Building on nutritional legacy of legendary antiestablishment comic Dick Gregory, who was early advocate of nutrient-dense food, a team of entrepreneurs that includes one of his sons is offering a canned brand called 3E that they like to describe as a nutritional bev disguised as an energy drink. Packed in 12-oz slim cans, "consciously caffeinated" entry offers moderate boost of 96 mg of caffeine from green coffee, yerba mate and guarana, melded with robust dosages of 8 essential vitamins and minerals. A sweetener blend of cane sugar and erythritol (and a tiny bit of stevia and monk fruit) aim to offer lusher mouthfeel and help moderate the caffeine effect. Each can comes in 9 g of sugar and 50 calories. Line is out in Spicy Lemon Lime, Strawberry Grapefruit, Pomegranate Blueberry and Grape Cherry flavors with 3 more ready to go at right time. The 3 E's referenced in name are "essential energy enhancer," tho that's not emphasized in marketing. Currently 3E is a coldfill item but team is working to get preservatives out of it so as to open doors to natural channel. New line has been edging into Southern Calif and Portland, Ore, via Tenace incubation system, with Central Market in Texas soon coming aboard too, said coo Mark Bair, bev vet recruited to orchestrate buildout. After self-funding effort thru years of development, the partners are going out with modest friends & family round to tune of $500K while laying foundation for seed round somewhere in broad $2-5 mil range.

Join us for the 2023 Beer INSIGHTS Spring Conference at the Four Seasons, Chicago, including an evening welcome reception on May 17 and a full day of programming May 18. So far, our program will include: Mark Anthony Brands new chief commercial officer David Barnett, IRI Worldwide exec veep Scott Scanlon, Stone Brewing ceo Maria Stipp, Allagash Brewing director of sales Naomi Neville. You'll also hear an up-to-the minute presentation chock full of data and analysis from Beer Marketer's INSIGHTS prexy Benj Steinman. Lots more speakers will be joining the program. Join us for a jam-packed day of insightful presentations, candid conversations and plenty of networking opportunities. Sign up now for the early bird discount!

We said more would be coming, but we didn't expect it to be this quick. Following yesterday's statement from Beer Institute praising ND's rejection of bill to lower tax rates on RTD spirits, DISCUS applauded intro of "commonsense" bill in Arizona to provide those products with "fairer tax treatment." AZ is "one of many states taking a closer look at this issue," org wrote, so this game of dueling press releases could last a while.

While "encouraged" by MC's 2-yr run of "healthy org[anic] sales growth…we are not convinced that TAP can deliver longer-term sustainable organic top line growth" amid "its structurally challenged segment and geographic exposure," wrote Morgan Stanley analyst Eric Serotta, initiating coverage. These past 2 yrs were buoyed by "recovery tailwinds" from Covid and "well above-trend pricing with low demand elasticity," he wrote. And despite improving mkt share trends, TAP volume "remain[s] under pressure," and mainstream and economy segments still made up 82% of US volume and 85% of US sales in tracked channels last year.

Another round of brewery closings hit the wires this week. But another round of brewers in OR took the oppy to expand to new locations too.

Steelbound Brewery & Distillery continues to make pretty aggressive and outsized expansion plans in upstate NY since opening in 2018. Co plans to make a $17 mil investment for a collection of new additions, including owner William Bursee proposing a $10 mil Steelbound Hotel and Conference Center in Ellicottville, NY, reported Olean Times Herald. The hotel & conference center would have a whopping "78 rooms and banquet facilities for 400 people," and would be "connected to the restaurant and bar at the existing" brewery by a 3K-ft skybridge "including an open concept kitchen and dining room" with views of the area's ski mountain.

CT's Stony Creek Brewery was just approved by its hometown of Branford to add several new tanks to double its annual brewing capacity to 100K bbls, co shared. "New partnerships, collaborations and changing trends in the beverage industry led Stony Creek Brewery to position itself for future growth," it stated. Moving from 48K bbls/yr to 100K bbls/yr will allow for "greater options in both volume and package types for other brewers from around the country," co wrote, acknowledging expansion into contract production. Between Two Roads, Athletic and Stony Creek, there's some sizable craft production comin' outta CT these days. This is the latest big move for Stony Creek since hiring AB vet Dan Shannon as co's new CEO in Apr 2022 (see Apr 12 issue). Stony Creek's brand is distributed thruout CT, ME, MA, NH, NY, RI and VT, per release. It shipped just 15K bbls back in 2021, according to Brewers Assn stats.

After Carlsberg bought Brooklyn Beer's international brand rights in Europe and parts of Asia for ~$130 mil in 2020 (see Feb 9, 2021 issue), Brooklyn volumes were up 42% in those mkts last yr, Carlsberg wrote in full-yr report. The brand is "progressing very well…supported by strong growth in most markets in Western Europe." It got specific shout outs for its growth in Denmark, Norway and France, plus positive initial signs from launch of Brooklyn Pilsner in the UK and Poland.