🎀 Barbie Joins the Booze Biz
OK everyone, look classy and put on your nice flannels (and button them all the way up please, Donn) – Margot Robbie is entering our world. Yes, Barbie herself is joining the celebrity spirits gold(schlager) rush with her new PAPA SALT gin brand.
Betting Big on RTDs, Suntory Names New U.S. RTD Director
Suntory Global Spirits is continuing to bet big on ready-to-drink (RTD), announcing today Carol Robert, previously COO of Suntory Beverage and Food Great Britain & Ireland (SBF GB&I), as its new managing director of U.S. RTD.
Rabobank: July 4 BBQs to Cost Consumers +2% More Than 2023; Beer Inflation Significant to Total Spend
The average U.S. consumer will spend $99 on a 10-person barbecue this summer, with a significant portion of that cost coming from bev-alc and soda, according to analysts from Rabobank, a financial services company.
Beer Set to Boom for July 4th with 75% of Consumers Planning to Buy for Celebrations
Beer is at the top of most Independence Day revelers’ shopping lists, according to market research firm Numerator.
Featured Jobs
Report: Ardagh to Close Houston Beer Bottle Plant, Lay Off 220 Workers
Glass bottle manufacturer Ardagh will close its Houston plant in July and lay off 220 workers, the Houston Chronicle reported.
Ready to Drink (RTD) Products: The Transformative Force in Beverage Alcohol
The beverage-alcohol industry is undergoing a transformative shift driven by the explosive growth of ready-to-drink (RTD) products.
Brewbound Podcast: Allagash Tests the Hop Waters, Some Cannabis Users Say They’re Drinking Less & Hard Kombucha’s Comeback
The Brewbound team catches up on the latest news, including Allagash’s first foray into non-alcoholic adult beverages with Hop Water. Justin, Jess and Zoe discuss why this seems on brand for the Portland, Maine-based craft brewery, and why it may be a better entrypoint than NA beer.
BuzzBallz Files Patent Infringement Lawsuit Against Beverage Ranch
BuzzBallz has made its spherical bottles an essential part of the brand – and it’s not eager to share. The wine-, spirit- and malt-based cocktail brand filed a lawsuit against The Beverage Ranch last week, alleging the rival company copied its patented packaging for its new SlamZees line.
Bernstein: Cannabis Users Drinking Less, But ‘Correlation’ is not ‘Causation’
Research from three different studies in the U.S. and Canada shows there may be more interaction between cannabis and alcohol consumption than previously believed, according to analysis of the studies by financial services firm Bernstein.
Allagash Launches First Adult Non-Alc Offering with Hop Water
Allagash Brewing is launching its first non-alcoholic (NA) offering this week with the release of Allagash Hop Water. Hop Water will exclusively be sold in 12 oz. can 6-packs at the brewery’s tasting room in Portland, Maine, starting later this week.
Openings and Closings: Sun Lab to Convert Magnanimous Taproom; Big Storm Shutters Orlando Location; Atlas Expands to Virginia
Clearwater, Florida-based Big Storm Brewing closed its taproom at Orlando’s Kia Center earlier this month, bringing the former multi-taproom operator to one location, according to the Orlando Business Journal.
🫰 INSIDER’S Week in Beer: Money Can’t (Entirely) Buy You Locker Room Chugs
While it’s nice to be the official beer of a sports league … it’s apparently another thing to supply beer for player celebrations. I mean, we’re not made of money, folks. So alas, the only visibility that MICH ULTRA had in the CELTICS locker room celebration after winning the NBA Finals was … some signage in the background, as players celebrated with MILLER LITE, CORONA, HIGH NOON and even Boston’s own JACK’S ABBY.
A Round With… Chandra Richter, Head of Product Development at Sprinter
The latest installment of Brewbound’s A Round With – a weekly Insider-exclusive Q&A series with industry leaders – features Chandra Richter, head of product development at Sprinter, the Kylie Jenner-backed line of ready-to-drink (RTD) vodka sodas.
Circana: Consumers Trading Up in Beer, Non-Alc Opportunity for Craft
Opportunities for craft beer lie in single-serve and non-alc offerings, according to Scott Scanlon, executive vice president of Beverage Alcohol at Circana.