Judge in Northwest Arkansas county court refused to dismiss lawsuit brought against area's Bike Rack Brewing by ex-co-owner Steven Outain last yr (see vol 9, no 94), sending case to jury trial early in 2020. Outain alleges other owners forced him out and low-balled the brewery's value to pay him less than he deserves for his stake. The brewery then brought counterclaims that Outain used confidential info to derail a deal the brewery had to open another location, asking court to dismiss the original suit. But judge didn't do that, agreeing that fair market value of the small Ark-based brewery remains in question. Co produced just over 2,400 bbls last yr, according to Ark Democrat-Gazette, operating three separate locations in the region.

Nearly 5 mos after Food and Drug Admin held its first hearing on CBD, little to nothing has changed regarding org's stance on CBD as food/bev additive, latest FDA update showcased. "CBD has the potential to harm you, and harm can happen even before you become aware of it," org stated among sobering observations made in updated consumer guidance issued this Wed (as our sibling pub Beverage Business Insights reported yesterday.) Far from greenlighting edibles like CBD bevs, FDA made case that, given paucity of research to draw upon, clinical trials might need to be undertaken first, given stance agency took in approving Epidiolex epilepsy treatment that CBD is a drug. It cited concerns about issues ingesters might not notice, including liver injury, interactions with other drugs and "male reproductive toxicity" seen in animal-based lab experiments. Among those that consumers will detect are sleepiness or insomnia, gastrointestinal distress and mood changes such as irritability and agitation.

Not too much state legislative activity so late in the year, but a handful of stories about small brewers (and other alc bev industry members) responding to current regs in new ways. In both Massachusetts and Alaska, industry stakeholders examining closely laws allowing alc bev producers to sell directly to consumers. Recall, concerns raised in MA about seasonal beer gardens opened by some breweries over last few yrs via series of one-day special event permits under variety of employee/owner names. Legislative fix still not quite nailed down and bill intro'd early this yr to tamp down on use of one-day permits (see Feb 15 issue) recently under fire from non-profit org that partnered with Night Shift for its pair of beer gardens, Beacon Hill Times wrote early this mo. As written, bill endangers beneficial arrangement it has with the brewery, folks at Esplanade Assn argue. Bill hasn't moved far and Boston Mayor advocating for more local control of licensing process.

About 6 wks since CO's Boulder Beer decided to stop packaging and selling beer thru distribution and operate only as a brewpub (see Oct 10 issue), it's now looking to sell "majority" of its equipment via online auction from Wed, Nov 27 thru Wed, Dec 4, Westword reported. Boulder is auctioning 27 fermenters and brite tanks, a canning and bottling line, case packer, 1,000 1/2 bbl kegs, 100 1/4 bbl kegs and more, among equipment listed on New Mill Capital website. Notably, Boulder is keeping its 50-bbl brewhouse (at least for now), even tho "it will shut it down in favor of a much smaller system," sez Westword.

Philly-area hoagie-hocking Wawa c-store chain will build on small special release it did with state's 2SP Brewing in 2018 with broader release, more beers and multi-state "Brew Tour," co announced this wk. Last yr, 2SP used Wawa Winter Reserve coffee for specialty bourbon-barrel aged oatmeal stout, sold in just 5 counties around Philly, the Inquirer wrote. But 2 different versions (base stout and bourbon-aged take) will be available in select Wawa outlets across PA in 2019, followed up by releases of 2SP collabs with local brewers in Virginia and Florida. 2SP partnered with Hardywood Park Brewing for a variant on the oatmeal stout headed to Richmond-area chain outlets. Also worked with Coppertail Brewing for release at Fla Wawas. Next Feb, the chain will tap kegs of the beer for tastings at 4 of its outlets, 2 in PA, 1 in Richmond and 1 in Tampa, to promote the partnersh

Less than a week after auction for Boulder Beer equipment initiated and story of co's choice to pull back to brewpub model spread more widely (see last issue), it struck deal with Denver-based Sleeping Giant contract facility to keep some of its brands on shelves. Interestingly, it was Sleeping Giant that approached Boulder Beer, seeing oppy to expand its capabilities beyond production/packaging to also operate as a sales and marketing partner for Boulder as well. "Our new relationship will allow Sleeping Giant to better understand the distribution, sales and marketing side of the business. Developing this expertise will allow us to assist our contract brewing clients, and provide yet another value-add service to our portfolio," prexy/founder Matthew Osterman said in statement. Work with Sleeping Giant will keep 6 of Boulder's year-round brands on shelves "without interruption," including Shake, Mojo, Buffalo Gold, Hazed & Infused, Spaceman and Due East. Count this among growing list of unique outcomes for craft brands and breweries that have struggled to navigate challenging, highly competitive US craft market in 2019.

Another beer-focused retail franchise concept struggling to hit targets and expand concept as broadly as expected just a couple yrs back. Growler USA franchise of on-premise retailers boasting around 100 taps plus growler-fills to-go filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in Colorado fed ct late last month. Co has 22 franchise locations in 15 states with 3 more "coming soon," according to its website. Founded in 2013 by Dave Shaw and Dan White, with first location in Eugene, OR, co said it had 35 franchise agreements signed in mid-2016, but 2 yrs later still had just 22 pubs open when announcing agreements for 3 new spots. But franchise locations will operate as usual as their franchisor seeks to "strengthen our balance sheet and gain the financial flexibility to drive investment that will support our franchise system," Dave said in statement to Denver Biz Journal.

Brooklyn Brewery is latest craft brewer to restructure its sales org following tuffer US trends in hyper competitive US mkt. Recall, Brooklyn Brewery sales in US have declined in recent yrs, tho Brooklyn’s international biz continues to grow double-digits “more than offsetting” US declines in 2019, CEO Eric Ottaway previously shared (see Oct 1 issue). Move was made to “better reflect the realities of the current US beer market,” co shared in letter to employees on Monday that was also shared with CBN and first reported by Craft Business Daily. “Simply put, craft brewers have been under-investing in the marketing and brand building sides of the business for too long,” it goes on. “In some markets supplier reps outnumber distributor reps, with craft brewers continually adding staff and creating a headcount race that isn’t sustainable. We have not been immune to this problem, and today took the step to reduce our sales force to a more rational level.”

Notably, Brooklyn will look to put more resources behind marketing and communications for successful brand launches like Bel Air and Special Effects rather than personnel, letter states. “We need to transform into a company that develops and sells unique and well-executed products, with strong marketing and PR support, that our distributors can sell on their own, and move away from the unsustainable hand selling approach of yesteryear.” Unclear if members of 21st Amendment or Funkwerks were affected at presstime.

Gotta note, decision to restructure comes shortly after its minority partner Kirin Holdings made waves in US, announcing 100% acquisition of New Belgium via its Lion Little World Beverages (LLWB) unit. Lion/NBB deal has yet to officially close and Brooklyn will remain “standalone team,” LLWB Managing Director Matt Tapper told CBN (see Nov 19 issue), at least for time being. All in, this is just another one of several established craft companies looking to rebalance their efforts amid changing industry dynamics in recent yrs.