It's been a hot minute since we've caught up with National Beer Wholesaler's Association chief Craig Purser. And as we slide into springtime, our thoughts naturally turn to the upcoming NBWA Legislative Conference, which after a hiatus of two years returns to Washington DC in early April, and we have much to talk about.

In the meantime, Craig and I spoke about equivalency, Treasury's report on competition in the beer industry, franchise law, consolidation, blurring of lines, and more. 

Harry is joined by Craig and editor Jordan Driggers.  

Show starts in earnest:  04:00

---time-stamped contents---

00:00 Intro - hilarious banter, technical difficulties, circling back pod, beernet power 20, etc. 

04:00 SHOW STARTS: Craig Purser of NBWA joins the call. 

05:00 consolidation, successor suppliers, what it means. 

08:20 on stz/mnst combo.

09:00 non-alc and alc merger implications.

10:50 grokking treasury report on competition: incomplete, inaccurate, work-in-progress.

13:00 positive parts of report.

13:40 remembering faa act.

18:15 grokking pepsico's entrance as a beer distributor. 

23:00 grokking discus' intentions.  tax breaks go both ways. 

26:15 not dogging canned cocktails themselves.

27:00 balancing needs of distribs' of different sizes/strategies. sticking together. 

31:00 everybody wants to be on beer distribs' trucks. 

32:50 walking through nbwa legislative conference schedule, april 3-6. 

34:25 importance of "tending to the fires of regular beer."

35:60 attracting and retaining workforce.

---About---

Beer Business Daily publisher Harry Schuhmacher joins his editors and other guests once or twice a week as they grok the industry issues of the day.  

-Podcast Hotline: Text or call Harry in confidence at:‪ (262) 345-2501‬

-Audio/Video feeds at https://linktr.ee/beernet

-Articles referenced at beernet.com

-Twitter / IG / TikTok:  @beerbizdaily

Annika Sörenstam, the Swedish professional golfer who has won 90 international tournaments making her the female golfer with the most wins to her name, is introducing a new honey-sweetened hard seltzer Fizzy Beez, spirit-based canned cocktails in the old standby flavors:  marg, cosmo, mule, and mojito. 

Today Annika joins the gang as we talk about how she came up with the product, rollout out with Superior in Cincy, expansion plans, how she's cool with the antics at the WM Phoenix Open, and more. 

Show starts in earnest:  00:50

---time-stamped contents---

00:00 Intro - hilarious banter, technical difficulties. 

00:50 Annika Sörenstam of Fizzy Beez joins the show.

04:20 soft launch with superior in ohio. 

05:20 expansion plans beyond ohio.

06:20 golfing lifestyle, classic cocktails on the go. 

07:20 decision to go liquor-based rather than malt or wine-based. 

08:40 calorie count vs. full flavor classic cocktail, natural honey sweetener.

10:10 flavoring the product and canning fizzy bees. 

11:00 the superior bev connection. 

11:45 annika's take on the waste management pheonix open shenanigans. 

13:00 challenges of tackling new industry, "we're having fun along the way."

14:00 plenty of testers, worker beez. 

14:35 learning the rules. 

14:50 running down the flavors:  marg, cosmo, mule, mojito.

15:00 grokking the demographic: hits a lot of checkboxes.

17:50 more on expansion.

18:20 fizzy beez promise:  giving back to the bees. 

---About---

Beer Business Daily publisher Harry Schuhmacher joins his editors and other guests once or twice a week as they grok the industry issues of the day.  

-Podcast Hotline: Text or call Harry in confidence at:‪ (262) 345-2501‬

-Audio/Video feeds at https://linktr.ee/beernet

-Articles referenced at beernet.com

-Twitter / IG / TikTok:  @beerbizdaily

Today the gang meets Jeana Harrigton, ceo of Austin-based Mighty Swell Spiked Seltzers, on their new variety pack -- Keep it Weird -- and their growth plans, new funding, how they choose flavors/names, why tigers are hot this year, and more.  

Harry is already in San Diego for the Summit pre-gaming, and is joined by editors Jenn Litz-Kirk and Jordan Driggers who are still back at home grinding.

Show Starts in earnest:  03:15

---time-stamped contents---

00:00 intro - hilarious banter but no technical difficulties.  the gang compares how lit their shoe game will be for the summits. 

03:15 SHOW STARTS:  introducing Jeana Harrington of Mighty Swell Spiked Seltzer - backstory. 

04:40 expanding nationally, keep it weird variety pack. 

05:20 markets - starting with austin. 

06:50 region by region rollout, avoided huge metros at first. 

07:50 jeana one of the original employees -ceo since august.   

09:00 creating proffessional organization -  fighting supply chain issues to get product out on time. 

09:45 doing about $20m in sales, keeping it weird incremental.  ability to make all the product they need.

