Welcome to Brewbound’s Inside Look at the Beer Business for the week that was … Saturday, June 21, 2025.

Man, you know it’s bad when beer consumption is down in Belgium of all places. Data indicates the 2024 number was -2.1%, following a 2023 where it was -6%.

Guessing that imported STELLA from Newark, NJ just isn’t moving as many units as one would hope … but maybe they should send over a few cases of BUSCH LIGHT’s newest foray into flavortown along with it – move over #BLAPPLE – it’s #BLIMEtime! 

The bev-alc conglomerate of BENCHMARK (DARK HORSE, ROAK, BREW DETROIT, GREAT AMERICA, plus many spirits brands) is taking a minority investment in cider conglomerate BLAKE’S BEVERAGE CO (cider co’s BLAKE’S, AUSTIN EASTCIDERS and AVID).

No word on the 💰 involved here, and BENCHMARK is mainly looking to tap into BLAKE’s 35-state distribution footprint to grow some of its products.

ALTHOUGH: According to BENCHMARK CEO Auday Arabo, “If it works out, who knows, in two or three years what the next steps may be?”

CROSBY HOPS

Field Marketing Manager – Oregon

GELOSO BEVERAGE GROUP

District Manager – SoCal

DREKKER BREWING CO

FIFCO USA set its new CEO – Gustavo Cornejo, who will take over the role immediately. He most recently was the GM for ops in Northern Central America, the Caribbean and Mexico.

WHITE CLAW sets focus as it wins hard seltzer wars

Let’s start by pouring one out for VIZZY, BUD LIGHT SELTZER (who knew that branding would miss?), CORONA HARD SELTZER and everyone else who came for WHITE CLAW’s crown earlier this decade – and I think we can now also include TRULY in this lineup too, given how much it’s fallen off. 

These WHITE CLAW numbers say it all:

• 70% share of hard seltzer sales
• 50% share of total bev-alc seltzer (HIGH NOON has most of the other 50%)

Looking at the 2nd half of the 2020s, MARK ANTHONY is now focusing the WHITE CLAW business on 4 sectors:

1. OG Hard Seltzer
2. Boozier hard seltzer (8% ABV Surge)
3. Regular seltzer (its Zero Proof line, fka White Claw 0%)
4. FMBs (ClawTails)

So, farewell innovation product lines like Surf, Refresher and HIGH NOON competitor Vodka + Soda.

WHITE CLAW is the 7th largest brand family in beer sales through May 18, according to CIRCANA data.

ALSO AT MARK ANTHONY

Glass bottles – you may wanna take a seat next to VIZZY. 

MIKE’S HARD LEMONADE is testing the phase out of its signature bottle packaging for most SKUs, with the goal of transitioning to more “summer occasion friendly” cans – although its classic lemonade 6-packs will remain in glass, as will its variety 12-packs.

Speaking of – MIKE’S variety pack is its biggest seller ... and it's -22.8% in sales through mid-May according to CIRCANA data. 😳

HAND’s SUNSET DISTRIBUTING is buying SCOUT DISTRO in L.A., adding to its portfolio of recent purchases of CLASSIC BEVERAGE and STONE DISTRIBUTING in SoCal as well.

No price was disclosed, but the deal will add about 1.1M cases to SUNSET’s portfolio, and the 2 companies already share a warehouse.

SCOUT’s AZ business and its JV in Idaho are not involved.

• CONSTELLATION dissolved its emerging brands team, and put oversight of the products (FRESCA Mixed, etc) under the beer division, according to BMI. Beer innovation was also moved under the overall beer marketing team. 
• PERNOD RICARD is also creating a more “simplified organization” amid sales declines, according to Reuters, and will be cutting roles as the company undergoes a re-org. Spirits editor Ferron Salniker has details on what the new structure looks like.
• BREWDOG closed its Cincy outpost after a near 6-year run. 
• Portland, OR’s G4 KEGS said it has suspended importing kegs due to the #TrumpTariffs and uncertainty that still exists around future policy. 
• RahrBSG is also raising prices on some items due to #TrumpTariffs – Jess has details on which ones here.
• BREAKTHRU’s union strike in Florida is spreading to 6 other states, the Teamsters say, with over 700 folks out / not crossing the strike lines.
• IL’s MOOR’S BREWING won the Samuel Adams Brewing the American Dream (BTAD) Brewing and Business Experienceship competition.

One more twofer for the cheap seats!

• DESTIHL founder Matt Potts and Briess director of marketing Ron Schroder discuss ways to handle supply chain challenges, and working with partner brands.
• U.S. BEVERAGE VP of brand development Kris Sjolander dives into the company’s sales and marketing partnership program and the state of their contract brewing business

BUT FIRST: Z-boogie is teaching her fellow Gen Zers how to cue up at a bar properly on a cruise … so J-rock & J-funk take the BREWBOUND pod mics this week, diving into:

• The changing of the guard at TILRAY
• The trimming of the portfolio at WHITE CLAW
• Justin pretending that drinking Malort still sounds like a fun idea to him

LISTEN HERE! Or just search “Brewbound” on your podcast listening platform of choice. And leave a review and rating, would ya? (Good ones only, plz)

This week’s beer goes out to Lydia Wood, who is doing a U.K. pub crawl that puts yours to shame.

Instead of having a pint at every pub she sees, like … I’ll just say some readers here have likely attempted (and likely immediately forgotten the names of the next day), Lydia is on a quest to draw every pub in London.

She’s up to about 300 so far, with about 2,500 more to go according to ​​CGA by NIQ data … although the way the U.K. pub business is going these days, that number is only becoming easier to reach over time (the total was more than 3,000 not that long ago).

You can follow her quest here on IG and get a nice tour of London pubs from afar, plus you can also order prints or even commissions of your favorite pub! They’ve become so popular that it is now her full-time job.

Of course, one can only imagine it’s just a matter of time before someone tries to do the same somewhere in the U.S., although differentiating between various CHILI’S and APPLEBEE’S may not have the same charm.

So, cheers to Lydia for both creating a beautiful archive of U.K. community beer culture, and for always holding off on having a pint until she finishes up for the day.

Slainté!

-Sean McNulty 

(you can always reach me here on LinkedIn)