We’re still a couple of weeks from the official start of Dry January — the month of abstinence from alcoholic beverages, for some — and we finally received an update from the now 1-year-old trade group the Adult Non-Alcoholic Beverage Association (ANBA).
ANBA, which reps NA beer, wine and spirits, is now up to 90 members and looking to expand to international markets. Find out more on what they’re up to from their roundtable discussion featuring Athletic Brewing, Gruvi, Lyre and Mocktail Club.
Also of note, Athletic Brewing is making its “biggest investment ever” with a national media campaign to promote Dry January.
No- and low-alcoholic options are on Asahi’s radar, with the Japanese brewer reserving $70 million to invest into the space by 2025.
Beyond no- and low-, other Japanese brewers have their sights set on M&A in North America. Reuters reported that Kirin — whose Lion Little World Beverages subsidiary includes New Belgium Brewing and Bell’s Brewery, and who holds a minority stake in Brooklyn Brewery — is seeking production capacity in North America. So too is Suntory Holdings. For me, this will be one of the biggest stories to watch in 2023.
Also in the news this week …
On the Brewbound Podcast, Jess, Zoe and I are joined by Brewbound Insider weekend newsletter author Sean McNulty to recap the most-read stories of 2022.
We also round up the 10 most-read stories on Brewbound.com in this FREE-to-read article.
November’s shipment numbers weren’t great (-4% compared to November 2021), and shipments have been in the red for nine of the last 11 months, according to domestic tax paid estimates from the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB), shared by the Beer Institute (BI).
In other trade group news, the Brewers Association (BA) is shelving its fancy SAVOR beer and food pairing event, which was held annually in Washington, D.C. The 2022 edition marked the last for the event.
BA chief economist Bart Watson recently shared his predictions for 2023.
The rancor around traditional non-alcoholic beverages being licensed to alcoholic beverage companies to make alcoholic versions — Hard MTN Dew, Simply Spiked and Topo Chico, with more on the way via Monster’s Beast Unleashed, Tampico and Jarritos — is picking up. Leaders from 22 independent wholesalers submitted comments to the TTB, expressing concern over the marketing and sale of bev-alc products co-created by large soft drink companies. The BI also updated its advertising and marketing code to address “alcohol variants of non-alcohol products,” a change meant to “help consumers distinguish between alcohol and non-alcohol versions of beverages with popular brands names.” This is definitely a story we’ll be hearing about well into 2023.
Also, check out the latest Brewbound Live recaps and videos:
Innovating in the increasingly crowded fourth category, featuring Molson Coors’ Jamie Wideman, Rhinegeist’s Adam Bankovich, and Bump Williams Consulting’s Brian “BK” Krueger.
Why the e-premise is essential for beer producers, with Molson Coors’ Sara Welch Goucher, Sierra Nevada’s Steve Koenig, Crowns and Hops’ Beny Ashburn, and The E-Premise Group’s Derek Hahm.
And that’s a wrap on this week. ICYMI won’t be back until 2023, as Brewbound will hopefully be running on autopilot next week while Jess, Zoe and I get some much needed rest and time with our families. So keep an eye out for Brewbound Live coverage/videos and the last Brewbound Podcast episode of 2022.
If news breaks, we’ll spring into action.
Thank you all for reading and supporting us with your Brewbound Insider subscriptions. Happy holidays to all of you. We hope you can enjoy some time with your own families.
We’ll be back in 2023.