10:30 jenn shows off packaging. 

11:00 mighty swell differentiating flavors and creative names - leading innovator, no replication. 

13:10 how to keep new flavors incremental - regional focus. 

14:30 walking through the new keep it weird variety pack flavor names and flavors. 

17:35 no color added at this time. 

18:10 non-alc style nutrition panels on mighty swell.

19:00 how powerful a calling card is austin? 

21:10 mighty swell's capital structure. 

22:00 harry may be invited to launch party in march - keepin' it weird.

---About---

Beer Business Daily publisher Harry Schuhmacher joins his editors and other guests once or twice a week as they grok the industry issues of the day.  

-Podcast Hotline: Text or call Harry in confidence at:‪ (262) 345-2501‬

-Audio/Video feeds at https://linktr.ee/beernet

-Articles referenced at beernet.com

-Twitter / IG / TikTok:  @beerbizdaily

Today we speak with Rob Bratskeir, managing director of a new subsidiary of longtime PR firm 360PR+,  a dedicated beverage alcohol-focused firm called Three Cheers PR, which launches today with Drizly and Sagamore Spirits. 

Join Harry, editors Jenn Litz-Kirk and Jordan Driggers, as we speak with Rob about some of the best practices and challenges of integrating PR into your marketing mix. 

Show Starts in earnest:  10:00

---time-stamped contents---

00:00 Intro - hilarious banter, technical difficulties, a long boring discussion of health issues and doctors, dog gets a shock collar for xmas (for her own good of course), etc. (may wanna skip first 10 min this time).

10:00 SHOW STARTS: Introducing Rob Bratskeir of 360PR+ and now a new dedicated bev-alc only pr firm, three cheers. 

11:00 backstory of rob, 360PR+ and three cheers, from boston to nyc. 

13:00 why break off with new bev-alc specific agency?

15:00 pr not just for consumers, but faced toward distribs and retailers.  how  different is bev-alc than cpg? start with consumer and go backwards. 

17:40 who is doing it well? maryland's sagamore spirits.

22:00 working with drizly: starting from scratch 5yrs ago to today. 

24:00 leveraging drizly's the sales data. 

25:00 the importance of marketing/pr in crowded marketplace. 

25:30 tequila and rye. 

27:10 ++amusing anecdote alert++ 

30:00 wrapping up.

---About---

Beer Business Daily publisher Harry Schuhmacher joins his editors and other guests once or twice a week as they grok the industry issues of the day.  

-Podcast Hotline: Text or call Harry in confidence at:‪ (262) 345-2501‬

-Audio/Video feeds at https://linktr.ee/beernet

-Articles referenced at beernet.com

-Twitter / IG / TikTok:  @beerbizdaily

Today Harry finally meets the Convict, of Kings & Convicts fame, Aussy Brendan Watters, where we dig into Brendan's strategy of expanding through opportunity,  the Ballast Point acquisition, the more recent Saint Archer facility acquisition, and more.

Harry is joined by editors Jenn Litz-Kirk and Jordan Driggers.

Show starts in earnest: 06:50

---time-stamped contents---

00:00 intro - lotsa hilarious banter, technical difficulties, biscuit has a hangover, harry wraps up long three minute anecdote (first of 2). 

03:40 jenn shows off her new "jenn's jams" neon. 

06:30 editors:  early grokking of molson coors deal with coke to make canned hard versions simply juice.

06:50 more twisted tea or more hard mtn dew?

12:00 GUEST JOINS:  Brendan Watters joins the show and describes how he and his partner got started in the beer business.

17:20 brendan describes how the ballast point numbers got cauterwanky due to pipe-fill and contraction ... margins matter.

18:00 profitable retrenchment on west coast. 

22:15 why st. archer purchase? and how to fill all that capacity? "there is a plan". brendan walks us through the economics and realities of tank sizes and packaging capabilities. 

26:00 any possibility of brand acquisitions, partnerships?  yes, and beyond beer.  building a platform. 

27:00 but not just a "collection" of brands -- gotta make cohesive sense. 

27:15 also, don't want to be "culture change agents".

27:45 more on st. archer purchase. 

28:45 will more big brewers sell the craft purchases they made years ago? big co's need focus, so likely. 

31:40 how they dealt with transition issues for the bp brands, janky pricing, particularly sculpin.  retraction west. 

34:50 who is bp's main competition in cali?

36:00 harry bubbles pitch goes sour. 

---About---

Beer Business Daily publisher Harry Schuhmacher joins his editors and other guests once or twice a week as they grok the industry issues of the day.  

