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USA | For years, when someone asked Samuel Adams founder Jim Koch what his succession plan was, he would quip: “Don’t die”. However, on 25 December, Mr Koch, 75, disclosed to the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) that his wife, healthcare entrepreneur Cynthia Fisher, 63, who sits on the company’s board, will inherit his controlling interest worth more than USD 650 million.
USA | Has Anheuser-Busch suddenly found a new best friend? Or why would it contract brew for rival Pabst? On 2 January, Pabst Brewing entered into a contract brewing agreement with AB-InBev, starting in the first quarter of 2025.
USA | Perfect timing. Even before a committee report on alcohol guidelines is out, America’s Surgeon General has called for cancer warnings on alcoholic beverages, following new research that links alcohol to seven types of cancer. However, Congress must pass a law before any of the Surgeon General’s recommendations could become law.
USA | British spirits firm Diageo is allegedly seeking a buyer for Cîroc Vodka, the brand formerly co-owned by the now disgraced music mogul Sean “Diddy” Combs. According to Bloomberg, on 19 December, Diageo is currently sussing out if there is any interest from beverage companies and buyout firms. Bloomberg added that the considerations “may not lead to a transaction”.
USA | On 30 December 2024, the US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit unanimously affirmed Stone Brewing’s USD 56 million jury verdict, now worth over USD 60 million. The verdict is the fourth largest in US history and one of the longest running trademark infringement disputes ever – almost seven years now (from February 2018, when Stone filed its suit, to December 2024).
USA | As 2024 comes to a close, the Brewers Association (BA) looks back at a year marked by a decrease in sales and diminished offerings. In the BA’s midyear survey, craft beer saw a 2 percent decline in production, which was steeper than in the full year 2023 (-1 percent). In the second half of this year, beer sales continued to slow down, suggesting a full-year number that may be weaker than the midyear estimate.
USA | Just when we thought that Molson Coors had exited craft beer for good by selling its remaining craft breweries to Tilray, Molson Coors is back in the game. At the end of November, it acquired the Chicago-based brewery Cruz Blanca. Financial details were not disclosed.
USA | The announcement that AB-InBev will close Elysian’s production brewery in Seattle, effective 31 December, led to a lively debate over AB-InBev’s motives. Some observers speculated that it was the decision by a group of 30 workers at the facility to join the Teamsters union in August 2023, which mightily displeased its owner. When the workers decided to go on strike in October over protracted contract negotiations, AB-InBev retaliated by shuttering the brewery. The insinuation does not stand up to reason. Thousands of AB-InBev’s workers in the US are unionised.
USA | What has become of Stone, whose founder, Greg Koch, several years ago built a brewery in Berlin to preach German punters the gospel of craft beer? Both Koch and the Berlin brewery are gone. In fact, as of January 2025, Stone from San Diego will be a domestic business only. Various websites reported in November that, come January, the craft beer pioneer will be pulling out of all 50 of its export markets and its gargoyle logo will disappear from foreign stores.
USA | Considering that Heineken said in 2019 it would invest USD 50 million each year on marketing Heineken 0.0, it is a big victory for US craft brewer Athletic that this year it overtook Heineken 0.0 as the best-selling non-alcoholic beer in America. Not enough, at the supermarket chain Wholefoods it has become the top-selling beer overall.
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BRAUWELT on tour
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BRAUWELT on tour
