Beverage Business Briefing

Stay ahead of the trends shaping the world of wine, spirits, beer, and non-alcoholic drinks. Each episode delivers a quick, insightful look at the latest developments in the beverage industry—from distributor shake-ups and retail strategies to brand launches, consumer trends, and regulatory updates. Whether you’re a retailer, supplier, or industry enthusiast, Beverage Business Briefing keeps you informed and ready to make smarter decisions in today’s fast-changing marketplace.

Beverage Business Briefing is a arts podcast hosted by Unknown Host, with 0 episodes on record and a Required Pod Score of 80. PitchCentric scores this show on Booking Probability, Listen Score, and live audience signals refreshed every 24 hours.

Unknown Host hosts Beverage Business Briefing, a arts show with 0 episodes published.

Our AI reads these to draft pitches. Use them as grounding for a pitch that cites a real guest and a specific topic.

• 

  Episode #47

  Weekly Beverage Alcohol Recap | August 14, 2026

  Aug 14, 20261h 3m

  Key themes - Clinical moderation: AUD down about 4 million people; mild cases drove the drop; Surgeon General cancer advisory, youth cohort habits, cannabis substitution, and GLP-1s in the mix - Two-speed market: depletions and inventories stabilizing, not recovering; off-premise still the bottleneck; on-premise and World Cup occasions outperforming - RNDC breakup rewriting access and credit: K1RC Kentucky LOI after Breakthru walked; Reyes 11-state deal already done; Proximo $93.92 million unsecured; WVVI and TWE credit and stock damage - Wine supply destruction: TWE nearly $1.25 billion US impairments including Daou, Frank Family, Beaulieu; Napa Cab bulk dead despite shatter; G-3, Bronco, Gallo, Courtside cuts; Pickett Fire lawsuit - RTD, NA, hemp, and energy winning mix: premixed cocktails, Athletic/Heineken 0.0/Michelob Ultra Zero, hemp parity bill, Monster energy compounding while its alcohol book shrinks - Three-tier and policy fights: CA craft-distiller DTC dying; WBA vs Diageo on type-based regulation; NC ABC cheap-SKU hike delayed; Common Cents Act; Tamarron craft SKU cuts and THC additions Notable company and brand moves - Treasury Wine Estates: dividend scrapped, Americas EBIT collapse, second writedown wave, Penfolds carrying the group, possible US exit - Willamette Valley Vineyards: loss after RNDC credit allowance; sales slightly down - Suntory / Greg Hughes: US destocking, Japanese whisky push (Toki, Hibiki, Yamazaki), -196, Oaksmith, Jim Beam/Hornitos/Canadian Club pressure, Teacher’s India, Bowmore/Laphroaig - Diageo: Dave Lewis $1 billion restructure, $514 million severance, John O’Keeffe packaging reset on Crown Royal, Smirnoff, Captain Morgan; Don Julio 1942 packs - Monster: energy +20 percent-plus; Alcohol Brands -15.2 percent; CANarchy hangover - Fulton / Bemidji / True North / Finnegans / N*RC THC waters; Tilray / Terrapin / BrewDog / Carlsberg license; Pennsylvania Brewing dismissed Ch.11 - Molson Coors Horizon 2030 conservative; Boston Beer $25 million 10b5-1; Celsius ousts Eric Hanson amid Russ Savage stake - Keg 1 / K1RC, Breakthru, Reyes, Southern Glazer’s Proof cuts, Brown-Forman Kentucky - Wonderwerk, Barons de Rothschild / MISA, Josh, La Marca, Whitehaven, Kim Crawford, High Noon, BuzzBallz, Cutwater, Surfside, Sun Cruiser, White Claw, Pacifico, Victoria, Athletic, Garage Beer / Red Robin, TGI Fridays - Sprouts expansion, Costco comps, Safeway discount lawsuit, Walmart value gap Big takeaways - Public-health numbers and commercial volumes are finally rhyming, but hemp, cannabis, energy, and GLP-1s are competing for the same occasions - Wholesaler destocking is real and constructive at the margin; consumer pantries and wine tanks are not cleared - Credit and placement risk stay elevated into late 2026 as RNDC assets trade and craft SKUs get culled - Price no longer papers over volume: wine is deflating, beer pricing power is fading, Walmart is widening the gap - Growth lanes that are actually working: imported sparkling and select wine brands, tequila añejo and unflavored vodka, premixed cocktails, NA beer, on-premise occasions, and a licensed hemp path if Congress follows through

