A BIG POP FOR CHAMPAGNE
CHAMPAGNE SALES had a record year, driven by solid demand from export markets, favorable currencies and stabilizing sales in France. Estimates gathered by Reuters showed that about 312 million bottles of the prestige sparkling wine were dispatched in 2O15, a rise of about 2% from 2O14. Revenue has risen 4.4... Read More
Berkshire Brewing Company to Distribute Ciders of Spain
BBC Distributing announced that effective January 25, the entire Cider of Spain portfolio will be available to its customers in Massachusetts. With ciders mostly from the Asturias region in northwest Spain where the cider culture dates back to Roman Times, these exemplify some of the most prized ciders in the... Read More
Mad March Hare Poitin
Mad March Hare, premium Irish Poitin (pronounced ‘put-cheen’), brings innovation to the Irish Spirits Category. Quietly distilled in Ireland, Mad March Hare shares the heritage of this traditional Irish spirit with the U.S. market, providing an exciting new offering for whiskey drinkers and non-whiskey drinkers alike. Distilled in a copper... Read More
Heineken Encourages Soccer Fans To Never Miss A Minute
Heineken Premium Lager is pairing up with UEFA Champions League (UCL) and Major League Soccer (MLS) to ensure soccer fans Never Miss a Minute of the action all season. Beginning March 1, Heineken’s fully-integrated, 360° retail and on-premise SOCCER IS HERE program, encourages fans to choose Heineken for all of... Read More
RED BLENDS KEEP ON ROLLING
IT WAS a great year for the US wine industry. The category continues to thrive with red blends growing more and more popular. The off-premise wine channel observed a milestone this past fall when red blend wines passed Merlot in sales for the first time, making the category second only... Read More
FINE WINE . . . A SOUND INVESTMENT
Looking for something to invest your dollars in? How about vino? The fine wine category has been the best performer of all major investment assets since 1988, according to research published by wine investment company Vin-X. The report underlines how fine wine investment has been the best overall performer when... Read More
A BILLION DOLLAR PAYDAY
THEY MUST BE celebrating at Ballast Point Brewing. Constellation Brands just made quite an investment with the acquisition of the craft beer company to the tune of one billion dollars. Constellation, which was long focused on wine and spirits, has found success in the beer business since acquiring the rights... Read More
INTREPID SMUGGLERS BUSTED
GIVE THEM CREDIT for creativity. Imaginative smugglers were recently caught attempting to enter Saudi Arabia with thousands of beer cans disguised as Pepsi. Customs officials in the Middle Eastern country intercepted the shady operation at the al-Batha border crossing with the United Arab Emirates. What they discovered was 48,OOO cans... Read More
THE LONGEST TAKEOVER EVER
DON’T EXPECT Anheuser-Busch InBev and SABMiller’s mega merger to be wrapped up anytime soon. Experts have predicted that the purchase could take as long as 18 months. In November AB InBev received the go-ahead from SABMiller’s board for its $1O7bn-takeover of the UK-headquartered company. At the time, the two brewers... Read More
PRETTY THINGS CLOSES ITS DOORS
THIS IS NOT pretty news at all. In a shocking move, Pretty Things Beer & Ale Project founders Dann Paquette and Martha Holley-Paquette recently announced that they were bringing their much-beloved endeavor to a close. The news came as a big surprise to both the industry and consumers alike. Known... Read More