|
|
A bankruptcy court has approved the sale of a Willamette Valley winery along with 94,000 gallons of wine. Alex Spizz, a lawyer for Pacific Rim, told the court that "given the state of the wine industry in Oregon and the lack of interest," an auction was unlikely to yield a better result.
The Business Journals |
|
|
The Seventh Circuit heard arguments September 17th in Freehan v. Berg, a challenge to Illinois's law that allows in-state retailers to ship wine to residents while barring out-of-state retailers from doing the same. Judge Rebecca Taibleson, seen by the Irish Liquor Lawyer as the deciding vote, questioned the state's claim that the rule is non-discriminatory, while an earlier ruling by fellow panelist Judge Easterbrook holds that a discriminatory cross-border delivery rule cannot be saved by state evidence.
Irish Liquor Lawyer |
|
|
Bronco Wine will handle sales for Wente Family Estates, which it described as "complementary" to its portfolio.
Wine Industry Advisor |
|
|
At its capital markets day in the US, AB InBev CMO Marcel Marcondes said affordability is the top reason budget-conscious consumers cut back, a group that makes up about a third of the brewer's total beer volumes, and the company plans packaging innovations in both smaller, cheaper formats and larger, better-value ones to reach them. Marcondes also named female drinkers and younger LDA consumers as the other main infrequent-drinker cohorts, pointing to a "double down" on Beyond Beer and Balanced Choices brands such as Brutal Fruit and Stella Pure Gold, without specifying which brands would get the new formats.
Drinks Intel |
|
|
A new Mintel report finds global consumers who are moderating their drinking are seeking stronger value, smaller formats, nostalgia, and sensory experiences.
BevNET |
|
|
|
|
Anheuser-Busch InBev and US vodka firm Stateside have settled the trademark dispute Stateside filed in Philadelphia last year, which accused AB InBev's Skimmers RTD of copying the can design and overall look of its Surfside brand. AB InBev launched Skimmers, described as a "non-carbonated vodka tea," in April last year.
Just Drinks |
|
|
|
|
Intoxicating hemp beverages in their current form could disappear from the market in mid-December under a federal ban that was pushed back a month, though the industry has kept moving. On the Brewbound Podcast, BevNET and Nosh senior reporter Lukas Southard covers the state of the market, product alternatives that could come into play if the ban takes effect, and why some states may disregard it.
Brewbound |
|
|
Darden Restaurants posted first-quarter sales up 5.1 percent to $3.2 billion with gains across every segment, led by LongHorn Steakhouse's 6.8 percent same-restaurant sales growth and a 10 percent jump at Yard House, which recently crossed $1 billion in trailing 52-week sales. Olive Garden's same-restaurant sales rose 1 percent, and the chain plans to promote its unlimited soup, salad, and breadsticks lunch offer this quarter and test a new weekday lunch platform to rebuild a daypart that accounts for roughly 20 percent of traffic.
FSR Magazine |
|
|
Italian wine exports to the U.S. rose 10% in value and 1.3% in volume in July, with the average price up 8% year over year, though shipments remained down 11% from January through July, per the Unione Italiani Vini. UIV secretary general Paolo Castelletti said it is the first time since early 2025 with two consecutive months of growth, but too early to call a turnaround; total exports over the 12 months through July fell 16% to 1.63 billion euros ($1.86 billion).
Shanken News Daily |
|
|
Moët Hennessy has signed a strategic research and development partnership with glass maker Verallia to develop a new generation of lighter, stronger bottles, with a joint program covering resource efficiency, circularity and performance across the value chain. The company said reducing bottle weight and improving its energy mix are central to its decarbonisation strategy; the length of the program and the brands involved were not disclosed.
Drinks Intel |
|
|
ThaiBev, owner of Chang beer and the International Beverage spirits division, is restructuring into four product-based units (beer, food, non-alcoholic beverage and spirits) and moving spirits chief Sopon Racharaksa up to president, just below CEO Thapana Sirivadhanabhakdi. Kosit Suksingha, currently leading non-alcoholic beverages, takes over spirits, with Rahul Colaco assuming Suksingha's role; all changes take effect October 1.
Drinks Intel |
|
|
Woodinville-based Avennia has acquired Walla Walla winery Gramercy Cellars for an undisclosed sum, taking on Gramercy's Forgotten Hills Vineyard and its interest in Octave Vineyard. Direct-to-consumer sales, anchored by a wine club, account for around 70% of Gramercy's revenue; Avennia says the club and its two annual releases stay unchanged and is hiring a dedicated hospitality director for the brand.