-Podcast Hotline: Text or call Harry in confidence at:‪ (262) 345-2501‬

-Audio/Video feeds at https://linktr.ee/beernet

-Articles referenced at beernet.com

-Twitter / IG / TikTok:  @beerbizdaily

Today we speak with Bill Moses, the founder and CEO of Fermented Sciences, maker of Flying Embers hard kombucha - (he was also the co-founder of non-alc probiotic brand Kevita, which was sold to PepsiCo in 2016 for ~$250 mil), and chief growth officer Liz Tomic to discuss the fast-growing hard kombucha and the difference between scaling a non-alc vs alc brands, the recent Beam investment, following the consumer's needs for clean ingredients and transparency, and more. 

Harry is joined by editors Jenn Litz-Kirk and Jordan Driggers. 

Show starts at 08:00

---time-stamped contents---

00:00 Intro - the usual technical difficulties - but moreso today, hilarious banter. 

03:00 jenn shows off her new neon introducing a new segment, jenn's jams.

07:20 the big reveal of new neon.

08:00 SHOW STARTS:  Bill Moses joins the podcast, the party starts. 

08:30 bill: underestimated the "amount of touch" needed in alc compared to non-alc.  more strategies to manage wholesalers and retailers.  "gotta forward spend."

10:15 chief growth officer Liz Tomic joins the call. 

11:00 why beam for investment?  chemistry important. 

12:45 could lead to something more perhaps. 

13:35 portfolio breakdown and new product testing - all about premiumization, ingredients and transparency. 

18:30 sales vs marketing mix spend (including taprooms in that mix, "beacons of the brand"). 

20:45 liz comes from a-b's zx ventures, transitioning to a more entrepreneurial culture. 

23:10 booch vs seltzer, not comparable.  more comparable to craft. 

25:20 grokking dtc space. 

26:10 wholesaler mix: reyes, sheehan, hand, ben e. keith, columbia, etc.

27:00 flying embers expansion beyond west coast. 

28:30 hard booch competition expanding fast. 

30:00 hard booch is starting point for more to come in adjacent categories. 

---About---

Beer Business Daily publisher Harry Schuhmacher joins his editors and other guests once or twice a week as they grok the industry issues of the day.  

-Podcast Hotline: Text or call Harry in confidence at:‪ (262) 345-2501‬

-Audio/Video feeds at https://linktr.ee/beernet

-Articles referenced at beernet.com

-Twitter / IG / TikTok:  @beerbizdaily

Today all of the BeerNet Radio editors join the show to grok the Monster / CANArchy deal, what it signifies around the industry, and more.  

---time-stamped contents---

00:00 intro - hilarious banter. waiting on jordan.  the usual technical difficulties. 

03:20 grokking MONArchy, monster's acq. of cananarchy. 

04:15 the cheap valuation. 

05:20 opens the door to give bev-alc a shot, not about growing craft. 

06:25 distribs wondering the why. 

06:30 buying optionality. 

07:10 pepsi blue cloud, what's coke's move?

07:40 is this a monster hedge against coke.

08:00 really about distribution. 

09:05 succession?

10:00 fmr monster beer distribs thots. 

10:30 end-game? race for distributor cold box dominance.

12:30 cold shelf space ain't growing. getting assortment right crucial. 

13:30 godsend to craft brewers. 

14:00 this msnt deal about national presence. 

15:00 talking w&s deals: major brands to breakthru. 

16:17 grokking writz, bt, mb deal. 

17:30 grokking our wsd and bbd 2022 predictions. 

18:40 jenn wants bylining predictions. 

19:00 lots of inside baseball talk.

23:00 grokking equiv efforts. 

---About---

Beer Business Daily publisher Harry Schuhmacher joins his editors and other guests once or twice a week as they grok the industry issues of the day.  

-Podcast Hotline: Text or call Harry in confidence at:‪ (262) 345-2501‬

-Audio/Video feeds at https://linktr.ee/beernet

-Articles referenced at beernet.com

-Twitter / IG / TikTok:  @beerbizdaily

Today we are joined by Justin Fisch of U.S. Beverage and Jeremy Ragonese of Uinta Brewing to talk about the recent acquisition.  

---table of contents---

00:00 Intro - new intro music, new pod, new you, new us. 

01:45 - Justin Fisch of US Beverage joins the call, announcing acquisition of Uinta Brewing. 

02:40 why now?

04:25 Jeremy Ragonese of Uinta joins. production brewer joins marketing company -- "marriage of complimentary strengths." 

07:00 in talks for about a year. 

07:30 uinta focusing on western market, retrench, cash-flow positive.

09:00 analyzing business, most likely distrib changes but not jumping into that immediately.  next 90 days looking at network. 

10:10 us bev brings distrib/retail relationships and diverse portfolio to table, and do uinta mountains go east-west?

13:00 managing expansion and distribs through portfolio management at market level. 

14:35 days of expanding to 48 states overnight are over, "that window has closed."

15:00 hyper-local had its day. now distribs/retailers looking for reliability. 

