Blake’s Beverage Co. is looking to be a leader in not just hard cider, but all “fruit-forward fourth category innovation,” founder and CEO Andrew Blake told Brewbound.
San Diego-based JuneShine – a hard kombucha and ready-to-drink canned cocktail (RTD) maker – is on track to produce more than one million cases (about 72,580 barrels) in 2022.
With spirit-based, ready-to-drink versions of popular hard seltzers on the way, has the era of the RTD trade-ups officially arrived?
Dogfish Head’s canned cocktails are gaining traction in the fast-growing spirits-based, ready-to-drink (RTD) canned cocktail market. Dollar sales of the Dogfish Head brand family (+92.3%) are outpacing the overall segment (+56.5%), according to NielsenIQ total U.S. all off-premise data, shared by Bump Williams Consulting.
Topo Chico’s fated move into hard spirits is coming in 2023, via Molson Coors. On the heels of the fast-growing Topo Chico Hard Seltzer brand, Molson Coors will launch a spirit-based version of Topo Chico in key markets, such as the southwest and southeast and parts of the Midwest.
Ready-to-drink beverage-alcohol (RTDs) has crossed into every alcoholic-beverage category, with spirits-based and wine-based RTDs, hard seltzers, flavored malt beverages (FMBs) and more.
Total beverage-alcohol dollar sales increased +9.3% during Labor Day weekend compared to the prior week, market research firm IRI reported.
Light lager (+9%) and American lager (+19%) both grew share of sales on e-commerce alcohol delivery platform Drizly over Labor Day weekend compared to the holiday weekend in 2021, the company reported.
The founders of Sunboy, a spiked sparkling coconut water, initially got together slanging fresh coconuts at events and parties in New York. The two hosted parties on the Brooklyn Bridge selling coconuts from a bicycle, eventually growing the enterprise to offer the experience at food and corporate events. But when the pandemic put those events and that hustle to a stop, Luke McKenna and Yair Tygiel were forced to come up with another product: a hard coconut water.
After more than a year under the wing of Molson Coors, spirits-based, ready-to-drink canned cocktail maker Superbird will leave the nest as Molson Coors hands the reins to the brand’s distribution efforts back to its parent company, Casa Komos Brands Group (CKBG).
With tequila and ready-to-drink cocktails becoming two of the hottest alcohol categories, Lance Collins is looking to have a hand in both. As the founder and chairman of tequila soda brand Casa Azul, launching today, the beverage mogul behind Fuze, NOS, BodyArmor and Core is confident his new line of tequila soda will hit the sweet spot for consumers of spirit-based canned cocktails who enjoy the low-ABV and low-calorie qualities of a hard seltzer.
Spirits company The CoreBev Group has partnered with cold brew coffee brand RISE Brewing Co. for its latest canned cocktail launch, Moonlight Barista.
Anheuser-Busch InBev reported +11.3% revenue growth and +3.4% volume growth globally for the second quarter of 2022. “Our business delivered sustained profitable growth,” CEO Michel Doukeris said in a press release. “Our volume increased by 3.4%, our top-line by 11.3% and EBITDA by 7.2%. The relentless execution of our strategy, the strength of our brands and accelerated digital transformation enabled us to meet the moment in an ongoing dynamic operating environment.”
Flying Embers, a Ojai, California-based hard kombucha and hard seltzer-maker, continues to explore “fourth category” beverage alcohol.
Total beer off-premise spending reached $1.104 billion for the week ending July 3, marking the category’s highest sales week of the year so far. Only the weeks that included July 4 in 2020 and 2021 saw stronger beer sales than this year’s holiday week.
