Palmetto Brewing’s more than 3-decade journey has come to a close, with the Charleston, SC brewery shutting down last week. 

The move comes less than 4 years after Palmetto and its parent company Catawba Valley Brewing were acquired by Made by the Water (MBTW), a craft portfolio company that has seen a fair share of brewery and taproom closures since its founding. 

Brewbound managing editor Jess Infante has details for Brewbound Insiders on the closure and the circumstances surrounding it, including $7.4 million in unpaid debt.

In today’s full version of the Brewbound Newsletter, Insiders are also:

• Reading details from Constellation’s Q1 2026 earnings call;
• Diving into July 4 bev-alc shopping predictions from Bump Williams;
• And learning what flavors drive beer buying decisions, according to the Beer Institute.

Insiders also have access to the Brewbound Newsletter Archive, including previous newsletter-exclusive Insider content.

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When Death of the Fox Brewing Company (Clarksboro, NJ) opened 8 years ago, co-founder Chuck Garrity wanted to make sure its taproom stayed busy day and night. 

So to “maximize” Death of the Fox’s taproom investment and utility, the company launched by also offering coffee service, Garrity shared during the first edition of the Brewbound Podcast’s Learning Lounge: Taproom Tactics series. 

Offering coffee was part of a total beverage mindset that covered an overlap between beer drinkers and coffee connoisseurs, while adding a revenue stream in one of the strictest operating environments for craft brewery taprooms. 

Building an on-site roastery during the COVID-19 pandemic was “a game changer” for the business due to taproom shutdowns. It’s now become the dominant portion of the brewery’s business.

Garrity explained: “When we first opened, beer was about 75%, 80% of our sales. Now, flash forward eight years later, coffee, in terms of the total company, is about 70% of our sales. Beer is about 20% to 25%.”

The brewery’s beer sales remain strong, and Garrity is confident that “beer’s not going anywhere.” But his philosophy is to “follow where the river takes you, don’t fight against the current,” and Death of the Fox’s customers were telling him that while they liked the combination of beer and coffee, they really loved the coffee.

Listen here for more from Garrity on Death of the Fox’s mix, growing the coffee side of the business amid strict restrictions on beer and advice for adding an attractive coffee menu. Plus, the Brewbound team’s takes on the latest headlines, and Another Round or Tabbing Out on 1990s nostalgia in CPG.  

Palmetto Brewing (Charleston, SC) shut down last week after 32 years. 

The brewery wrote on Facebook: “We also want to thank everyone in our community for your continued support – through the ups and downs, the changing times, and most recently, the challenges that led us to this bitter outcome.”

In 2025, a craft brewery shutting down is not unusual, but the circumstances around Palmetto’s demise raise questions. A driving factor behind the closure is $7.4 million in unpaid debt stemming from the brewery’s acquisition in 2021 by private equity-based platform Made By The Water.

Insiders can read more, including details from court proceedings, MBTW’s track record of closing locations and production declines and check out links to other publications detailing former employees’ experiences.

Constellation Brands’ down Q1 may have bucked the Mexican beer importer’s historical trends, but the declines were “expected,” company leadership shared Wednesday during its Q1 2026 earnings call with investors and analysts. 

Constellation’s beer portfolio recorded declines in shipments (-3.3% YoY) and depletions (-2.6%) decline during the quarter, which ended May 31. Contributors to the losses include curbed consumer purchasing behavior from continued macroeconomic trends, but also difficult comps from Q1 2024, which should ease through the rest of FY26, president and CEO Bill Newlands said.

Newlands said: “Sequential improvement is required for us to accomplish our guidance, but it's not predicated on significant consumer change. You may recall, in July of last year was when things started to decelerate, both for us and for the overall industry. So we're going against easier comps as we progress into the summer months.”

Insiders can read more, including the “controllables” Constellation is focused on, analysts’ reactions and a stock update.

Brewbound Live takes place in Marina del Rey, CA on December 10+11, and the official Marriott hotel block is now available. Staying on-site means you’re just steps away from panel discussions, beer tastings, and connection-building with top industry leaders.

Secure your spot early, register now to access the room block and save $100 with early registration.

Winners of the July 4 holiday weekend are expected to mainly fall within the NA beverages, domestic beer and RTDs – all segments that have been able to find growth in 2025 despite industry-wide headwinds – according to the latest monthly report from Bump Williams and Bump Williams Consulting.

Just days before the start of the July 4 weekend, Williams shared who he believes will win the holiday, the floor space gainers in and outside of the beer category and the pack sizes and segments outperforming trends. 

Williams projected winners will include NA beer; Anheuser-Busch’s (A-B) Michelob Ultra; flavored budget beer, such as A-B’s Busch Light Apple; Boston Beer’s Twisted Tea; and spirit-based RTDs of the non-carbonated variety.

Insiders can read highlights from Williams’ report, including consumer shifts to larger pack sizes during the holiday season, Memorial Day trendlines and RTD gains.

Founders Brewing Company is rolling into its new 3-year business cycle with upgrades to its facilities, plans to invest in its core brands and efforts to build future offerings in and outside of traditional beer.

Mahou USA CEO Elton Andres told Brewbound that the company is investing around $3 million to upgrade its Grand Rapids, Michigan-based brewery, adding a pasteurizer, a de-alcoholizer, a reverse osmosis filter and canning capabilities that will allow modern can formats, including a robot that configures mixed packs at scale.

“You're going to see a whole bunch of new stuff towards the end of this year that speaks to NA, speaks to canned cocktails, nice narrow cans and stuff like that,” he added.

Become a Brewbound Insider to read more about the strategy, how Mortal Bloom hazy iPA was born of it and how it’s extending outside of beer with Devil Spiked FMBs and more.