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Drinks newsletter Fingers is offering 50% off annual subscriptions, at $40 for the year versus the regular $80, through 11:59pm tonight. The Weekender edition teased coverage of Surfside versus Skimmers and a Reyes distribution realignment in Colorado.
Fingers |
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New US bans on select Canadian alcohol, dairy and motorcycles start at 12:01 AM Tuesday, with the alcohol list covering whisky, wine, beer, vermouth, vodka and rum, per the White House. Canada exported $1.36 billion in alcoholic beverages in 2023, 90 percent of it to the US, according to Canada's Trade Commissioner Service; Trump ordered the bans September 8 in response to Canadian counter-tariffs.
The News International |
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A French commercial court has ruled that Sazerac must honour its contracts with Cognac suppliers. More than 40 suppliers in the region took the US distiller to court last month over what they alleged was the illegal ending of their contracts.
Just Drinks |
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Unite members at Diageo's Cameronbridge distillery in Scotland began strike action Monday over 72 roles under review and up to 10 job losses, with pickets from 05.00 to 22.00 and further action by specific worker groups running until October 15. The stoppage is tied to Diageo's plan to cut 2,000 roles across its operations; the company said it was disappointed by the ballot and called the changes necessary to maintain reduced production volumes.
The Herald |
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California wineries have lost an estimated $522 million in export value as Canada's boycott piles onto falling demand, excess inventory, and a grape glut. Inc. reports the pressure is landing hardest on family-owned vineyards.
Inc.com |
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Campari Group is making its biggest-ever bet on a pink spritz, betting that a brightly colored aperitif imported from Italy can draw US drinkers as the alcohol industry works through a soft American market. The company is the parent of Aperol.
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Bronco Wine Co has struck a national partnership with fellow California winery Wente Family Estates, putting Bronco's sales team behind Wente's brands to support its existing distributors and customers. Bronco will not take over physical distribution of the portfolio, and the deal's duration was not disclosed; it follows similar Bronco tie-ups this year with Brilliant Mistake, When She Was King, and Jordan Vineyard & Winery.
Drinks Intel |
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Beer and RTDs posted the largest improvement in NIQ's latest off-premise scan data, which captured the full Labor Day weekend. Total beverage-alcohol dollar sales in the four weeks ending September 12 reached $8.5 billion on 167.5 million cases.
Brewbound |
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Jean-Charles Boisset has bought the Artesa winery in California from Spain's Raventós Codorníu for undisclosed terms, adding a 350-acre estate with 155 acres of vines across the Carneros and Mt. Veeder appellations to his holdings that already include Buena Vista, Raymond Vineyards and Flora Springs. Founded in 1991 as Codorníu Napa, Artesa grows Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Cabernet Sauvignon, Albarino and Tempranillo, and Boisset plans to make sparkling wines under the Artesa and JCB labels while expanding the still-wine program.
Just Drinks |
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The TTB has clarified that kombucha becomes regulated as an alcoholic beverage, and specifically as beer, if it exceeds 0.5% ABV at any point during production. The guidance sets the threshold during the making of the product, not just in the finished drink.
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Rising fuel prices tied to the Iran war are pushing up Heineken's input costs, mainly in Asia, where the brewer is more reliant on Middle East oil, Asia-Pacific president Jacco van der Linden told Bloomberg TV. Heineken is passing 70 to 80 percent of inflation on to consumers and covering the rest through productivity gains, with second-quarter volumes up 13 percent in Asia-Pacific and down 4.1 percent in the Americas.
The Business Times |
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Anheuser-Busch is investing $13 million in its Baldwinsville, New York brewery to expand Michelob Ultra production and add its Cutwater canned cocktails to the plant's output.
NNY360 |
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Anheuser-Busch InBev now calls itself the "#1 fastest-growing spirits supplier" in the US, driven by Cutwater canned cocktails, which sold about 6.5 million cases in 2025, up 61% year over year. Its "Beyond Beer" collection, including Cutwater and NÜTRL, is worth roughly $1.5 billion, about 2.5% of the company's $59.3 billion in 2025 revenue.
ainvest |
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AB InBev plans to sell smaller pack sizes and beers with added protein or electrolytes, and to push further into non-beer drinks to grow revenue as drinking habits shift.
asiantrader |
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A group of Michigan wineries has objected to Peninsula Township's bid for an interlocutory appeal in the long-running fight over hosting special events. The wineries say the township is trying to sidestep earlier rulings from a Michigan federal court and stall the case.
