• Reviews Roundup
• This Week’s New Products
• Westrock Coffee Opens Another New Plant
• Spirits of Virtue To Open U.S. Hub
• KDP’s Drink Business Lifts Q2
• The Latest From Taste Radio

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A centuries-old spirit with deep cultural roots is getting a New York makeover. 

SAG is a new craft spirits brand founded by four Iranian friends, and it may be the first U.S.-based arak label to nail a modern take. 

If you don’t know what arak is, here’s a quick drunk history lesson: most often distilled from fermented grapes and aniseed, the clear, high-proof spirit has been a staple in Middle Eastern and Southeast Asian countries for thousands of years. 

After growing up consuming arak behind closed doors in Iran, where it remains outlawed, the SAG team is using its cool branding and industry connections to appeal to the diaspora and curious drinkers, starting with the bars and restaurants of NYC. The striking label design stopped both me and Taste Radio’s Ray Latif at Bar Convent Brooklyn. 

SAG’s version skips the anise, sticking with an Iranian-style distillation of California raisins to produce a 40% ABV spirit. The brand’s name is a nod to the first Iranian arak label, which brandished an illustration of the owner’s dog – the spirit has since been referred to aragh sagi, or “liquor of the dog.”

Now, SAG is focused on building cultural cachet and visibility as it joins a new wave of Middle Eastern hospitality concepts gaining attention in the U.S., from modern Middle Eastern arak distillers to pioneering cocktail bars and James Beard Award-winning restaurants. 

Those are the same style Mexican concepts used to pave the way for mezcal and tequila’s rise in the U.S., but arak is still a long way away from that trajectory, though the seeds seem to be planted… 

Read the full story on BevNET.

Can Bloom burst through a super-stacked modern soda category (yes, Pepsi is here now, too)? Can Zenjoy’s teas melt away your stress? And what is Purerista’s “epicurean water,” anyway?

This week at BevNET we rounded up a selection of new sips and chronicled our thoughts while we attempted to answer those tough questions. 

🆓 Check out this week’s review roundup on BevNET to see what stood out.

Between earnings, big-ticket M&A (Health-Ade, Dyla) and fresh batches of consumer data, this week has been thickly packed with news, but less so with new products. 

Arguably the biggest announced product – Coke’s Trump-approved cane sugar cola – is still not ready for its big reveal. 

But fear not: along with a first look at Pepsi Prebiotic, we’ve got the first release from Lucky Energy’s Black Label Collection, a fan-demanded flavor from Magic Cactus and more. 

🆓 Check out the full gallery on BevNET.

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Westrock Coffee Company is opening up a new facility in Conway, Arkansas. And no, that’s not just deja vu.

The Little Rock, Ark.-based coffee producer cut the ribbon on its second facility in Conway after first opening a 570,000 sq. ft. plant last year.

The new 525,000 sq. ft. site will mostly serve as a warehousing and distribution facility, but also has 130,000 sq. ft. set aside for additional manufacturing, with a focus on coffee pods.

The opening is the result of a $315 million investment by the company. Combined, the two facilities are expected to employ around 900 people.

Insiders can get the full story on BevNET.

Scottish NA beverage brand Spirits of Virtue is headed to the U.S. The company will open a 30,000 sq. ft. production facility in Hot Springs, Ark., with production slated to begin Q1 2026. 

There’s also a new product launch: Discover Pouches, a first-of-its-kind line, featuring 2 oz. pouches of NA spirit alternatives designed for the U.S. convenience channel and with the idea to make NA spirits “radically more accessible.”

As the ANA space in the U.S. heats up, Spirits of Virtue joins other European brands trying to make a splash across the pond.

Go Deeper: European Non-Alc Players to Disrupt U.S. Market

Keurig Dr Pepper’s (KDP) U.S. beverage portfolio was the highlight of its Q2 earnings report this week, representing $2.7 billion (up 10.5%) of the company’s total $4.2 billion net sales for the quarter.

The report also broke the news of KDP’s acquisition of drink mix maker Dyla Brands, which CEO Tim Cofer called a “small tuck-in” that gives the company a stake in a fast-growing category.

Energy remains a focus for the company, while new innovations on the flagship Dr. Pepper brand also are driving growth.

U.S. coffee sales struggled in the quarter, but are seeing improvements, down just 0.2% to $0.9 billion.

For more insight from the report, Insiders can read the story on BevNET.

How did GNGR Labs’ organic, cold-pressed wellness shots become a staple in New York City bodegas and land nationwide distribution at Wegmans? Founder Namik Soltan shares a story powered by purpose, product and unrelenting persistence. The hosts also unpack PepsiCo’s unexpected – and gutsy – announcement and explore how excellence fueled Tia Lupita’s acquisition.

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