Dear Client: NielsenIQ recently took a look at off-premise bev alc sales for this summer (spanning from the week ended May 8 to the week ended September 11, 2021). The data provider broke down channel performance against last summer’s pantry loading trends as well as the summer of 2019. Total off-premise alcohol sales fell 7% … Continue reading “Another Hot Seltzer Summer, and Other NielsenIQ Highlights”

Dear Client: Did you know that Twisted Tea is now the top FMB brand family?  Yep. The brand is tracking as the no. 1 FMB brand family, after having its biggest summer ever, per Boston Beer Company.  Twisted has beaten out the Mike’s brand family for the 13 weeks through 9/12 in IRI’s multi-outlet and … Continue reading “Twisted Tea’s Big Fall Plans”

Dear Client: Diageo Beer Co.’s Golden Bars show yesterday had lots of news, which we’ll bring you next week. Today we wanna share some of the most compelling innovation plays. Read on. SPOTLIGHT ON LONE RIVER. Most of the biggest news of the show naturally related to innovations. And Lone River has possibly the biggest … Continue reading “Diageo Beer Co. Unveils Lone River Ranch Rita, Poco Pico Smirnoff Seltzer, and More Innovation”

Dear Client: How’s the on-premise faring in the wake of the still-formidable Delta variant? The latest CGA report digs in on just that for the channel that’s especially important to craft.  The report showed that 2021 on-premise sales are almost on par with 2019 levels. CGA dug a little further into the latest on-premise stats … Continue reading “CGA Highlights how Delta is Impacting On-Premise Recovery”

Dear Client: Yesterday Fintech hosted a webinar (sponsored by NBWA) with operations chiefs from some of the biggest wholesalers in the nation: Columbia, Crescent Crown, Ben E. Keith, and Hand Family Companies.  The topic? “Operational excellence during unpredictable times.” Translation: How wholesalers have continued to keep their trucks rolling with all the craziness 2020 and … Continue reading “How Distributors are Weathering CDL Shortages, Power Grid Failures, Vaccines and More”

Dear Client: As Boston Beer looks to consolidate its New York distribution, several area holdouts refuse to comply with the brewer’s Consolidation Policy in the wake of the Dogfish Head deal; so the brewer has a complaint pending in New York Court alongside its preferred wholesaler (Manhattan Beer) against a handful of state distributors, including … Continue reading “Boston Beer Takes Consolidation Efforts in New York to Court”

Dear Client: I’m sure some of you are curious about the new A-B’s new sales and marketing team transitioning in, who were announced just weeks ago.  Wholesalers at last week’s EAM meeting got to hear from incoming brass: Chief Commercial Officer (a new position) Kyle Norrington, sales chief Simon Wuestenberg and CMO Benoit Garbe.  NEW … Continue reading “Meet A-B’s New Sales and Marketing Team”

Dear Client: BBD readers will recall: Former ABI chief Carlos Brito and A-B chief Michel Doukeris hatched the 2018 commercial strategy that has helped the company see its best trends in a decade or so. An integral part of that strategy called for “leading category growth” – in no small part via category captainship.  Three … Continue reading “A Look Inside A-B’s New Retailer Showcase, The Vault”

Dear Client: After a year and a half without a live distributor conference, it would have been fair to expect a little rust from Molson Coors at its Distributor Convention this week in Las Vegas, but that wasn’t the case.  The company put on a polished two-day show at the slick new Caesars Forum event … Continue reading “Observations From the Molson Coors Distributors Convention”

Dear Client: It’s a good thing that “beer” is not in Anheuser-Busch’s name. Because a lot of what they’re making these days isn’t exactly that.  The company’s EAM meeting this week in St. Louis was a full day, with almost 5 hours worth of content, from ’22 strategic plans, to (many) new brands, to supply … Continue reading “A-B Unveils 80 Cal, Zero Carb Bud Light Next: Ten Years in the Making”

Dear Client: Just last week Molson Coors chief Gavin Hattersley told Barclays analyst Lauren Lieberman that they’ll take Topo Chico Hard Seltzer nationally when they feel they “can meet the demand that’s out there.” Well here we are a week later and guess what? The company feels like they can meet the demand that’s out … Continue reading “Molson Coors Taking Topo Chico Hard Seltzer Nationwide”

Dear Client: Now that the Craft Brewers Convention is over, it’s time to look forward to the another marquee event for our industry, the National Beer Wholesaler’s Association Annual Convention in Las Vegas, October 3-6, the first in-person NBWA annual convention in two years.  BRING YOUR CARD. Yes, there will be some Covid-related restrictions (unlike … Continue reading “Tune-Up With NBWA’s Craig Purser”

Dear Client: A MUCH LIGHTER, QUIETER CBC. At 7,000 attendees – many of them seemingly vendors – and the second day’s keynote speaker Richard Montañez calling in remotely due to COVID exposure, this pandemic-time Craft Brewers Conference was much lighter, and different, than usual. (As a reference, the event saw 14,000 attendees in 2018.) The … Continue reading “Three Takeaways from this Year’s CBC”

Dear Client: Reyes has reached a deal to acquire most of the “legacy” brand rights of Classic Beverages of Southern California, CJ Sanchez’s outfit in east LA. Those suppliers include Molson Coors, HUSA, Boston, Firestone, Mark Anthony, Sierra, and Pabst, among others. As part of the deal, Classic will continue to operate as a craft/specialty/NA … Continue reading “Reyes To Acquire Brands from Classic in East LA”

Dear Client: Release the puns. It’s been a fun ride, but the three-year-running Hot Seltzer Summer is drawing nigh. Nothing drove that home more than when Boston Beer Co. announced they would be withdrawing their 2021 guidance of shipments/depletions of up 25% to +40% and earnings per share of $18 to $22 due to the … Continue reading “Hot Seltzer Summer is Truly Over; Can’t Claw Back; Fizzled Out; Lost its Head; Etc.”