• This Week's New Products
• A Drink With The New Bar’s Brianda Gonzalez
• Up Next On Elevator Talk
• Alkaline Water Co. Tries to Move up OTC Ladder
• This Week’s Top Reads
• Taste Radio: The Sober-Curious, Ozempic-Friendly Consumer

This week, another hard seltzer’s life was cut short by moderating alcohol trends, among other challenges. 

ICYMI: We’re talking about Spindrift’s discontinuation of its 4% ABV Spiked line. 

• The non-alcoholic, fruit-infused sparkling water maker launched the line in 2021 amidst a “then-burgeoning hard seltzer market.” 
• But, its growth was plagued by a difficult route-to-market, need for dedicated manufacturing requirements and the complications of regulatory compliance.

Plenty of popular NA seltzer brands made the leap into hard seltzer, but Spindrift was arguably the most visible to do so without the backing of a bev-alc partner. 

• Topo Chico Hard Seltzer (Coca-Cola and Molson Coors) and the now-defunct Arctic Chill (Polar Seltzer and Mass. Bay Brewing) both came to life through licensing agreements between non-alc producers and brewers. 

When Spindrift Spiked first debuted, Goldman Sachs Equity Research forecasted the segment could reach up to $30 billion in sales by 2025. That year has arrived, but sales expectations didn’t. In fact, dollar sales in hard seltzer are a small fraction of that initial estimate, reaching just $3.04 billion in the 52-week period ending August 13, per Circana data. 

But it wasn’t all bad news for Spindrift Spiked. The disco-news comes despite positive off-premise trends, with the brand posting double-digit dollar sales (+32.8%) and volume gains (+34.3%) year-to-date through July 12, according to data shared by 3 Tier Beverages. 

With Spiked now in the rearview, the Massachusetts-based company plans to double down on innovation for its flagship sparkling waters. That includes punching up its ANA-aligned, mocktail-inspired flavors, which currently includes Cosnoplitan, Island Punch, Nohito and Berry Belli-no.

“We’re going to keep doing what we do best: championing real squeezed fruit in beverage. As we write this, we’ve already crafted incredible new additions to our line and are innovating in new non-alc categories like mocktails and soda,” the brand wrote in a press release. 

Read more about the discontinuation of Spiked and what’s next for Spindrift in the full story on BevNET.

Innovation never slows down—and neither do we. From concept to shelf, we accelerate your success. While others catch up, you're already launching. Ready to outpace the rest? Learn more

From your morning coffee to your midday hydration soda to your afternoon JOLT to your nighttime sleepy decaf brew, this week’s new product gallery has something for every time of day. A bit much, or never enough? You decide. 

🆓 Check this week’s new product gallery for a first look at the first beverage from Mr. Beast’s Feastable brand, the new design for Tom Hanks’ charitable coffee brand, and the debut of hydration CSD Strive. 

The New Bar, an adult non-alc bottle (ANA) shop and platform in L.A. and San Francisco is consolidating its retail footprint and shifting focus on bringing ANA programs to restaurants, hotels, venues, and cultural events.

While she does the work of offering curation, staff training, and integration Gonzalez emphasizes a need for ANA brands to fuel the sector’s growth by investing in storytelling and creating moments where it becomes part of their culture. 

We spoke with founder and CEO Brianda Gonzalez about what’s next, where the hurdles are for ANA, and how ANA brands can take cues from their full-proof counterparts.

Access the full interview on BevNET.

The latest installment of Elevator Talk features leaders from Whole Moon, Solstice, Raya Fruit Water, Hawaiian Soda Co. and Elixir Shots.

Watch founders and CEOs introduce their brands and provide a recap of recent news and updates. This week’s special co-host is Allison Ball, the founder & CEO of Food Biz Wiz, who shared her thoughts, questions and feedback with the participants.

🆓 Watch the episode here.

The Alkaline Water Company is hoping to upgrade its public trading position, filing an application for uplisting on the OTCQB tier with the OTC Markets.

• The company previously traded on the NASDAQ but faced financial difficulties in recent years that resulted in a delisting. It later moved to a new ticker symbol, WTER, on the OTC.
• The application comes after the company completed an audit in March, overseen by CEO Ricky Wright who returned to the business in December.

On his return to the role after a more than two-year absence, Wright said that improving the company’s market position was among the top priorities, alongside rebuilding its distribution and co-packing network.

Catch Up: Alkaline Water Co. Aims to Wright Ship

1. Anheuser-Busch to Sell NYC Distribution Business to Southern Glazer’s Wine & Spirits
2. Melting Forest’s Mushroom Bevs Ready for Growth with Channel Expansion, Innovation
3. Bai Founder Ben Weiss Returns to Hard Tea, With ‘More Fun’ This Time
4. Big Weed Bets on Bevs
5. New Adult Non-Alc Entries Challenging Top Brands; Pressure On Price Increases

While alcohol consumption is cooling, the battle between clean-label ingredients and high-protein performance foods is heating up. 

The hosts examine what’s driving these massive shifts in consumer behavior, and how brands like David, Crisp Power and Athletic Brewing are responding.

Tune into the episode here. Also available on Spotify and Apple Podcasts.