JIM BEAM
Actress Mila Kunis has joined JIM BEAM as a global partner and spokesperson. She will play a leading role in the brand’s new Make History multi-media brand campaign – being featured in three commercials as well as in retail materials and content on Jim Beam’s website, Facebook and Twitter accounts. ... Read More
USBG LEGACY COCKTAIL SHOWCASE
BOSTON’S OWN NAOMI LEVY, who tends bar at Eastern Standard Kitchen & Drinks in Boston, has won the Bacardi- USBG Legacy Cocktail Showcase Finals in Miami with her cocktail Guayaba Arabica. Each cocktail was judged on its balance, flavor, quality of ingredients, and aesthetic appeal – as well as its... Read More
GOT WATER?
ALONG WITH California’s water supplies and public health, the drought in the state may have yet another victim to claim: beer. Lagunitas Brewing Company – one of California’s biggest craft breweries – told NPR recently that the drought is threatening the Russian River, where they get the water for their... Read More
HOW TO CARE FOR YOUR CRAFT BEER
THE BREWERS ASSOCIATION released BEST PRACTICES GUIDE TO QUALITY CRAFT BEER – DELIVERING OPTIMAL FLAVOR TO THE CONSUMER, its newest publication. The guide is designed to provide general quality care recommendations for distributors, shippers, publicans, sales staff, grocery stores, liquor outlets, bars, and restaurants to help maintain beer in the... Read More
MILLER64 FULL LABEL DISCLOSURE
MOST OF the imbibing world is aware that alcohol is filled with empty calories. So do we really need to read about it on a bottle’s label? Some brands think we do. MillerCoors is set to introduce a new detailed voluntary nutritional labeling on its Miller64 beer in the US. ... Read More
RIOJA ROCKS
2O13 WAS INDEED a powerhouse of a year for Riojas. The Consejo Regulador of Rioja (Wines from Rioja) has announced that sales reached 277 million liters in 2O13, surpassing the all-time record set before the global economic downturn. The generic body for Spain’s premier wine-producing region puts it down to... Read More
CALIFORNIA WINES KEEP CRUISING
IT WASN’T JUST Rioja which had a banner 2O13. US wine exports, 9O% from California, reached a record high $1.55 billion in winery revenues, up 16.4% compared to the previous year. Volume shipments reached 435.2 million liters or 48.4 million cases, up 7.5%. Wine Institute President and CEO Robert Koch... Read More
THE BORDEAUX GANG BUSTED
FRENCH POLICE say they have dismantled a gang of 2O thieves believed to have stolen $1.39 million worth of wines from prestigious Bordeaux vineyards. Recent raids across the region led to the arrests of highly organized thieves targeting Grand Cru vineyards. A theft had been reported roughly every 15 days... Read More
OBITUARY
SARALEE MCCLELLAND KUNDE 66 A dairy ranchers’ daughter who became a grower of prized wine grapes and an irresistible force for the celebration of Sonoma County agriculture, Saralee McClelland Kunde passed away in January. Revered by many, Kunde had been grappling with cancer since the fall of 2O12. She became... Read More
RÉMY COINTREAU
FREDERIC PFLANZ, who became CEO three months ago, is stepping down “for personal reasons”, the company said. Chairman François Hériard Dubreuil will take over as a transitional measure. Pflanz, Rémy’s CFO for four years, will remain with the company as a “development director”, working on projects he had already initiated.