Louis S. "Tom" Gimbel III, who first joined his family's S.S. Steiner Inc hop supply biz back in 1950s (now Hopsteiner) passed away Sep 26 at age 93. Tom a graduate of Yale, joined co after serving in US Air Force and was running co by late 1960s along with his younger brother Stinor, who he later bought out to run it on his own, noted Oct 25 obituary in Wall Street Journal. In turning Hopsteiner into one of the largest hop growers, buyers and producers globally, early on Tom "invested in machinery to process hops into easier-to-ship pellets," noted WSJ. He also "opened new markets in Asia and Africa" as well as "steered" co thru an antitrust dispute in 80s and weathered "collapse" of hop prices due to overproduction in 1983. Tom had fascinating business history on both sides of his family. His father Louis Gimbel Jr, was cousin of founder of famed Gimbel Brothers retail store stores and he "helped run Saks Fifth Avenue," which was owned by Gimbel's at time. Tom's mother, Elinor Steiner Gimbel, was member of family that started hop biz back in Germany in 1845, and WSJ noted that Elinor's mother, Sadie Liebmann, "came from the family that brewed Rheingold." Our condolences to Tom's wife Valerie and family which includes sons Louis S. Gimbel IV, prexy of Hopsteiner and Adam, serving as vp.

With appeal of wrongful termination suit pending in state court, NYC metro-area distribs Oak and Boening Bros notified Yuengling earlier in yr of plans to enforce a warehouseman's lien on inventory of kegs and pallets held at the distribs' facilities. Oak sought payment of just over $200K, Boening of $35K, according to legal notices printed in local papers early this mo. Value of inventory itself only about half of that, while storage costs make up most of the rest. When invoices were not paid, cos published notices to alert public of auctions for the inventory, which occurred last wk, INSIGHTS understands. Recall, Oak and sibling co Boening sued after Yuengling terminated the cos and appointed Manhattan Beer just over a yr ago (see vol 23, no 197). Suit dismissed by NY Supreme Ct this spring (May 9 issue), which distribs appealed (Aug 25).

While beer's still losin' ground to spirits in US, global beer volumes are up and "gaining share of throat" in alc bevs, ABI ceo Michel Doukeris shared on last week's earnings call and in Yahoo Finance interview. "Premiumization as a trend continues to grow," Michel added, calling it "almost an unstoppable trend in the category" with "a lot of headroom to continue." At the same time, beyond beer remains a point of emphasis globally, and especially in the US, he acknowledged. Both Cutwater and NUTRL got shout-outs for being available nationally, "doing very well in this space," sourcing volume from wine & spirits and being "very incremental to our business." Tho gotta note, spirit RTD revs at just ~1% of AB's total US revs for 12 mos thru Sep. And volume impact on AB trends is relatively tiny.

While Brett accentuates the positive amid recent pricing environment, consultant Bump Williams takes a different tack in latest BWC Monthly Update. Despite improved $$ gains, volume remains "firmly in the red" YTD and "diminished velocity levels (EQ/store, Store Selling)" have become "concerning," Bump wrote. After yrs of heightened off-prem sales amid Covid, velocity is "com[ing] back down to reality…at an accelerated rate." Now "BELOW the levels observed even prior to COVID in 2018 and 2019," he stressed. And that's before "effects of latest Fall price increases are fully realized." Indeed, beer's avg price per case is now $3 higher vs 2018 and Bump is essentially sounding alarm bells, believing consumers are increasingly "leaving the category entirely…to find a more economical and efficient way to enjoy their alcohol" via liquor. Avg cases of beer per store selling beer reached peak of 404/store in 2019, but "has remained in steady decline ever since." That said, harder to argue if beer $$ sales keep growin' at this current accelerated rate despite volume drops.

Tho still early days following US beer's fall price increase, initial reads are "positive as we see a high follow-rate and the very early returns showing negligible price elasticity," wrote Consumer Edge's Brett Cooper in report this morn. For 4 wks ended Oct 16, avg price per case was up roughly $1.80/case vs +$1.40/case in prior 12 wks of tracked IRI data. So price increase in US beer accelerated by roughly $0.40/case, per report. On percentage basis, accelerated price/mix moved up to nearly +7% vs yr ago compared to +5% in prior periods.

Time is running out to join us for this year's Beer Insights Seminar, two weeks from today on Monday, Nov 14 in midtown NYC. Our stellar agenda features a line-up of top industry execs and thought leaders. Learn the latest industry insights, dig deeper into hot topics during in-depth discussions and reconnect with other beer biz movers and shakers. And don't delay: discounted rooms at the nearby Muse Hotel will only be available thru tomorrow. Book a room and

Recovery remains top of mind for many small brewers, as they continue to do work of adjusting to bizzes often fundamentally changed by the pandemic. But when well-navigated, those shifts can lead to more stable bizzes, leaders of a trio of brewers suggested in panel during Brewers of Pennsylvania's Mid Atlantic Brewers Symposium in State College, PA last wk. Scott Smith founded Pittsburgh's East End Brewing 18 yrs ago and does around 3,000 bbls per yr, he shared. Husband-and-wife team Melissa and Kevin Walter opened Love City Brewing in Philly in 2018 and expect to sell around 3,800 bbls this yr. Artie Tafoya has worn a lot of hats over last 26 yrs at Appalachian Brewing Co, a brewpub chain with 6 locations thru central PA. The group discussed resilience and planning, staff compensation and engagement, adjusting to supply chain challenges and costs, and more during panel moderated by Kyle Rheiner, agent at Arthur Hall Insurance and host of The Beer Mighty Things podcast.

While craft trends remain soft in off-premise scan data, other sources suggest biz may be better at taprooms. Untappd users are more likely to check-in beers from brewery taprooms than they were before the pandemic, according to latest update from Trace Smith, CEO of the app's parent co Next Glass. By indexing the share of check-ins by major retail category to Jan 2019, Trace demonstrates the big dip in bar and restaurant check-ins early in pandemic (index of 18-30 in Apr 2020). Data also shows big jump at "other retailers," mostly grocery and specialty retailers (index peak at 269, suggesting share of 2.7x Jan 2019).

Beer Purchaser's Index (measuring distrib orders as an index reading) was as low as it's ever been this Oct 2022 vs 2021 while both craft beer and hard seltzer demand dropped to lowest readings yet too, NBWA chief economist Lester Jones confirmed following report late last week. Recall, an index reading greater than 50 indicates orders are expanding vs below 50 indicating lower orders vs same period year ago. Total BPI came in at 37 with "at-risk" inventory reading of 56, marking 5th mo in a row of lower orders amid "continued inflationary pressures and a slowing economy," NBWA wrote. Yet craft beer BPI dropped to just 23. Hard seltzer was only segment with a lower reading once again, falling to BPI of 18. Both craft and hard seltzer readings are low as they've come since Lester began publishing monthly BPI readings.