Christmas cards to Congress from beer biz continue.  In wake of NBWA opposition-to-BREW letter that went out Wednesday (see that day’s CBN) BA ceo Bob Pease responded with note to Congress that BA “surprised and disappointed to learn of NBWA’s decision to actively oppose the Small BREW Act,” since bill first intro’d in 2009 and “to the best of our knowledge, was never objected to or opposed by NBWA before.”  Structure of bill hasn’t changed since, Bob pointed out, and “presents best chance for enacting tax relief for America’s small breweries and brewpubs.”  So BA “cannot understand why NBWA would oppose a measure that would bring excise tax relief to many of their suppliers and in turn benefit their members.”  At same time, BA remains “heartened by the strong bipartisan support for this legislation in the Congress,” including 181 House and 46 Senate co-sponsors.  

With one mo to go in 2014, craft still holdin’ on to 21% $$ growth, volume +17% yr-to-date thru Nov 30 in IRI multi-outlet + convenience (MULC) data.  Even tho craft trend slightly slower again in latest 4 wks, craft share actually jumped to 8.45 of $$ (vs 7.3 share YTD).  Good chunk of that continues to come from domestic premium and sub-premium segments, each down over a share.  However, turns out progressive adult bevs (PABs) were losing share toward end of the yr too; PABs are more like 4.3 of $$ in latest 4 weeks, 4.6 share in latest 13 wks, compared to 5.1 yr-to-date. 

Meanwhile, both Sierra Nevada and Deschutes saw uptick in latest period, with help from winter seasonals.  Sierra $$ up 20% for 4 weeks thru Nov 30, to +14% yr-to-date in IRI MULC.  Sierra Seasonal, with continued success of Celebration, up 11% for 4 wks, to +3% YTD (up about 20% for previous 4-wk period).  Other top brands contributing to growth too, as Sierra Variety Pk has now sold nearly 398K incremental cases in scans to-date, and both Sierra Pale and Torpedo IPA trends slightly improved to $$ up 7% and 13% YTD respectively.  Then too, Deschutes $$ up 18% for 4 wks, even as flagship Mirror Pond Ale down low single-digits.  Part of that: Deschutes Seasonal, now Jubelale, jumped 16% last 4 wks after handful of down mos with other offerings.

Other Top Craft Cos thru Nov Boston Beer $$ up 19% (including cider & tea) in latest 4 wks to +30% yr-to-date thru Nov 30.  But each of top-3 Sam Adams brands down again for 4 wks: Sam Seasonal down 4%, Boston Lager down 5%, and Sam Variety Pk down 8%.  But again, Rebel IPA gains more than make up for those losses, as it’s now sold almost 1 mil incremental cases in scans thru Nov 30.  New Belgium trends also slowed, as expected, now goin’ against comps from mkt entries in Fla and OH late last yr.  NBB still up 33%, +0.75 share of craft $$ YTD thru Nov 30, however that’s slowed from over 1 share gain earlier this yr.  Gambrinus and Craft Brew Alliance each up low single-digits for 4 wks and +7% YTD.  And Lagunitas up 64% YTD, and still gaining over 1 share of craft this yr.  Rest of next handful of top craft cos up strong double-digits for 4 wks and YTD, with exception of Duvel USA, whose volume slightly down, $$ slightly up.  Stone $$ +43%, Bell’s +32%, SweetWater +42%, Dogfish +23.5%, and New Glarus +17.5%.

As part of its 5-yr plan to boost revs to near $30 bil by 2019, almost double $16 bil it earned during fiscal yr 2014, Starbucks plans to expand its Evening Menu program to almost 3,000 cafes in the US, according to Reuters. Those menus, typically available after 4pm, include handful of prepared snack/food items and famously wine and beer, recall. Currently 32 stores offer the menu to keep folks coming back later in the day, including 9 in co’s hometown Seattle, 7 each in Atlanta and Chicago, 4 in metro-LA, 3 in Portland, Oreg and one each in Washington DC’s Dulles Int’l Airport and in Downtown Disney at Disney World. While wine menus in each market vary slightly, with a fair amount of local-focus particularly in the PacNW markets, the co instructs beer drinkers to “ask your barista about the current beer selection,” suggesting Starbucks too is playing the rotating game. Comments from the co often refer to “regional craft beer,” but not much else. Offerings at original Seattle test store for the concept included Pyramid Haywire Hefeweizen, Deschutes Mirror Pond and Italian Peroni Nastro Azzurro, way back in 2010.

