Welcome to Brewbound’s Inside Look at the Beer Business for the week that was … Saturday, December 21, 2024.

Well, I hope y’all are stocked up on uh, brown ale for the big holiday week festivities ahead! And from the looks of Craft Brewing & Beer’s 2024 reader poll … you shouldn’t have a problem finding any.

Alas, good ol‘ brown ale brought up the rear on the 2024 popularity list – but with any luck, it’ll overtake the powerhouse that is barleywine in 2025.

THEN: In the “Yeah … we shoulda seen this coming” category – DIAGEO is seeing if anyone wants to buy CIROC. 🥴 Pretty sure Jay-Z will not be bidding.

ALSO: Going into the final month of 2024, here’s where 2024 beer sales stand as of Dec. 1, according to CIRCANA data cited by Beer Marketer's Insights:

TOTAL BEER: -0.4% sales, -2.4% volume

• IMPORTS: +4% sales and 25 share (+1.07, #1 in beer)
• DOMESTIC PREMIUM: -5.4% sales and 24.4 share (-1.3)
• SUBPREMIUM: -0.3% sales and 11.5 share (flat)
• FMB: +7% sales and 10.5 share (+0.7)
• CRAFT: -3% sales and 10 share (-0.3)
• SUPERPREMIUM: +2% sales and 9.5 share (+0.2)

PLUS: 25% of folks who had on-prem bev-alc drinks in the past 3 months have made one of those drinks an RTD (which could be a cocktail on draft, canned or anything pre-made outside of the establishment), according to CGA.

• Make that 41% for 21-34 year-olds (over-55s are significantly dragging down the total percentage).

21-34 year-old Zoe has your further RTD on-prem intel here, and 44-55 year-old me is very happy to be in the 75%.

Kudos to Bart Watson for elevating to the top of the BREWERS ASSOCIATION – outgoing CEO Bob Pease made the official announcement this week.

Bart will start the new gig on Jan. 6, which will begin his 12th year at the BA after joining as chief economist of the BA in 2013.

ALSO: Bart added predicting the future to his skillset – here’s what he sees for 2025. Sadly, it seems my hair will still not be growing back. Thanks, Bart.

Thus, the iconic Boston beer brand will live on … as neighbor CASTLE ISLAND has acquired the rights to make CAMBRIDGE BREWING CO. beer (the pub location is not involved, and closed yesterday).

MANHATTAN PROJECT BEER CO.

Director of Operations – Dallas, TX

PURE PROJECT BREWING

Field Sales Rep – Orange County, CA

NEEDLE CREEK FARM BREWERY

PAULANER USA set Andy Glaser as its new CEO. He previously had stints at HENNESSEY and BASS ALE, as well as HEINEKEN in the 2000s.

The CALIFORNIA CRAFT BREWERS ASSOCIATION selected Kelsey McQuaid-Craig as its next executive director. She comes from outside the beer biz – her previous role was at the AMERICAN COLLEGE OF EMERGENCY PHYSICIANS.

The BA board appointed two at-large members:

• SEATTLE BEER SCHOOL founder Shawna Cormier (one-year term)
• PURE MADNESS BREWERY GROUP founder Colby Cox (two-year term)

The BREWBOUND gang gives you all the inside scoop from behind the scenes at the BREWBOUND LIVE event last week, plus the themes that stood out most from their conversations with industry leaders.

PLUS: They dive into the change at the top of the BA, and have an update from HIGHLAND BREWING’s Leah Wong Ashburn about the state of things in Asheville along with a new beer intended to help area hospitality workers. Leah is also the 2024 BREWBOUND PERSON OF THE YEAR. Congrats, Leah!

Listen here!

• Senator Chuck Schumer introduced the Bubble Tax Modernization Act this month, which would lower the taxes on hard cider (and mead and fruit wine) under 8.5% ABV. 
• SIERRA NEVADA announced a new partnership with the National Park Foundation to create limited editions of Pale Ale in 2025, each with different images from various parks on the packaging.
• NEW BELGIUM’s Asheville facility reopened this week!
• A-B’s RATE BEER is shutting down on Feb. 1. Then again, when A-B’s division that acquired it no longer exists … yeah this tracks. #ZXVenturesRIP
• Atlanta’s NEW REALM BREWING opened its sixth location in Suffolk, VA this month. It’s also the brewery’s 2nd Virginia location after the one it moved into after GREEN FLASH vacated it.

This week’s beer goes out to GUINNESS! I assure you that the actual shortage of the good stuff in Britain as Christmas approaches is entirely unrelated to my trip there earlier this month (if it was one of my London trips when I was in my 30s – maybe).

Rather, as one pub owner put it when asked, yes, it is totally due to Gen Z’ers splitting the G – a generation that frankly really needs to pick a lane: Are you drinking less or chugging beers, people? We need to know how to properly judge you.

Well, either way, this issue seems to be contained to the U.K., so continue to drink to your heart’s content (or liver’s ability) here in the U.S. over the Christmas week. 

I know I always look forward to my Christmas Eve pint once I’ve finished all of my shopping, and have found just the right 2nd basement fridge for Justin so he can increase the selection of beers he has in cold storage for me to choose from on my sporadic unannounced (and unbeknownst) pop-ins. Merry Christmas, boss! 

BTW, if you hear a rustle downstairs around 5 p.m. on Tuesday – just know that a tall Jersey BREWBOUND elf is fresh out of pre-holiday refreshment.

Slainté!

-Sean McNulty