As Asian American founders have reshaped food and non-alc beverage categories with innovative products drawing from their heritage, canned cocktails and hard seltzers have not been forgotten. As the broader swath of American consumers take a more active interest in cultures across the Pacific, many are now reaching for alcoholic beverages with rice spirit bases and twists of yuzu. 

From large, established spirits house like Beam Suntory bringing its Japanese hard seltzer brand, -196, into the U.S. market, to category leaders like White Claw launching its Smach lineup that includes Citrus-Yuzu and Tropical Pomelo flavors, Asian-inspired drinks are driving the zeitgeist.

But, as is often the case with CPG trends, the most innovation and experimentation is coming from independent Asian-American entrepreneurs, many of whom saw the lack of canned cocktails that represented their cultural heritages. Brands like Màkku, Nectar and YoJu witnessed the explosion of interest in hard seltzer and RTD cocktails during the pandemic and decided to bring their own spin on alcoholic drinks to the market.

Now, as the proliferation of hard seltzer brands has oversaturated the category, some of these Asian-influenced brands are finding new products to enliven the category with unique marketing approaches to drive consumer demand.

“Where CPG brands miss is they focus so much on product but the world that you bring people into is just as important,” said Jeremy Kim, co-founder and CEO of hard seltzer brand Nectar.

Read the full feature on BevNET.

While ramping up commercialization efforts, horchata cold brew brand Bandida has joined Gordon Ramsay’s new competition reality series, Food Stars, vying for the chance to receive a $250,000 investment from the celebrity chef. 

• Founded by Latina entrepreneur Megan Meza in 2019, Bandida produces ready-to-drink Horchata Cold Brew, a dairy-free, better-for-you take on the classic Mexican beverage.
• While horchata might normally be considered a treat, Bandida wants people to make it a part of their daily lives while also aiming to inject a bit of playfulness into the RTD coffee market. 
• Meza recently joined 14 other food and beverage entrepreneurs on Gordon Ramsay’s Food Stars, a reality competition show in which the contestants participate in business challenges in hopes of convincing the celebrity chef to make a personal investment of $250,000 in their enterprise over a series of 10 episodes.
• Is Gordon Ramsay nice in real life? Meza says yes! Perhaps he was even a little too casual. Seeing the Kitchen Nightmares star in sunglasses was an “uncomfortable” experience, she said. 

Read the full story on BevNET.

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Former first lady Michelle Obama’s fledgling kids’ drink brand PLEZi has launched in Walmart stores nationwide. 

• When she was living in the White House, Obama led the Let’s Move! campaign, focused on reducing childhood obesity. PLEZi looks to continue that mission: the four-SKU line of beverages is sweetened with stevia and monk fruit and is formulated to have 75% less sugar than average leading 100% fruit juices.
• According to a brand spokesperson, PLEZi is not intended to replace water, but, rather, sugary drinks such as sodas and sports drinks that don’t support kids’ health. A CDC study found that nearly two-thirds of youth consume sugary drinks on a given day and that these drinks are the leading source of added sugars. 
• On Walmart’s website, where PLEZi has been available since May, drinks retail for $3.98 per 4-pack of 8 oz. bottles. The beverages are also available at retailers such as Sprouts and Target.
• Obama’s long-term hope for the brand is for PLEZi to become a healthy eating and drinking platform that could encompass both snacks and other drink products. 

Late last week, Tennessee joined several other states that have taken civil action against companies shipping in beverage alcohol from out-of-state illegally by filing a lawsuit against six online liquor distributors.

• The state attorney general filed a suit in federal court against six separate shippers, seeking an injunction to block “the flow of illegal liquor shipments” into Tennessee.
• Defendants in the case include Bottle Buzz Inc., Cask Cartel Distilleries and Distribution, The Liquor Bros, My Bev Store, Prime Time Liquors and Wooden Cork Enterprises, each of which sell alcohol online through their websites, according to the complaint.
• Ohio and Michigan previously used the same 20-year-old federal law to take legal action.
• Direct-to-consumer shipping remains a legislative priority for DISCUS, who joined other spirit advocacy groups to launch a state-by-state "Ship My Spirits" campaign last year.

There’s a new data Czar in town (or at least Chicago). Research and analytics firm SPINS yesterday announced Jay Margolis has assumed the role of CEO, succeeding founder Tony Olson.

• SPINS largest investor, Olson will transition to the role of Chairman of the Board. Margolis has a personal and professional interest in health and wellness, a press release noted, with a career in pharmaceuticals and health care, and as a “devoted consumer of natural and organic products.”
• Cue the Whole Foods welcome gift basket: The CEO swap follows the March announcement that fellow number crunchers IRI and The NPD Group would operate under the new name and brand identity Circana.

We got to sample Super Coffee’s new 15 oz. canned XXTRA line in June at BevNET Live in New York. Now, the iced latte line has begun hitting shelves in NYC and Long Island, with distribution courtesy of Big Geyser, according to a LinkedIn post from the brand’s CEO, Tyler Ricks, yesterday.

• Super Coffee XXTRA is the company’s latest innovation aimed at growing its presence in c-stores, complimenting last year’s Super ENRGY launch.
• The line, available in Mocha and Vanilla, is a not-so-subtle, better-for-you challenge to Java Monster, which has been a long time dominant player in convenience energy coffee sales.
• Java Monster, incidentally, scooped Super Coffee on the trademark for its own name in several foreign markets, most recently launching a “Java Monster Super Coffee” in Australia this year.
• But imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. At least, that’s how co-founder Jimmy DeCicco saw Monster’s trademark play back in March. At the time, he hinted that the two companies would be competing more directly soon enough. Now, it seems, that day has arrived.