After quietly tweaking core proposition in recent months, aluminum-bottle play Pathwater is dialing up the innovation, adding Sparkling and Alkaline extensions with pair of flavored sparkling entries due later this spring. The Alkaline entry comes in at 9.5 pH and is being offered initially on Amazon next month in 20-oz aluminum bottle at $22.99 per 9-pk and 25-oz bottle at $27.99 per 9-pk, with single bottles moving to retail later in year. The Sparkling extension is launching just in 20-oz bottle, at same price.

Dan Morad's cofounder of Terpsi Capital profiled on Fri is not Dan Rudin but Craig Rudin. As noted, Craig brings extensive track record on finance side at SAC Capital, Lehman Bros and Ernst & Young, matching Dan's operational and trend-watching skills. Apologies for slip.

Spindrift sparkling water brand has pulled in another $29.8 mil in capital, per SEC filing spotted by BevNet and TechCrunch, bringing total haul since launch to at least $70 mil. This would be first new money since $20 mil round 2 years back (BBI, Mar 20 2018). Founder Bill Creelman declined to discuss raise with BevNet . . . Chobani has tilted more heavily toward minority entrepreneurs in latest class of its incubator, with sr dir for new ventures Zoe Feldman saying 70% come from underrepresented groups. The new entrants are A Dozen Cousins, American Vinegar Works, Bread SRSLY, Big T's Coastal Provisions, Holmes Applesauce, Pescavore, Sherpa Foods and Soñar, all of them on food rather than bev side this go-round . . . It likely was inevitable: co in New Britain, Conn, called Avery's Soda has launched limited-time lemon-lime flavor called Coronavirus Cocktail sporting label adorned with cartoon image of scary-looking virus. "Some folks think our latest flavor is in poor taste, but everyone who tries it says it tastes pretty good," co told WFSB Eyewitness News. It's not clear whether or not limited-time window is based on assumption that virus itself will only be here a limited time.

The dominos keep falling as coronavirus spreads - or rather, some dominos are falling and other dominos aren't. Trio of shows being hosted at NY's Javits Center for 3 days starting yesterday - Int'l Restaurant & Foodservice Show of NY, Healthy Food Expo NY and Coffee Fest - has been proceeding as planned, with fist bumps the order of the day rather than hugs and handshakes, as stop-in by BBI yesterday afternoon confirmed, but organizers of 7th annual NoCo Hemp Expo in Denver have pushed 3-day investor forum, biz conference, farm symposium and trade show back from Mar 26-28 to Aug 6-8 out of health concerns. Of course, imminent South by Southwest music, film & tech fest in Austin, which serves as major bev activation event to reach influencers, bit the dust for first time in 34-year history after heated debate within city. These are very difficult calls, approaching time that slate of conferences and expos intensifies in spring.

For years, Honest Tea has positioned itself as one of the good guys in bevs, offering teas that are "just a tad sweet." Recent deep dive into sugared bevs by NY Times begs to differ, noting that co's Peach Tea contains 25 g of added sugar per half-liter bottle, equal to 6 teaspoons, or half the daily limit recommended by gov't nutrition guidelines. "Critics say that Honest Tea, which is owned by Coca-Cola, is one of many food companies that mislead consumers about the amount of sugar that is added to their products," continues article, which goes on to cite consumer advocates calling for greater clarity from gov't as to what's allowed to be called "low-sugar," even as class-action suits proliferate on issue. Story appears to have been inspired by letter sent in Jan to FDA by Center for Science in the Public Interest that zeroed in on marketing claims on 19 sugared bevs from 5 brands, including natural channel mainstays like Honest Tea and Steaz, "which markets several flavors of organic iced tea as 'lightly sweetened' despite containing 20 grams of sugar per serving, or roughly 5 teaspoons." "If you look at the amounts of sugar in these things that say they are lightly sweetened — I mean, really?" said law prof Marsha Cohen of Univ of Calif's Hastings College of Law. "What's heavily sweetened to them? It's a little crazy." (Maybe answer is AriZona?) Story can be read here.

