” group in Washington D.C. and continue working with the Beer Institute as an independent consultant. He will represent the lobbying group as its communications counselor until the organization fills his vacant position, BI president Jim McGreevy told Brewbound.
Speakeasy Ales & Lagers has revealed plans to increase its production volume by 500 percent as part of an ambitious expansion project the San Francisco-based brewery has announced.
San Francisco’s 21st Amendment Brewery today announced it has inked a deal with Stone Distributing, the growing wholesale arm of Stone Brewing, to bring its beers to southern California later this month.
