Jacob Leinenkugel Brewing Company

Molson Coors-owned Leinenkugel’s is making its flagship Summer Shandy a year-round offering. Leinenkugel’s president Tony Bugher and John Leinenkugel discuss why the move represents the company getting out of its own way, how big the brand is for its business and how they plan to support the brand in the colder months.

Leinenkugel’s long-gone cult-favorite beer – Sunset Wheat – is officially BACK for a limited time!

Dick Leinenkugel will retire from the brewery that bears his family’s name at the end of 2022, Molson Coors announced today. Tony Bugher, associate marketing manager for the brand and Leinenkugel’s nephew, will take the reins of the Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin-based Jacob Leinenkugel Brewing Company on January 1, 2023.

Boosted by an earlier-than-expected seasonal transition and the return of the on-premise channel, sales of Leinenkugel’s Summer Shandy have increased 13% year-to-date, according to the Molson Coors Beverage Company blog. “As we continued to excel with distribution and sales and the off-premise, we were able to quickly transition into Leinenkugel’s Summer Shandy,” Dick Leinenkugel, president and chief beer merchant of Jacob Leinenkugel Brewing Company, told Brewbound.

The seasonal beer segment hasn’t received the same double-digit bump that skyrocketing off-premise sales have delivered for the overall craft beer segment, according to market research firm Nielsen.

Total U.S. beer dollar sales grew to more than $35 billion in 2018, according to retail data provider IRI. The Chicago-based market research firm, which tracks category-wide sales at major off-premise retailers, reported a 1.8 percent increase in beer dollar sales, despite a 0.3 percent decline in volume sales at multi-outlet and convenience (MULC) stores (grocery, drug, club, dollar, mass-merchandiser and military) through December 30.

Last Call: Michelob Ultra Release Super Bowl Spot; BA Appoints Neil Witte as Quality Ambassador; AleSmith to Expand Tasting Room; MillerCoors Spending $50 Million to Expand Leinenkugel’s Operations; Empire Brewing and 1911 Established Ciders Merge Sales Teams.

The Trump administration has appointed Jake Leinenkugel to serve as a senior White House advisor to the Department of Veterans Affairs. Wisconsin Distributors to Purchase River City Distributing. And more Press Clips.

CHIPPEWA FALLS, WI — The Jacob Leinenkugel Brewing Company’s Big Eddy Russian Imperial Stout is returning for its third winter. Available now through January, the robust Russian Imperial Stout offers big beer drinkers a complex flavor experience.

CHIPPEWA FALLS, WI. — With colder months closing in quickly, Jacob Leinenkugel Brewing Company is introducing a new winter seasonal inspired by dark, snowy nights in Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin. Snowdrift Vanilla Porter, available November through February, is brewed with seven malts and aged on real vanilla, delivering a creamy body and smooth finish.