Editor’s Note: The below news items were initially reported in the Insider version of the Brewbound Newsletter between August 11-13. Become an Insider today to get earlier access to what’s going on in the industry.
Boston Beer CFO to Receive $1.2M in Stock as Retention Bonus
Boston Beer CFO Diego Reynoso is receiving around $1.2 million in Boston Beer Class A stock (SAM) in an effort to keep him with the company.
In a Securities and Exchange Commission SEC) filing Tuesday, the company said “the purpose of the award is retention and to maintain stability in light of the current CEO transition,” the company wrote in the filing, referencing the exit of Michael Spillane and founder Jim Koch taking over the company’s top executive role.
The stock award is contingent upon Reynoso remaining with the company, with a vesting date of August 11, 2026.
Kyle Park Leading Neshaminy Creek as CEO
Long-time Neshaminy Creek Brewing (Croydon, PA) employee Kyle Park has been tapped to lead the brewery as CEO after spending 3.5 years as VP of sales and marketing, a job he took on in September 2021.
Park joined the brewery as a sales rep in January 2014, after 3 years at Origlio Beverage.
Neshaminy Creek produced 6,250 barrels in 2024, according to the BA. It opened in 2012 and distributes in PA, NJ, MD and DE, according to its website.
Notable/Quotable: Minnesota’s Top Ten Liquors Sees THC Sales +35% YoY
THC sales grew 35% YoY and 10% over June 2025 at Top Ten Liquors, owner and CEO Jon Halper shared in a recent LinkedIn post.
Halper has been frequently sharing insights into THC sales at the Minnesota liquor store chain (15 stores in MN) on the platform. In the latest installment, he shared that gummies and shots are “driving significant growth” and account for 9 of the top 10 THC items. Nevertheless, “shots are becoming oversaturated,” he added.
As far as beverages, 4-packs of 10 mg THC items make up 9 of the top 25 THC items at Top Ten and 48 of the chain’s top 50 4-packs, with just 2 in the 5 mg range.
“Flavor-forward drinks are consistently outperforming seltzers and canna-cocktails,” he added.
Top Ten is also seeing “meaningful growth” from private label offerings, which are “earning real space in the mix,” he wrote.
New brands have posted “mixed” results, with half of the new brands over the last month cracking Top Ten’s 50 best sellers and the other half failing to gain traction in a “crowded” category where “consumers are quick to pick winners.”
Halper concluded: “Big picture: Growth is strong, consumer preferences are sharpening and the balance between local, national and private label continues to matter.”
BeatBox 3L Party Punch
Just in time for football season and Labor Day celebrations, BeatBox is bringing back the 3-liter bag-in-box with its own spout. BeatBox’s supersized version is available now nationwide through October 31.
The 3L offering is available in four flavors – Blueberry Lemonade (a collaboration with Shaquille O’Neal), Fruit Punch, Blue Razzberry and Green Apple – for a suggested retail price of $17.99 each.
The addition of 3L sizes follows the launch of a new flavor, Mystic Grape (11.1% ABV), in BeatBox’s traditional 500 ml resealable tetra packs. The return to bag-in-box packaging is a throwback to BeatBox’s early days, before the party punch maker pivoted to single-serve offerings.
YTD through August 2, BeatBox’s off-premise dollar sales are up 37.2%, while volume is growing 35.4%, according to market research firm NIQ. Those numbers accelerate in the convenience channel (+45.5% dollars, +43.3% volume YTD).
A couple weeks ago, 7-Eleven named BeatBox as its “fastest growing vendor” across all categories.
Notable/Quotable: ‘I Am Hard-Pressed to Find a Tailwind for the Beer Category’
– Bonnie Herzog, Goldman Sachs senior consumer analyst, to the Wall Street Journal on the category’s struggles in 2025.
Herzog’s quote was highlighted within a Journal story titled: “Nicotine is Hot, Beer is Not. What Vice Stocks Say About America’s Guilty Pleasures.”
“Nicotine, on the other hand, is in this period of time where we have a resurgence given some of the innovation,” she said. “Consumers are gravitating to the smoke-free alternatives. Nicotine pouches. Everything but cigarettes.”
The Journal offered the stock prices of Molson Coors and Altria as examples of the industries’ reversal of fortunes, with the tobacco company’s stock up 21% while the Coors Light and Miller Lite maker’s stock is trading down more than 13% YTD.’
Rupee Beer Expands to CA
Rupee Beer, the Maine-based craft lager brewed to pair with Indian cuisine, has expanded to California, its 18th state, co-founder Van Sharma told Brewbound. The beer launched in Bay Area Costcos last week, in time for Indian Independence Day.
Sharma said: “The SF Bay Area is home to one of the largest Indian communities in America, so [we’re] very excited for the first time ever to be available in CA.”
Matagrano Inc. and Markstein Sales are distributing Rupee in Northern California.