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NA beer biz has been churning cauldron of activity as brands, celebrity-driven and otherwise, that are challenging big global players and indie leader Athletic seek to carve out mindshare in increasingly cluttered category that still reps mere 1% or so of total US beer biz. Here's recent activity on 4 players we've been tracking: Working Octopi Partnership, RationAle in Midst of Bridge Round with Series A to Follow in '26 After setting partnership with Asahi-owned Octupi in Wis, San Diego's RationAle has undertaken bridge raise of undisclosed magnitude to support continued expansion even as it sets stage for Series A to follow in Q2, co announced. Recall it had concluded seed round a year ago (BBI, Jul 25 2024). Octupi partnership will allow RationAle, founded in 2021, "to scale exponentially, unlocking the capacity for millions of cases annually and positioning the brand to meet surging national demand" as it prepares for the Series A. In what augurs well for bigger raise, founder/CEO Jamie Fay cited "an unprecedented level of investor interest as we close this bridge round."Co took opportunity to herald key additions to its leadership team. Olipop investor/advisor Phil Trowler, who'd served in interim CFO role there for a year or two, has come aboard in same role at RationAle, after earlier career spent largely at betting-oriented cos like FanDuel and Daily Form (good prep for bevs, we think). New Belgium and Firestone Walker vet Dave Macon is running sales, as we'd earlier reported (BBI, Sep 15). New Belgium, Modern Times and Karl Strauss brewing vet Jennifer Briggs is chairing advisory board. Working with 3 Tier Bevs in sales advisory role, RationAle is prepping expansion thru Midwest and South. As our sibling newsletter Craft Brew News reported earlier this fall, RationAle reported 3.3K bbls produced to Brewers Assn last yr and hopes to expand production by 10X to get to 1 mil cases/yr under the Octopi arrangement.John Mulaney's Years Beer Touts Midwest Feel in National TV Ad SNL vet and noted teetotaler John Mulaney is an investor in, and the face of, Years NA Beer, which just put him at center of national ad, reports People.com. The 30-second spot features a visibly relaxed Mulaney extolling the "Chicago/Michigan/Wisconsin type feel" of the brand offered in Pilsner, Pale Ale and Belgian Wit versions. The ad was created by creative team behind Chicago's Pilot Project, which began producing Years in 2024, after which Chicago native Mulaney came aboard. "It's very personal. The look of the can, the sweatshirts, the ads &mdash; it's all designed by a tightknit group who really believe in this," he said. Years is currently distributed in Midwest, on West Coast and in Texas.Bero Lands Another Upscale Partner via 3-Year Tie to Aston Martin Across the pond, Spider-Man actor Tom Holland's Bero brand has reached a 3-yr deal to become the official alcohol-free beer partner of Aston Martin, the upscale auto manufacturer announced. Details were vague, with the companies merely promising that "the partnership will see Bero become a prominent feature across core elements of the Aston Martin brand, including collaborative content and global events." Aston Martin is known for its prominent role in the James Bond franchise, which just happens to be recasting its namesake character while looking for someone Holland's age, but he lags far behind actors Callum Turner and Harris Dickinson, among others, in online betting odds to land the role. Still, for NA brand that's trying to carve out a superpremium pricing tier it's logical brand to partner with. Bero has worked Wimbledon and other elite events to cement notion that it's a cut above, in segment where some consumers have difficulty wrapping heads around concept of paying more for beer that's minus the alcohol.Go Brewing Extends Partnership with Hydrox Naperville, Ill-based Go Brewing has extended its 3-yr partnership with fast-growing fitness sports league Hydrox thru 2026, co announced. The deal "includes providing co-branded Hydrox Go Water to all competing athletes at a custom-built finish line bar, and marks the second full year of Go Brewing&#39;s signature 'Beer Mile&#39;ish' activation, an interactive competition within the competition for Hydrox athletes and spectators." Go Brewing was founded in 2022, exploded from 2.5K bbls reported to BA in 2023 to 10K last yr and is available in 32 states. Hydrox has been on similar growth tear, tripling from 175K participants in 2023 to over 500K in 2024, with projections to hit 1.3 mil globally in 2025-26 season. Slate will include 11 major events across US including brand's key market of Chicago.

NA BEER ROUNDUP: RationAle Undertakes Bridge Round, Makes Key Hires + Years, Bero, Go

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