  ListenShow Notes
• 

  Episode #46

  Weekly Beverage Alcohol Recap | August 07, 2026

  Aug 7, 202641 min

  - **Diageo reset:** ~$1B cost cuts ($850M operating model + $150M supply chain); organic sales –2% to $19.6B; NA –8.4%; US spirits –11.5%; dividend halved; guidance to low-single-digit sales / mid-single-digit OP growth; Smirnoff, Captain Morgan, Crown Royal value-pack push; Don Julio/Casamigos smaller formats; RTDs across cores; Guinness ~$1B to 2030; shares +5.6%. - **RNDC Chapter 11:** >$3B brand revenue lost; >$400M unsecured claims (~$94M Proximo largest); liabilities $1–10B vs assets $500M–$1B; 5,444+ WARN layoffs; Reyes 11-market deal (~38M cases, 16 states); Southern Glazer’s Eagle Rock Colorado close (full A-B portfolio + Cutwater/NÜTRL/BeatBox); Martignetti Michigan brokerage + Breakthru IN/KY JVs; Heimark acquiring Alford (Imperial, CA). - **Molson Coors Q2:** Revenue $3.10B –3.3%; adj EPS $1.58 beat; volumes soft; Coors Banquet strong; Blue Moon/Core Lights weak; Keystone Light Apple & Keystone Ice; Atomic/Monaco RTD integration; FY guidance reaffirmed (flat sales, profit down mid-teens). - **Off-premise scans (Circana/NIQ/TD Cowen/Goldman):** Total bev-alc under pressure; beer decisive drag; spirits + RTDs outperform; Michelob, White Claw, Pacifico, Athletic, Bell’s gain; Bud, Miller Lite, Twisted Tea, Modelo soft; World Cup on-prem beer lift. - **AB InBev / Cutwater:** Bud Light barrels sliding (12.7M est.); media shift to Michelob Ultra; Cutwater toward $1B, #1 share-gaining US spirits brand, high-ABV canned cocktails. - **Campari H1:** +2.7% organic; Espolon +8.2% H1 / #2 premium tequila; Aperol activation + later +3.3% H1 slowdown; St-Germain +40% on Hugo spritz; Courvoisier growth; portfolio exits (Cabo Wabo, Bisquit; agricole talks); tariff-refund profit outlook raise. - **MGP / Brown-Forman / bulk whiskey:** MGP sales –15%, brown goods –59%, Limestone Branch & Lux Row paused; Penelope +13%; BF Citi negative catalyst watch, rejected Sazerac ~$15B approach; Jack Daniel’s Blackberry cycle. - **Craft beer:** BA H1 volume –4%; only IPA brands growing in top 30 (Voodoo Ranger family, Hazy Little Thing, Space Dust, Little Sumpin’, etc.). - **Wine stress:** WMC leadership handoff (Thach ? Egan); Sauvignon Blanc/white blends/NA wine bright; Cab/Chard soft; Signorello $37M foreclosure auction; bulk Pinot “giveaway”; Beckstoffer layoffs/unfarmed acres; mothballing trials; Napa compliance ~$23.65/case; WA acreage –40%; Concha y Toro US transition pain; Bronco–Jordan partnership; Willamette Valley preferred offering; Come Over October ~3B impressions. - **Cannabis crossover:** SAMHSA—21.4M daily/near-daily marijuana > 17.2M daily alcohol > 19.9M cigarettes; daily cannabis +21% since 2021; Perfect Union RFID self-checkout first in CA. - **Hemp & regulatory:** White House/Senate CR delay fight (Nov 12 ? Dec 11 non-synthetic); 35 AGs oppose delay; Hemp Beverage Alliance applauds; Safe Sips Act color-coding; NC ABC min-price hike; Oregon 2028 grocery-spirits initiative; FTC–Southern Glazer’s Robinson-Patman extension; Jack Daniel’s Bad Spaniels tarnishment injunction overturned; Origin Spirits v. Starbucks (Kalak); SweetWater/Tilray logo dispute dismissed. - **Portfolio / M&A / other:** Johnson Brothers × William Grant (IN/NE/ND/SD); Corby sells Lamb’s rum; Next Century Spirits acquires Chicken Cock, Dixie, Elvis Whiskey, EG Booz + Bardstown/NuLu assets; Beckmann/Becle into LAFC ownership; Daily Pour acquires Rum Lab + Rum Festival platform; Costco traffic resilient; Bloomin’/Outback trade-up; Marie Brizard US +12% Q2; India FSSAI additive bans; wildfire watch (Sonoma Woodside, Gironde). - **Big takeaway:** RNDC unwind + daily cannabis overtaking alcohol redefine risk; near-term defense = price/mix, value packs, high-proof RTDs (Cutwater, Monaco, flavored spirits), premium tequila/aperitifs (Espolon, Aperol/St-Germain), and total-beverage distributor scale (Reyes, Southern Glazer’s). Beer scale, IPA concentration, bulk whiskey, and wine inventory/credit remain the headwinds to watch through 2H 2026.

