Welcome back to the BevNET spirits newsletter. This week we’re looking at what one RTD brand’s state fair playbook reveals about expansion and cornering the right occasion.

What insiders are reading: Monster Brewing dives into spirits RTDs, plus we go inside the new investment vehicle from Paperboy Ventures.

It’s not often that the genesis for a ready-to-drink cocktail happens beyond a bar or a boardroom, but, in the case of Shake Up, inspiration struck at a Midwest county fair. 

Shake Up Cocktails comes from Jamie Fahrner, who grew up selling BBQ at county fairs, where she also enjoyed the lemon shake up, a drink turned into a Midwestern fair staple by the spectacle of 70s-era concessionaires vigorously shaking fresh squeezed lemons and granulated sugar made-to-order. Years later, when Fahrner and her husband David Fahrner signed a lease to operate a distillery in an underutilized building of the Indiana State County Fair, the lemon shake up got an adult kick. 

The Fahrners had a convenient home turf to test their gin-based RTD, and as they expanded into wholesale, were able to replicate that same trial experience across other summertime events and fairs in the Midwest. 

Shake Up has found that occasion in their backyard many brands dream of: not just the winter holidays or Fourth of July, but summers synonymous with county fairs and lemon shake ups, kicked off by one of the world’s largest sporting events – the Indy 500. Those events have accelerated Shake Up’s velocity at large chains in Indiana. 

But how does a brand with a nostalgic story so tied to its homebase expand? We’ve seen other regional RTDs like Ranch Water web out thanks to Texas bartending events and the bartending community, and with help from adjacent brands like Topo Chico. The Finnish Long Drink cornered the cocktail style with celebrity backers who translated the drink’s historical origins into Finnish whimsy. 

As we can see from the possible $700M BeatBox acquisition, RTDs that have a clear moment attached to them are winning (BeatBox made its initial splash sponsoring music festivals). Shake Up Cocktails isn’t expanding beyond the Midwest anytime soon, but when it does, it will head to Texas, home to the largest state fair, and the founders will be betting on a “find your fair” moment (think Corona’s “find your beach”).

Read the full story.  

Party punch brand BeatBox is reportedly exploring a potential acquisition with Anheuser-Busch InBev (A-B), according to a story by the Wall Street Journal. Citing unnamed “people familiar with the matter,” the WSJ estimated the deal at $700 million, but couched that negotiations could “fall apart.” 

Just when we thought adult non-alc funding was hitting a dry spell, functional spirits brand Aplós has closed a $5 million funding round. The raise follows a breakout year of triple-digit growth across wholesale and retail channels.

Read the full story on the brand’s next moves.

Tariffs are forcing hard decisions for liquor store owners, especially as the holidays approach. As spirits companies have been tasked with reevaluating everything from pricing to supply chain to expansion, retailers are also adjusting inventory. 

Read how tariffs are changing product selection.

Thad Vogler, the Bay Area barman, author, and founder of San Francisco’s James Beard Award-winning Bar Agricole, has built a career on celebrating the tie between spirits and agriculture. Now, his newest venture, Waste, extends that philosophy into a new frontier: ready-to-drink (RTD). But don’t expect a fancy cocktail. 

Diageo has tapped a consumer goods industry veteran to lead the spirit group’s next chapter. The new CEO, nicknamed ‘Drastic Dave,’ will be tasked with steadying a period of leadership turbulence at the Casamigos and Johnnie Walker parent, and turning around slow performance in its biggest markets. 

Brown-Forman is rolling out Mexico’s top ready-to-drink (RTD) cocktail in the U.S. New Mix, an El Jimador Tequila-based cocktail launched in 1997, has been testing retail shelves across select states this year, with a wider rollout announced last week. It’s definitely not the only company looking to Mexican flavors for inspiration and for new buyers. Other Latino-focused brands such as Jumex have also made a foray into RTDs, and BeatBox as well as Sazerac have debuted RTD beverages this fall brandished in Spanish or inspired by Mexican flavors. 

Read more about Mexico’s top RTD.

Even for an industry born out of risk and uncertainty, hemp beverages are now officially in uncharted waters. Our team tackles what happens next after hemp-derived products were given a year to obtain a legal federal framework. 

Read more.

The BevNET Spirits Awards are open to nominations for one more day! Categories this year include spirits company of the year (small and large), best new RTD and RTS cocktails, best new NA spirits, and best new NA RTD cocktails. 

Apply until Friday.

Join me and leaders from Carbliss, Pernod Ricard’s Convivialite Ventures, Kin and more as we chat about all things RTDs, ANA and even THC. More info.