17:00 salt lake perf located to supply west, mountain, and midwest. 

19:00 uinta retrenched to the west, what are expansion plans? no mad rush, but door is open. 

21:00 short vs long-term planning. 

21:30 financial arrangement.  

22:30 us bev is a buyer "down the road" in craft beer space. 

23:15 usb/uinta as a bev platform. 

24:00 the importance of scale today. 

25:15 any beyond beer aspirations? (spoiler alert: yes). 

30:00 cost challenges for smaller craft is going to be tough. 

33:00 messages of hope and optimism. ---About---

Beer Business Daily publisher Harry Schuhmacher joins his editors and other guests once or twice a week as they grok the industry issues of the day.  

-Podcast Hotline: Text or call Harry in confidence at:‪ (262) 345-2501‬

-Audio/Video feeds at https://linktr.ee/beernet

-Articles referenced at beernet.com

-Twitter / IG / TikTok:  @beerbizdaily

In the latest in our up-and-comers series, meet Zeke Bronfman, a fourth-generation entrepreneur in the bev-alc industry hailing from the Seagrams (yes, that Bronfman) to talk about their platform and their line of seltzers, SESH.  

Zeke is the co-founder and CEO of XED Beverage Co., and is joined by BBD publisher Harry Schuhmacher for a chat to close out the year

---time-stamped contents----

00:00 Intro - hilarious banter. Introducing Zeke. 

01:00 zeke relates origin story with college roommate. 

04:00 challenge of launching during pandemic, and windy. 

05:20 launching sesh. 

07:10 distribution strategy. 

08:40 post-pan sampling oppys. 

09:30 sesh product stats. 

11:00 expansion states in '22.

13:00 built infrastructure for celebrity brands and wider portfolio.---About---

Beer Business Daily publisher Harry Schuhmacher joins his editors and other guests once or twice a week as they grok the industry issues of the day.  

-Podcast Hotline: Text or call Harry in confidence at:‪ (262) 345-2501‬

-Audio/Video feeds at https://linktr.ee/beernet

-Articles referenced at beernet.com

-Twitter / IG / TikTok:  @beerbizdaily

In the latest in our Fresh Faces series, today we meet serial cannabis entrepreneur Jake Hill, who not only produces a myriad thc/cbd/hemp products, but also markets a CBD Delta-8 seltzer here in Texas (and a plant-growing automation system). 

Jake joins Harry and beer editor Jordan Driggers as we explore this nascent and adjacent industry.  

Ed. Note:  The internet connection was not ideal -- apologies for the audio occasionally cutting out. 

---- time-stamped contents ----

00:00 Intro - hilarious banter, introducing Jake Hill. 

03:30 describing the different types of cannabis products (cbd, hemp, thc, turpines, delta-8, etc.). 

04:20 how hemp-derived delta-8 became legal in texas.

05:20 the federal financial drag. 

07:10 Oregon vs Texas businesses. 

08:30 leaning into cbd bevs. 

10:00 scaling and managing inventory. 

10:50 smokable pre-rolled hemp cbd cigs. 

11:25 jake also runs automation for larger growers. 

11:40 big co. playbook features drinks, higher production barriers to entry vs flower/tincture. 

12:20 heavy relative to how much cbd/thc you get, but unique. 

13:50 jake breaks down the math and relative of cbd bevs vs tinctures. 

16:30 canna-bevs in oregon vs texas. 

18:30 huge demand for thc bevs. always sold out. 

20:00 grokking the brand cann.  

20:20 cali tough market. 

22:00 lots of big cos losing money.

23:00 grokking valuations.

24:00 pharma/med cos getting into it, standardizing processes.

25:30 importance of branding. 

26:45 companies mastering different components: cookie in retail. 

27:40 huge carbon footprint challenge of indoor growing. 

28:20 jake walks us through differences in indoor vs outdoor growing. 

29:00 some will grow massive amounts outdoor for pure thc. 

32:00 jake shares how their automated AI growing system works. (vid important here). 

36:40 managing growth of plants and matching with demand. 

38:50 climate change, environment, farmers aging out, other challenges. 

40:00 wonderful world of hermaphroditing plants. one male plant ruins the room. 

42:00 cannabis industry AI-driven grow tech can be used for food production. 

44:00 staying ahead of the curve on managing energy consumption. 

47:45 biggest challenge: legislators making laws that allow black market to thrive, and make it hard for legit co's to make a profit.  why put daily limits on legal taxed sales, for example?

---About---

Beer Business Daily publisher Harry Schuhmacher joins his editors and other guests once or twice a week as they grok the industry issues of the day.  

-Podcast Hotline: Text or call Harry in confidence at:‪ (262) 345-2501‬

-Audio/Video feeds at HarrysPod.com

-Articles referenced at beernet.com

-Twitter / IG / TikTok:  @beerbizdaily