  ListenShow Notes
• 

  Episode #45

  Weekly Beverage Alcohol Recap | July 31, 2026

  Jul 31, 202647 min

  ### Key themes - **RNDC Chapter 11** reshapes national wholesale; two-route-to-market split accelerates - **Two-speed industry:** price/premium/RTD/NA strength vs. volume, craft, and mid-tier pressure - **Wine supply destruction** in California alongside K-shaped demand - **M&A and succession:** Sazerac/Brown-Forman, Cobblestone/Campari assets, Whiting retirement - **Policy pile-up:** hemp three-tier, DtC enforcement, state pricing, Scotch tariff relief, EPR, labeling ### Major corporate & earnings - **RNDC:** Ch. 11 (S.D. Tex., July 26); $1–10B liabilities; 100k+ creditors; top-30 unsecured >$300M; Proximo $93.92M largest; DIP $75M; NDC and most JVs excluded; 5,000+ jobs preserved via prior sales (Reyes, Columbia, Martignetti, BreakThru); Quality Brands closes Plains (NE/ND/SD) - **ABI:** Strong global beat; U.S. +2.7% revenue on price/mix; Ultra, Busch Light, Busch Light Apple top share gainers; Cutwater doubles; NA beer mid-30s%; outlook 4–8% EBITDA; Sept. capital markets event - **MGP:** Sales -14.5%; EPS beat; Penelope/Yellowstone/Everclear strength; 52-brand cut; Distilling -42%; guidance reaffirmed; ex-Pernod hires; SirDavis liquid for Beyoncé - **Campari:** +2.7% H1 organic; NA +2.9%; aperitifs +4%; Wild Turkey pressure; selling **Cabo Wabo** & **Bisquit & Dubouché** to **Cobblestone** (Dennis Carr; close by Oct 31, 2026) - **Rémy Cointreau:** Cognac +7.7% organic; Louis XIII mix; group +1.3% - **Becle/Proximo:** Q2 -5.8% CC; US/Canada sequential improvement post-RNDC exit; Cuervo soft, other tequilas sturdier; FY low-single-digit decline outlook - **Brown-Forman:** Whiting retiring; search on (Masick, Farrer flagged); FY26 sales -1%, EPS -17%; FY27 flat sales / OI -3–5%; **Sazerac $15B / $32** bid rejected again (Wells + Apollo backing) - **Boston Beer:** EPS miss; depletions -6%; GM guide up; A&P/capex trim; Truly Unruly as higher-ABV bet - **Chapel Down:** H1 +19%; U.S. via Jackson Family (31 states, 250 Whole Foods) +66% intl - **LVMH W&S:** H1 +5% organic; US Hennessy still soft; VS RTS launch negligible - **TGI Fridays:** Liquidating Ch. 11 plan confirmed (~99.5% creditor approval) ### Category & consumer tape - bw166 L12M: beer -5.6%, wine -5.7%, spirits -7.4%; spirits RTDs = 28% of spirits shipments; off-prem $ +1.6%, on-prem $ +5.2%; per-LDA servings index 85.9 - NABCA June: spirits vol +4.8% (extra days); cocktails/RTDs +33.7% vol; tequila broad-based; Scotch -3%; R12 wine still deep red; on-prem spirits firm - NBWA BPI July = 51 (craft 26; premium lights 52; FMB/seltzer 55) - NIQ: post-holiday reset lower; prepared cocktails only major dollar-growth segment; domestic premium & seltzer largest $ drains; NA beer and super premium bright; home-bar inventory ~4.9 months (Evercore) - Circana craft four-week still soft; Athletic Brewing, select IPA SKUs (Voodoo Ranger, Hazy Little Thing, Space Dust, A Little Sumpin’, Pernicious) outperform; Blue Moon -10.4% - On-prem: Margarita velocity -16% but still #1; Martini +29%; RTD venues ~96k; functional +49% - IWSR: participation steady; Gen Z LDA+ up; drinks/occasion down; cocktail-led Gen Z - Conference Board CCI 90.8; RBC $84T wealth transfer thesis (helps premium spirits, hurts beer) ### Wine supply & regional - CA: ~38k acres out; 40–50k more expected; 500k+ tons unpicked; bulk ~39M gal; 2025 crush 2.62M tons (-8%+); red - **Beckstoffer:** major Lake/Mendocino pullback; holds ~1k Napa acres; 50 of 65 staff laid off - Agave experiment: ~100 growers / ~1,000 acres / 7+ CA spirit producers (UC Davis); Tohoku climate suitability shift Napa–Sonoma ? Monterey–Mendocino - **Vine Enterprises** $47M Pleasant Valley Winery reinvestment (Steuben County, NY) - **WineAmerica:** Trezise out; Kaiser day-to-day - Innovint/K-shaped: top-quartile wineries ~+11% rev; bottom ~-6%; luxury/$100+ outperforms ### Brands & products to note - Michelob Ultra / Ultra Zero, Busch Light, Busch Light Apple, Cutwater - Penelope, Yellowstone, Everclear, SirDavis - Cabo Wabo, Bisquit & Dubouché, Knappogue Castle, Clontarf - Jose Cuervo, 1800, Maestro Dobel, Bushmills, B:oost (divested) - Wild Turkey, St-Germain, Aperol, Hennessy VS RTS, Louis XIII - High Noon, Truly Unruly, Sauvy B (Gott/Trinchero) - Voodoo Ranger Imperial IPA, Sierra Nevada Hazy Little Thing, Elysian Space Dust, Lagunitas A Little Sumpin’ Sumpin’, Wicked Weed Pernicious, Blue Moon, Athletic Brewing ### Regulatory / trade / compliance watchlist - MI PA 72 (SB 604): ADA fee redesign - Lawful Hemp Protection Act (Barr/Craig) — three-tier + federal tax risk to warehouse focus - Intensified DTC stings/ID rules (AL, AK, AZ, GA, IN, KS, MI, SD, others) - Ohio retailer DtC case ? Supreme Court petition - NC ABC minimum baseline pricing (strong voter opposition in poll) - KC singles ban paused by injunction - WI brewery permit revocation (political/compliance risk) - Scotch tariff-free restored July 24 - Teamsters push Mexican beer tariff vs. Constellation 74% U.S. value claim - DISCUS/Wine Institute Oregon EPR amicus (glass vs. plastic fee disparity) - WA/OR spirits tax burden (Tax Foundation) - NY “Cheers for Change” tied-house / foot-law modernization - Public-health push for alcohol harm labeling (CDC 178k deaths cite) - SAMHSA NSDUH youth trends stable/down; JAMA prenatal alcohol use up 2011–2024 ### Big takeaways for operators 1. **Secure route-to-market and working capital now**—RNDC receivables and replacement-distributor leverage are the acute risk. 2. **Double down on what’s still earning dollars:** premium beer icons, spirits RTDs/prepared cocktails, NA beer, selective tequila second labels, aperitif culture, focused branded spirits. 3. **Wine is a barbell:** luxury and top-quartile execution versus bulk/oversupply exit; placement windows may open where RNDC doors loosened. 4. **Expect more consolidation and capital recycling** (distributor territories, non-core spirit brands, CEO succession catalysts). 5. **Budget for policy friction:** hemp capacity competition, DtC compliance cost, state pricing experiments, packaging EPR, and labeling.