Law360 |
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Darden Restaurants grew total sales 5.1% to $3.2 billion in its fiscal first quarter through August, with same-restaurant sales up 3% and LongHorn Steakhouse leading the way at a 6.2% gain to $861 million. The company held its full-year outlook, guiding to 2.5% to 3.5% same-restaurant sales growth and total revenue of $13.6 billion to $13.75 billion.
Shanken News Daily |
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J.P. Morgan analyst Drew Levine kept a hold rating on Constellation Brands and lowered his price target from $165 to $133.
Futubull News |
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Gundlach Bundschu Winery, described as California's oldest continuously family-run wine producer, has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.
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Molson Coors told distributors it will take Coors 0.0 nationwide in 2027, expand the Australian nonalcohol cocktail brand Naked Life (five calories, zero sugar, $9.99) to national distributor availability, and launch a new Leinenkugel's nonalcohol drink locally, while Leinenkugel's Summer Shandy NA is rolling out now. The company cited IWSR projections that the nonalcohol beer segment will grow to $2.6 billion by 2030 from $1.4 billion in 2025.
CSP Daily News |
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Oakshire Brewing, founded in Eugene in 2006, is closing its 4,000-square-foot Eugene production brewery and its taprooms in Eugene, Portland and Springfield, citing rising costs, more competition and the financial damage of COVID. The Springfield Oakshire Commons served its last customers Sunday, Sept. 27, and the Portland Beer Hall closes after service this Wednesday, with no final date set for the Eugene Public House; CEO Jeff Althouse is selling the Eugene and Portland buildings and is open to a buyer taking over the Oakshire brand.
lookouteugene-springfield |
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French wine and spirits shares have fallen sharply on the Paris exchange in 2026, with Pernod Ricard down nearly 20% since January and Marie Brizard off more than 7%, pressured by the 15% U.S. tariff on most EU goods effective July 1, 2026, a weak Chinese cognac market, and shifting consumer habits toward moderation and no/low-alcohol options. French wine and spirits exports fell 8% to 14.3 billion euros in 2025, a third straight annual decline, per the FEVS, though Rémy Cointreau has climbed 16% year to date after a cost-cutting plan of more than 50 million euros.
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Legend Napa Valley, a custom crush winery in American Canyon, told clients in mid-August it was ceasing operations immediately, giving winemakers roughly two weeks to remove their wine, barrels, and equipment before the facility cut power and locked the gate, per the San Francisco Chronicle. Legend cited "extraordinary and sustained conditions affecting the wine industry"; the operation had sold its property last August to a JSP Domaine 3 LLC entity connected to Jackson Square Properties for $5.5 million, and clients such as John Gibson paid at least $5,000 to truck their wine to new facilities.
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Brewbound's Press Clips gathered items first reported in its Insider Newsletter on September 21-23, including news from Backswing, Outerbelt and Michelob Ultra. The roundup covered craft brewery closures alongside a new Michelob Ultra deal.
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Global travel retail wine and spirits sales reached $11.8bn in 2025, up just 1.6% year on year and still below 2018's $12.2bn, per Generation Research, leaving the category with a 15.5% channel share behind fragrances and cosmetics at 32.2%. Weak spending by outbound Chinese travellers and the US-Israel conflict with Iran, which pushed Airports Council International to cut its 2026 traffic forecast to about 10bn passengers, have compounded the stagnation, while operators including Avolta push hybrid retail-and-dining formats.
Drinks Intel |
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Calistoga Vintner Services faces foreclosure on two Calistoga wine properties tied to $46 million in debt. Wine production continues while the company works on a financial restructuring to keep the winery open.
Napa Valley Register |
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UK whisky exports climbed 5.8% in volume and 2.2% in value to £2.5 billion in H1 2026, while UK gin grew 1.3% in volume and 2.8% in value to £306.9 million, per the Food and Drink Federation's Trade Snapshot. Whisky remains the UK's top food and drink export, though total UK food and drink exports fell 3.4% to £12 billion.
The Spirits Business |
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Bacardi opened a new North America office in Coral Gables, Florida, spanning five floors and 100,000 square feet. The space serves 250 employees.
The Business Journals |
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GlenWyvis, the Dingwall Scotch whisky distillery owned by more than 2,400 community shareholders, filed a Notice of Intention to Appoint Administrators at the Court of Session in Edinburgh on 23 September 2026 after failing to secure funding, having paused production in August. Alistair McAlinden and Geoff Jacobs of Interpath Advisory are nominated as joint administrators; private cask owners will be contacted once the appointment is made.
The Spirits Business |
