• 🥃 A Drink With Lodestar Whiskey
• 💎 Coke Exec Moves to Investment
• 🍸 A Sip Of New Spirit Launches
• 😬 More States Limit Hemp
• 💸 Why A Financial Windfall Won’t Fulfill Caulipower’s Gail Becker… Or Anyone Else

We all know that the hemp-derived THC drink segment is expanding, but what about growth (or shrinkage) for the products themselves? 

Brands are taking an increasingly fluid approach to product development despite many originally staking a claim on one end of the spectrum or the other. (Think: Uncle Arnie’s high-potency shots on one side, and spirit analogues like Pamos and Nowadays on the other). 

But as factors like DTC sales, consumer experience and plain-old business math push and pull their products into new formats, we’ve already seen several notable brands make some eye-raising moves this year:

Catching a Brēz. When you’re doing tens of millions in business selling 7.5 oz. and 12 oz. RTDs mainly online, does doubling your packaging size make sense? It does if you’re Brēz: its new 750 mL bottle (5 mg THC/10 mg CBD per 1.5 oz. shot) presents the brand in a more premium, occasion-friendly format, priced at $69 each. 

• Early indicators are positive: the initial 1,000 bottle run of Brēz Spirit sold out in less than 24 hours. 
• For the DTC-heavy company (approximately 80% of all sales), it’s also a value play: a 6-pack of 5 mg cans is around $10 per serving, where the spirit comes in at about $4.66 per 5 mg serving. 

High Means ‘Tall.’ With convenience, gas and liquor retail continuing to evolve as a THC-friendly channel, it’s only natural that brands are adapting packaging for higher shelf-appeal. That means formats like new 16 oz. “tall boy” cans (10 mg THC/10 mg CBG) from Atlanta-based Nine Dot to complement its existing elixirs line (six, 5 mg THC servings per bottle). 

• It’s more about perception and per-serving-potency, though, than the package itself: see Cann, which offers Hi Boy (5 mg THC) and Hi’er Boy (10 mg) versions in 12 oz. cans, a big step up from the standard 8 oz. (2 mg THC) varieties. 

Squier’s Steps Up. Chef-founded, Maine-born Squier’s Specialty Elixirs has quickly won over New England consumers with its range of hash rosin-derived 2 oz. beverage mixers, delivering a potent dosing experience while emphasizing fresh flavors and premium ingredients. 

Will that translate into the bigger-in-every-sense market of hemp-infused THC seltzers? We spoke with founder Zach Squier about how consumers’ desire for convenience helped inspire the forthcoming launch of 12 oz. drinks and why THC isn’t the only functional ingredient included.

Read the full article for all of the details on BevNET.

Whiskey has historically been perceived as a man’s drink. But the cousins behind Lodestar Whiskey are part of the growing number of female brand owners (including Queen B) aiming to change that.

☀️ Since launching last year, the brand has been “keeping it focused” to the Southern California area, allowing them to be hands-on, especially with events and meeting consumers by pouring whiskey themselves. 

🎞️ While starting regionally is straight out of the spirits playbook, coming from the film and entertainment industries has also made the brand’s approach to whiskey different, and pushed them aim for approachability in a category characterized by its aficionados.

Read the full interview for all of their insight on building this new business.

Former Coca-Cola exec Jim Murphy is starting his next act as a partner at investment firm Greycroft, leading global strategic relationships for the cross-industry investor.

• Murphy previously led Coke’s Global Venturing and Emerging Growth Platforms division overseeing venture investments for the CPG giant
• He worked directly with Greycroft to launch the $137 million Greycroft Coca-Cola System Sustainability Fund.
• Greycroft has investments across CPG and software, including Gwyneth Paltrow’s Goop, meal kit platform Plated and Merit Beauty.

Here's a sneak peek of the latest new spirits rolling out on shelf:

🌱 Pandan, an aromatic plant deeply rooted in South Asian food, makes its way into cocktails thanks to globetrotting mixologist Nico de Soto and his newest creation, Kota Liqueur. 

☕ Meanwhile, Foley Family Wines & Spirits is aiming to fuel the espresso martini craze with a new collaboration between Nevada’s Minden Mill Distilling and Alpen Sierra Coffee Roasting Co. 

🔥 Finding that Fireball has lost its spark? Lo Siento is hoping you’ll turn to Caliente, which spikes the label’s tequila with a spicy twist of cinnamon. 

See what else just hit the shelves.

Two more states are poised to put up the latest regulatory and enforcement hurdles for hemp-derived THC brands.

🌱 In Ohio, Senate Bill 86 and House Bill 160 would limit all hemp-derived THC product sales to recreational-use dispensaries. Although this legislation would not outlaw the products, it relegates them to a channel that has not been particularly successful for many low-dose THC drinks and edibles and adds additional taxes.

❌ Over in the Plains states, Nebraska AG Mike Hilgers has sent cease-and-desist letters to 104 retail stores in Omaha that sell delta-8 and other hemp-derived THC products. The news comes as state legislators attempt to pass LB316 which would effectively prohibit the sale of hemp-derived THC.

Go Deeper: Inside California’s Extended Hemp Ban

Gail Becker has a bold message for CPG entrepreneurs: if your brand isn’t built to truly improve the lives of your consumers, “you should stay the hell out.” 

Listen to this episode. Also available on Spotify and Apple Podcasts.