  ListenShow Notes
• 

  Episode #44

  Weekly Beverage Alcohol Recap | July 24, 2026

  Jul 24, 202646 min

  **Week framed by:** Soft post-holiday off-premise demand, Brown-Forman CEO succession, Diageo cost/strategy reset, Canada/Mexico trade escalation, A-B decree expiry, RTD & NA outperformance ### Major corporate & leadership - **Brown-Forman:** CEO Lawson Whiting to retire on successor appointment; board search (chair Tracy Skeans); FY26 sales $3.9B (-1%), EPS $1.53 (-17%); FY27 flat organic sales, -3–5% organic OI; stock $26.25; Pernod talks ended Apr 28; Sazerac ~$15B /$32/sh bid rejected May; internal names Michael Masick, Marshall Farrer; Wolf Pen Branch supportive - **Diageo:** CEO Dave Lewis cutting headcount 20–30% (some units to ~40%); Accelerate $625M by 2028 / ~$300M this year; H1 OM 29.8% (+85 bps); Aug 6 CMD—power brands (Guinness, tequila), Casamigos price-pack vs Don Julio, flatter model; Chair Sir John Manzoni recruiting commercial board heavyweights; US spirits >50% EBIT; 5-yr shares roughly -50% / -49.1%; 4-wk sales -7.3%, vol -8.8%, Casamigos -10.9%, Don Julio -8.7% - **Jim Cramer:** Avoid every liquor stock; category “cold” - **Wine Market Council:** Dr. Liz Thach, MW retires Aug 5; Michelle Egan succeeds - **Apogee 21 Holdings:** LOI for Rod & Hammer (Central Coast craft distillery) after Noble Oak (from Edrington); target Q4 close - **21st Amendment / Evil Genius:** TTB offer in compromise $423,681.93 on $1.22M claim (San Leandro, 2018–2025); brand acquired Apr 2026 - **Independent Stave / Alabama Cooperage (Trinity):** Closing Sept 14, >70 jobs; Jack Daniel’s barrels; was BF asset, opened 2014 - **Flavorman:** Moonshine University closing Dec 31, 2026 (337 courses, 15k+ attendees, ~300 launches); Stave & Thief wind-down - **Concannon dispute:** Lemmons Family Vineyards vs Darcie Kent / Almost Famous; ~$966k; hearing Aug 10 ### Sales, scanners & consumers - **NIQ / Circana:** Post-July 4 snap-back then hangover; total alcohol ~$9.3B, roughly -2.6% to -3% dollars; wine worst, spirits relatively firmer when RTDs included; prepared cocktails sole major dollar-growth pocket - **Spirits mix:** Prep cocktails vol ~+19.5%; core spirits ex-RTD vol -3.4%, sales -2.4%; tequila flipped +0.5%; whiskey/vodka still weak - **Beer winners:** Pacifico, Victoria, Michelob / Ultra Zero NA, Guinness, Smirnoff FMBs, Athletic, New Belgium; NA beer +17.8%; Modelo/STZ solid; Bud Light/Budweiser/Heineken pressured - **RTD rockets:** BuzzBallz, Cutwater, Surfside, Sun Cruiser, Carbliss, Monaco; High Noon -8.4% - **Boston Beer:** Scanner vol ~-8.3% in quarter; Truly/Twisted Tea challenged; Sun Cruiser bright spot; 48–50% GM guide - **Wine:** DTC June -11% value / -16% vol; YTD value -4%, vol -15%; avg bottle $59.20 (+12.4%); Napa only major region in value growth; LaMarca, Josh, Whitehaven, Avaline strong; Deutsch +, Gallo/Wine Group -; NA wine +15.7% - **Craft BA H1:** Prod -4%; 9,344 breweries (-1.8%); 54% of breweries growing; craft drinker monthly incidence 85% (+10 pts) - **Energy:** Category firm; Monster/Ultra, Celsius/Alani Nu (+45.5%), Ghost +; Red Bull/KDP mixed - **IWSR / Gen Z:** Participation ~70%+; Gen Z 71–74% and rising; Millennials 81%; drinks/occasion 3.9 (from 4.4); Gen Z highly cocktail-oriented (84%) - **Wholesale (Census/FRED):** May beer/wine/spirits $15.381B - **Evercore beer:** 2026 vol outlook ~-2.4% (vs -5.4% in 2025); STZ/ABI share gainers; Cutwater sourcing from spirits & beer - **On-premise / NRA:** Restaurant opex +36% vs pre-pandemic (= menu +36%); wages +41%; 42% of operators unprofitable in 2025; World Cup week on-prem beer +11.5% ### Distribution & trade - **A-B DOJ consent decree:** Expired July 20, 2026—monitor, anti-punishment rules, distribution caps gone; 100–150 distributors reportedly flagged out of compliance last year - **Quality Brands / RNDC:** Closed Plains deal (NE, ND, SD); ~160 employees retained; Dave Young President W&S; Eric Malone VP Sales - **RNDC Michigan:** Conditional WARN—641 workers, five sites, Aug 17 date; potential Martignetti control-state deal unconfirmed - **Canada Section 338:** +50% duties effective Aug 19, 2026; response to provincial US alcohol bans since Mar 2025; US?Canada alcohol imports -81% ($718M?$137M); only AB & SK eased; DISCUS warns of retaliation spiral - **Teamsters / Mexican beer:** Seek tariffs up to 75% on Modelo, Corona, Pacifico, Tecate et al.; MX production +85% since 2014; ~80% of MX beer exports to US; US brewery utilization 82%?65% (2013–23); +19–23M hl MX capacity planned; USTR 301 backdrop ### Regulation, tax & legal - **Oregon EPR:** DISCUS + Wine Institute amicus (NAWD v. Feldon)—glass vs plastic fee disparity; Commerce Clause angle - **Tax Foundation:** WA effective spirits tax $36.68/gal vs median $5.98; OR $23.74 - **NY Cheers for Change:** Push to modernize 200-ft / 500-ft, multi-store, tied-house rules - **Minnesota:** “Grandparents’ Happy Hour” for nursing homes / assisted living events - **Oregon OHA:** Alcohol-as-asbestos/tobacco ads; 3,000+ alcohol deaths/yr; industry clash; Oregon Alcohol Policy Alliance supportive of OHA - **Alabama ABC:** Bailment fee 72¢?$1.00 (Oct 2025); further hike delayed pending warehouse - **WSWA:** 938 alcohol and/or hemp bills tracked in state legislatures in 2026 - **Missouri HB 1740:** Bentley Law + Melanie’s Law—child support after DWI parental death; tougher felony DWI; interlocks; 8th Bentley state - **SCOTUS:** Ken Jouppi (AK) Cessna ~$95k forfeiture case after passenger’s Budweiser six-pack toward dry village—Eighth Amendment / excessive fines - **Washington wildfires:** Chelan Hills ~10,000 acres; B&O >2,700 acres—vineyard/orchard impact assessment ongoing ### Big takeaways 1. **Holiday noise ? recovery** — dollars stabilized only modestly YoY after July 4; volume still soft outside RTD/NA/select imports 2. **Prepared cocktails & NA define growth** — core spirits, wine, and much of craft still negative 3. **Leadership & cost discipline** — Brown-Forman succession + Diageo purge signal a tougher operating era 4. **Route-to-market is shifting** — A-B decree expiry, RNDC/Martignetti/Quality Brands moves, Plains consolidation 5. **Trade risk is live** — Canada 50% duties Aug 19; Teamsters pressing 75% Mexican beer tariffs 6. **Policy grid is dense** — taxes, EPR, tied-house, DWI liability, TTB enforcement, 938 state bills 7. **Calendar markers:** Aug 6 Diageo CMD/results · Boston Beer print · Aug 10 Concannon hearing · Aug 17 RNDC WARN date · Aug 19 Canada duties · Sept 14 Alabama Cooperage close · Dec 31 Moonshine University close

