Trade News

→ Welcome Western Sons Distillery to our Heidelberg Spirits Marketing Group (high proof division). Team Heidelberg represents the Distillery’s Vodka and Prickly Pear Vodka for Ohio retailers.

→ Beer continues to be the alcoholic beverage U.S. drinkers say they drink most often. The latest results are from Gallup’s July Consumption Habits Survey based on telephone interviews with adults. 38 percent say they drink beer most often, 30 percent are drinking wine most often, and 29 percent say liquor.

→ “The Summer of Seltzer” continued with the August launch of Natty Seltzer from Natural Light. It comes in Aloha Beaches (mango and peach) and Catalina Lime Mixer (black cherry and lime), both at 6% ABV.According to Nielsen research, sales of Hard Seltzer grew 169% in 2019 over 2018 in the U.S.

→ Anheuser-Busch recently announced that they’ve purchased Ohio’s Platform Beer Co. for their Brewers Collective, which is now roughly 12 craft beer partners. Platform is known for innovation (they make about 200 different beers per year) and made the Brewers Association’s 2017 list of fastest-growing breweries. They have four operations in Ohio: Two Cleveland-based facilities, including a flagship Cleveland tasting room as well as a 60-barrel brewhouse; a distribution center and warehouse “room” in Columbus; and a tasting room and coffee shop, dubbed “LOCOBA,” in Cincinnati.

According to Craft BusinessDaily, Anheuser-Busch InBev’s ZX Ventures has added another company to its global portfolio of craft brewers, bringing the total to over a dozen craft brands in their portfolio. The latest to come into the mix is Barbarian, a 10-year-old craft brewer from Peru. ABI already has a firm grip on the Peru beer market with their Backus brand controlling nearly 80% of the market, but it’s struggled to enter into the country’s craft segment.