HOPS SALES ARE HOPPING
HOPS are a hot commodity these days, and the prices reflect it. Demand from craft brewers led to an 11 percent increase in domestic production in 2O15 compared to the previous year. The US Department of Agriculture’s National Agricultural Statistics Service says production totaled 78.8 million pounds. Washington state produced... Read More
THE WINE & SPIRITS WHOLESALERS OF AMERICA
The trade group has three new staff members: Heather Calio is Director, State Affairs; Reid Teschner is Coordinator, State and Regulatory Affairs – both based in Washington, DC; and Arthur Rebisz is Digital Strategy Project Manager for WSWA Services, an affiliate of WSWA. He is based in Boston. All are... Read More
WILLIAM GRANT & SONS
CEO STELLA DAVID is stepping down at the end of February and she’ll be succeeded by current Chief Commercial Officer, SIMON HUNT. David joined the drinks company in 2OO9 and has decided to focus on building upon her existing portfolio of non-executive directorships. At William Grant & Sons, she oversaw... Read More
BOSTON BEER COMPANY
The maker of Samuel Adams beers has named FRANK SMALLA as the company’s new Chief Financial Officer when current CFO WILLIAM URICH retires early this year. Smalla was most recently Kraft’s Senior Vice President for Finance and served with the food and beverage company for two decades. In January, he... Read More
THE BODY AS BREWERY . . .
WELL THIS IS A unique strategy. Drunken-driving charges against an upstate New York woman have been dismissed based on an unusual defense: Her body is a brewery. The woman was arrested while driving with a blood-alcohol level more than four times the legal limit. She then discovered she has a... Read More
THE KEFIR BEER CURE
BEER, it’ll heal what ails ya’. A craft beer made out of the ingredients from kefir – a fermented milk drink – could substantially reduce inflammation and stomach ulcers, according to a study in the journal of functional foods. Using a sample of 48 rats, researchers induced inflammation on subjects’... Read More
THE ROLLS-ROYCE OF COCKTAIL KITS
FEELING PARTICULARLY flush and looking to blow some cash? For consumers with a spare £26,366 (US $38,54O) burning a hole in their pockets, Rolls-Royce has created a limited edition custom-made cocktail hamper. The luxury car maker created just 15 of the kits, which take eight weeks to make. Each one... Read More
ANIMALS GET THEIR DRINK ON
HUMANS AREN’T THE only ones who enjoy their libations. From fruit flies to elephants, many creatures enjoy a cocktail now and then. Or, even a bender. Their source? Fermenting fruit. Elephants in southern Africa often binge on the naturally fermenting fruit of the marula tree and stagger away afterward. Howler... Read More
KURNIAWAN WINES HOT AT AUCTION
NOTHING DRIVES demand like a scandal. A sale by US marshals of fine wines belonging to convicted fraudster Rudy Kurniawan brought in $1.5 million – while thousands more deemed fake were destroyed. It was announced back in November that nearly 5OOO genuine bottles of fine wine, formerly belonging to Kurniawan,... Read More
BUT BRITISH SPARKLING IS BUBBLING OVER
CHAMPAGNE SHOULDN’T just be concerned about Cava and Prosecco. The popularity of English sparkling wine is rising fast (yes that’s right, bubbly from England). Domestic labels are winning accolades and awards, and more retailers are stocking them. And Pierre-Emmanuel Taittinger, scion of the French Champagne family and president of the... Read More