  ListenShow Notes
• 

  Episode #43

  Weekly Beverage Alcohol Recap | July 17, 2026

  Jul 17, 202651 min

  **Key Themes** - Persistent off-premise softness (–2.7 to –3.1% dollars YTD/4-week ranges; volumes –3.9 to –4.9%) despite Independence Day and World Cup lifts. - Prepared cocktails/spirits-based RTDs and NA beer as primary growth engines; wine and craft under structural pressure. - Distribution shock from RNDC wind-down cascading into widespread payment delays; Reyes total-beverage rise and regional consolidations. - Escalating Canada trade friction via Tenney’s CANADA Act and Section 301 push. - Sharp wine-industry right-sizing: Top-50 production –19% since 2019, acute Napa vineyard economics, Oregon “worst crisis in 20 years,” early light California harvest. - Leadership and litigation drama: Brown-Forman CEO succession + $25.3 M compensation jump post-Sazerac reject; Uncle Nearest receivership/SEC/DOJ filings and Chapter 11 exploration. **Notable Stories & Brands** - **Trade & Policy:** CANADA Act (Tenney), endorsements (DISCUS, ACSA, AWA, Wine Institute, WineAmerica); AWA joins World Spirits Alliance; ERP amicus (DISCUS/Wine Institute); Common Cents Act; ABI/SABMiller consent decree expiration; SNAP bans & June 22 ruling; Oregon carcinogen post pushback; Washington/Oregon spirits taxes; NY “Cheers for Change”; Madison phishing; hemp legality cliff. - **Corporate Moves:** Lawson Whiting retirement/search (Brown-Forman; possible Masick/Farrer); Sazerac $15 B reject, Pernod talks ended; Rémy Cointreau flat Q1; Quality Brands/RNDC Plains (Young, Malone); Pellenc acq of P&L Specialties + Tom Beard; Firestone Walker/Stone; No Sleep’s The 100 Proof agency; Coca-Cola fairlife ransomware suspension. - **Sales & Format Wins:** Cutwater, Surfside, Sun Cruiser, BuzzBallz, Super Lyte, Athletic, Asahi, New Belgium, Pacifico, Victoria, Peroni, Michelob, Modelo flips, NA beer, Josh, LaMarca; A-B prepared +33.7%; Hemp +133% case volume (Hemp Beverage Alliance). - **Wine Pressure & Green Shoots:** Gallo/Wine Group/Trinchero/Delicato/Deutsch/TWE/Ste. Michelle/Constellation metrics; Ted Hall/Long Meadow, Allied Grape Growers unharvested acres; Eleven Eleven (Anest) club metrics & flexible sub; Empson additions (Kirwan, Malescasse, Franc Mayne, de la Chapelle, Gérin & Fils); Liv-ex US fine-wine re-engagement (26.9% share); Kroger Wine Shop rollout; on-prem 6× markups & Colangelo/Southern Glazer’s/WMC data; Oregon/Wine Board/Stoller crisis; early Santa Rita Hills/Santa Barbara picks. - **Spirits & Risk:** Uncle Nearest (Young counterclaim “willful blindness,” Senzaki alleged fraud, Weaver terminations, $20 M MarcyPen, potential Ch. 11 Black-led sale); LIV Vodka vs LIV Golf; Diageo Casamigos/Don Julio declines + additive suit; Brown-Forman Canada/Jack Daniel’s –60%; celebrity cooling vs estate brands (James Dean/Lasso Motel, Remus Babe Ruth/Lou Gehrig, Sinatra, Elvis, John Wayne). - **Consumer:** IWSR Gen Z participation rebound to 74% (U.S. ~71%); drinks/occasion to 3.9; Millennials still highest. **Big Takeaways** - Volume moderation and value architecture are structural; participation (especially Gen Z cocktails) is recovering. - Three-tier cash-flow stability and trade access now rank alongside brand innovation as top-of-mind risks. - Scale, smart-value mid-premium, flexible DTC, RTD/NA/hemp adjacency, and authentic provenance are the clearest differentiators for the balance of 2026. - Operators who treat connection, pricing realism and operational discipline as strategy continue to outperform.

  ListenShow Notes

Recent guests on Beverage Business Briefing. Study who booked and why before you pitch.

Based on semantic analysis of episode topics and host coverage, this show is a strong guest fit for executives in:

Industry fit is computed by PitchCentric using vector embeddings of the show's episode catalog.