Red Bull North America has joined the rush to Zero entries, launching Red Bull Zero as adjunct to its longtime Red Bull Sugarfree entry, backed by what seems to be national TV campaign. New line contains "new flavor, same wiiings," per website, using same energy blend but drops calorie count from 10 calories per 8.4-oz can all the way to zero, via sweetener blend that includes aspartame, sucralose and ace-K. We reached out for more info last week but didn't get response. RBNA did announce limited-time release of Red Bull 3X pack commemorating its sponsorship of USA Basketball's 3v3 hoops tourneys . . . Harkening back to how kombucha proved a way for cofounder Sean Lovett to kick his soda habit, Revive Kombucha will release a Revive Soda Pop Series this summer comprised of Cherry Cola, Root Beer and Orange Soda flavors. Each 12-oz glass bottle boasts 40 mg of green-tea-based natural caffeine but contain just 8 g of organic cane sugar per serving. They harken back to co's initial offering, Original Cola, its only flavor for first 3 years. "We wanted to bring kombucha back to the future, so we took our favorite flavors from when we were kids and turned them into the radically raw kombucha Revive is known for," per Lovett . . . Pepsi Lipton Tea Partnership has added pair of new flavors to its green tea lineup, Watermelon and White Peach, available at $4.99 per 12-pk of half-liter plastic bottles . . . Q Mixers has added Hibiscus Ginger Beer to the portfolio, breaking in Target chain at $3.99 per 4-pk of 7.5-oz cans. The entry contains rose hips, brings aggressive ginger bite and has pink-hued liquid.

Anheuser-Busch Brewers Collective craft biz unit officially launched its first "craft beyond beer platform," with debut of new flavored malt bev line dubbed "LQD," co announced. Recall, LQD operation outta Bend, Ore (home of acquired 10 Barrel craft brewer) has been in the works since late 2017 under innovations brewmaster Peter Wolfe. It's developing "next generation of non-beer [products]," as our Insights Express and Beverage Business Insights newsletters first reported (BBI, Oct 11 2018). But this is first time A-B officially announced LQD product line. Portfolio includes hard limeades, teas and lemonades aimed at "health-minded consumers," with "mission to reimagine alcohol," while drawing from each of AB's craft brewers (11 acquired craft brewers plus acquired Virtue cider and in-house brand Veza Sur), per release. Of course, in keeping with alc trends lately, many of these draw inspiration from growing non-alc segments. So far, 4 flavors are listed on its website: Hard Coconut Water Original, Hard Coconut Water Pineapple, Hard Green Tea Peach and Hard Green Tea Passionfruit. LQD products will range from 5.2%-5.9% ABV and under, available nationally in 6-pk format and variety 12-pks with suggested retail prices of $10.99 to $12.99, sez co. Notably, another Ore-based craft co, Deschutes, launched its "crafted hard bevy" line dubbed Modified Theory earlier this yr too.

To some longtime bev watchers, Orangina was brand that seemed perfectly in synch with cutting edge consumers, thanks to distinctive bulbous bottle that predated POM Wonderful's iconic look, pulp-laden liquid and subtle sweetness. (For a while a few years back, when brand was easily available, BBI noticed hipsters in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, toting bottles conspicuously around.) But within extensive portfolio within Dr Pepper Snapple Group, Orangina received little love and attention. Now a brand acceleration group within Raleigh-based Pepsi Bottling Ventures is hoping to change that by acquiring the license for brand for North America, restoring original product proposition and enlisting a local agency called Clean to get word out. The unit, Ventures Food & Beverage, has gone back to original French recipe of natural ingredients, including real citrus juices and mandarin orange pulp, and brought back textured glass bottle, now viewed as in synch with some consumers' sustainability priorities. Revamped line that dates back to 1936 is breaking in NY, Boston, LA, Toronto and Montreal, backed by messaging being developed by Clean that will emphasize brand's authentic flavor and artisanal history. If things go well, hinted PBV ceo Paul Finney, there may be more such collaborations to come with Suntory, which controls both Orangina and PBV. "There is a worldwide affinity for Orangina and we are excited to celebrate this new chapter for the iconic brand," he said in statement last week. "This opportunity allows Ventures Food & Beverage to deepen our relationship and collaboration with Orangina's global owner and our parent company, Suntory." Ventures Food & Beverage doesn't seem to have active website, but there are indications it also has juice brand called Nature's Twist within portfolio.