Founders Brewing Company is rolling into its new 3-year business cycle with upgrades to its facilities, plans to invest in its core brands and efforts to build future offerings in and outside of traditional beer.

Mahou USA CEO Elton Andres told Brewbound that the company is investing around $3 million to upgrade its Grand Rapids, Michigan-based brewery, adding a pasteurizer, a de-alcoholizer, a reverse osmosis filter and canning capabilities that will allow modern can formats, including a robot that configures mixed packs at scale.

“You're going to see a whole bunch of new stuff towards the end of this year that speaks to NA, speaks to canned cocktails, nice narrow cans and stuff like that,” he added.

The investment is part of Andres’ vision for 50% of Founders’ EBITDA to come from outside of craft beer by 2030. 

Andres explained: “We still are going to be a craft brewer, but we're looking at it as craft beyond beer. That doesn't mean turning our back on beer, because there's tons of headroom for us to still grow. We're not even 3% of the market.”

Andres is now 3.5 years into guiding the Madrid, Spain-headquartered brewer’s U.S. operations, which includes Founders, Avery Brewing (Boulder, CO) and Mahou’s import division. 

Mahou’s U.S. portfolio produced 437,000 barrels of beer in 2024 (-4% YoY), ranking it as the 15th largest overall U.S. brewery, according to the Brewers Association (BA). Founders accounted for 400,000 of those barrels (-2% YoY), with Avery making up 37,000 barrels (-17% YoY). 

Although Founders may be admittedly “a little late” to some segments, such as NA beer, the company is entering those spaces with a more focused innovation strategy, Andres shared. 

Andres described the creation of Mortal Bloom hazy IPA as “retro engineered,” starting with the exploration of consumer and distributor needs, the right price-pack configuration and the appropriate beer style before providing the brewing team with a narrow brief to develop “a solution.”

Insiders can read more about the strategy, how Mortal Bloom hazy iPA was born of it and how it’s extending outside of beer with Devil Spiked FMBs. 

Half a decade after wading into distilling, Massachusetts-based Trillium Brewing is diving into the RTD segment.

Rum Punch and Margarita, the first offerings from the new RTD line, launched yesterday at Trillium’s locations in Canton and Boston (Fort Point, Fenway and the Rose Kennedy Greenway). The 12 oz. canned cocktails are available for on-site consumption and sold in 4-packs to-go, according to a press release first shared with Brewbound.  

VP of sales and marketing Mike Dyer said: “Aligned with our core value for creating exceptional products, we took our time fine-tuning these recipes, sourcing the right ingredients and establishing fun, yet recognizable new brands. In a growing market segment full of choice, we’ve stuck to our roots and crafted an array of top-shelf beverages that Trillium fans and discerning consumers will appreciate.”

Trillium invested in a “multi-million dollar distillery expansion” last year at its Canton campus, making it one of the largest spirits production hubs in the Northeast.

Read the full story at Brewbound.com. 

Constellation Brands’ beer division posted uncharacteristic across-the-board declines for the first quarter of the company’s fiscal year, it announced yesterday.

For the 3-month period ending May 31, Constellation’s beer portfolio (Modelo, Corona, Pacifico, Victoria) declined 3.3% in shipments (sales to wholesalers) and 2.6% in depletions (sales to retailers) compared to the same period in 2024. Net sales declined 2% YoY, to $2.234 billion, and operating income declined 5%, to $873.4 million.

CEO Bill Newlands said in a press release: "While we continued to face softer consumer demand largely driven by what we believe to be non-structural socioeconomic factors, our teams remain focused on executing the key initiatives that underpinned the outlook we recently provided for fiscals 2026 to 2028.”

Constellation’s sales have been a question mark for industry investors since earlier this year when the Trump administration ramped up immigration-related raids and arrests under U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). As a result, Hispanic consumers – who account for at least half of Modelo Especial’s base – have curtailed shopping trips and socialization.

Read the full story at Brewbound.com.

Brewbound Live takes place in Marina del Rey, CA on December 10+11, and the official Marriott hotel block is now available. Staying on-site means you’re just steps away from panel discussions, beer tastings, and connection-building with top industry leaders.

Secure your spot early, register now to access the room block and save $100 with early registration.

JuneShine Brands (CA) has spent the last 7 years expanding its bev-alc portfolio from only hard kombucha, to now spirits-based canned cocktails, an American light lager and FMBs. 

But the company’s fastest-growing new product to date doesn’t contain any alcohol. It’s a THC-infused beverage with the name of a well-known, long-time cannabis enthusiast attached.

In March, JuneShine launched Willie’s Remedy+, a hemp-based THC-infused “social tonic” made in partnership with Willie Nelson and his wellness enterprise Long Play, Inc. The offering was first available in multi-serve 750 mL bottles, shipped DTC in 35 states. Within the first month, bottles had sold out and JuneShine was scrambling to get more supply, and sales have continued to grow, tripling in April and again in May, according to the company. 

“It’s been crazy – it’s definitely the fastest-growing thing we’ve ever launched at JuneShine Brands,” JuneShine co-founder and chief creative officer Forrest Dein told Brewbound. 

“It’s a testament to this category [and] obviously to Willie Nelson. And then being able to launch direct-to-consumer, it also takes down a lot of barriers that you normally have launching new products.” 

Insiders can read more details here, including brand extensions, retail and distribution plans and JuneShine's latest scans. 

Patagonia Provisions poured new NAs and sampled canned seafood at the Specialty Food Association’s Summer Fancy Food Show. The CPG spinoff of the outdoor apparel brand showed off a new look for its beer partnership with Deschutes Brewery.

While the previous packaging emphasized the brewery partnership and the use of ancient grain Kernza, the refreshed packaging makes the Patagonia Provisions branding bigger and bolder while highlighting the beer’s organic attribute over the grain.

Along with a revamped look, Patagonia and Deschutes are adding an NA IPA to complement the existing golden ale. The NA IPA is expected to launch in September, with an alcoholic version to follow in the spring, Patagonia Provisions head of sales Taylor Lee said: “The space in NAs is more available right now.”