Just Drinks |
|
|
Front-of-house workers at Boston Beer Company's Samuel Adams Boston Brewery and Taproom voted Tuesday to unionize, joining UFCW Local 328.
Brewbound |
|
|
Anheuser-Busch has signed a multiyear deal making Michelob Ultra an official NHL beer sponsor in the U.S., the league's first since A-B's Bud Light deal expired after the 2021-22 season. The rights are non-exclusive, letting the NHL add more beer partners; Michelob Ultra will activate around events including the Stanley Cup Playoffs and Winter Classic and continue its sponsorship of 18 teams. Terms were not disclosed.
Sports Business Journal |
|
|
Wine Industry Advisor asks whether Bronco Wine Company's business model could serve as a blueprint for the current market.
Wine Industry Advisor |
|
|
Wine Industry Advisor rounded up seven potential new American Viticultural Areas working their way through the approval process.
Wine Industry Advisor |
|
|
Sun King Brewery is shifting all of its Florida production to co-manufacturer Sun Lab Brewing, shutting its Sarasota facility and relocating its taproom. The Indianapolis-based brewery did not detail the new taproom location in the excerpt.
Brewbound |
|
|
Early assessments of the 2026 grape harvest across Italian regions, from Lombardy and Piedmont to Umbria and Sicily, point to strong quality prospects, per Wine Industry Advisor. More definitive data on volumes are still awaited.
Wine Industry Advisor |
|
|
Wine director Michael Laudenslager and importer Peter Andrews joined the Wine Enthusiast Podcast (Ep. 225) to discuss how restaurant wine pricing became so expensive.
Wine Industry Advisor |
|
|
Haus Cramer Group will eliminate roughly 125 full-time roles at Warsteiner's headquarters in Warstein, western Germany, with about 50 to be phased out through retirements and expiring contracts and 600 staff to remain; the company said on September 23 the cuts are part of a drive to "significantly" reduce operating expenses. The move follows earlier decisions to end brewing at its Herford site in the second half of the year and to put its Paderborn brewery up for sale, with production there stopping by year-end if no buyer is found.
Just Drinks |
|
|
The Brewers Association combined its pub and taproom brewer voting classes for this year's board of directors election, which is open through October 21.
Brewbound |
|
|
Moët Hennessy has partnered with Verallia, the world's third-largest food and beverage glass packaging producer, on a research and development program to cut bottle weight by 30% to 50% using technologies that strengthen glass while maintaining mechanical performance. The firms say glass makes up as much as 30% of the wine and spirits industry's carbon footprint; early results are already in use across several products including Hennessy Cognac, with rollout planned over the next decade.
The Spirits Business |
|
|
Wine Industry Advisor examines the role of new technology in turning wine discovery into completed sales, asking whether shoppers who find a wine can actually buy it.
Wine Industry Advisor |
|
|
Wine Industry Advisor examines French wine as a global luxury industry, framing it as more than a drink and looking at the business behind it.
Wine Industry Advisor |
|
|
The Italian Trade Agency is running Italian Wine Week from October 12 to 25, 2026, a retail campaign spanning more than 100 wine shops across Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, and Jersey City with in-store displays, discounts, and tastings. The activation feeds into Vinitaly USA, the trade-only Italian wine exhibition at Pier 36 on October 26 and 27, where more than 300 producers and 400-plus trade professionals will gather.
PR Newswire (Wine & Spirits) |
|
|
Unaged spirits are growing at more than double the pace of the total global travel retail market, per IWSR, with the luxury end driving growth in tequila, vodka and gin. Blanco tequila led with value up 21% and volume up 12% year on year, while unaged rum was the sole outlier (volume down 8%, value down 4%), remaining almost entirely standard-priced with premium-and-above under 1% of sub-category value; IWSR expects Asia Pacific, led by India, to drive future growth, with the Middle East a key region.
Drinks Intel |
|
|
Napa-based DataBacon Technologies, founded by Andrew Ridling and Mark Molner, launched a subscription platform that pulls depletion data, ERP, and pricing into a single structured foundation, replacing custom data-warehouse builds that have taken months. The depletion-first tool is aimed at mid- to large-sized US wineries and spirits producers running ERP systems like Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central, and is available now.
Markets Insider |