Delta announced biggest expansion of craft brands to in-flight purchase options to cap off a year full of more limited additions. The Atlanta-based airline now carries beers from 8 different breweries on an assortment of domestic flights, launching the program late last week. Largest craft brand, Sam Adams is now available on all domestic flights without any other craft offerings, greatly expanding its availability from a handful of East Coast shuttles. It’s also expanding availability of SweetWater’s flagship 420 from just Atlanta to NYC’s Laguardia to other ATL flights headed to 4 Fla airports, DC and New Orleans. Flyers from LA to San Fran can grab a Lagunitas or Stone; those headed to LA, San Fran or Seattle from NY’s JFK can sip a Brooklyn or Ballast Point; folks flying from Laguardia to Boston, DC’s Reagan and Chicago-O’Hare will have access to beer from Blue Point and Newburyport. Of all the new suppliers, that final one stands out: Newburyport is significantly smaller than the other brewers. Founded in 2012, Newburyport didn’t start brewing til April 2013 and produced about 5000 bbls in its first 12 mos, according to the Boston Globe.

Another hot Cinci brewer, MadTree, planning to expand its footprint to rest of Oh and neighboring states.  Next week, MadTree expanding its footprint to Columbus, Oh area with plans to go statewide once they can supply enuf, reported Cincinnati Business Courier.  Co also plans to be in “good chunks of Kentucky and Indiana by the end of next year or early 2015,” sez paper.  In fact, recently MadTree “more than doubled its local footprint” with purchase of nearby 17,000 sq-ft new space.  Co still hasn’t decided exactly what to do with the space, but “end goal would be to put a bigger production facility in place,” sez co-founder, Kenny McNutt.  “Right now we’re using it for storage,” since “we’ve been kind of exploding over here” with “a lot of cans,” he added.   Editor’s Note: MadTree’s got another small but red hot IPA in a can; its Psychopathy IPA $$ up a whopping 792% thru Oct 5 in IRI Multi Channel + Convenience. 

Just breaking, Cinci, Oh’s Rhinegeist Brewing “has purchased the building that houses its production and canning facilities and taproom, as well as an adjoining building,” for $4.5 mil with financing from Heartland Bank, reported Cincinnati Business Courier.  All in, purchased properties amount to “112,000 square feet between the three structures,” Rhinegeist co-founder and president, Bob Bonder told paper.  Previously it only leased “about 50,000 square feet” of space, so it’s more than doubled total facility space with purchase, including one 3-story 25,000 sq-ft building, and another 37,000 sq-ft, 2-story adjacent building.

Meanwhile Rhinegeist recently expanded to its first out of state mkt, Ky, and created its own distributorship to do so, called Riverghost Distributing, reported WCPO in extensive piece on Rhinegeist.  It’ll operate out of 20k sq-ft warehouse in Erlanger, Ky, and expects to eventually take on a handful of other craft brands, as well as some local wine brands.  “Kentucky is turning onto craft fiercely in tandem with Cincinnati and we see a huge opportunity in the state to make an impact educating and selling high quality craft beer,” Rhinegeist vp, Bryant Goulding told news channel.  In Oh, Rhinegeist already operates as its own distrib, so not a huge transition for its biz.  Bryant spoke to “cyclical” focus distribs have while “juggling 12-15” brands as part of reason for opening the distributorship in Ky, noting “we like the control.  We feel that over the next decade there is going to be more competitive pressure on the market.  And one of the most important things you can have is focus.”  While “Ohio tends to do more draft sales,” co “anticipates Kentucky to be a strong canned beer market,” and already has strong partnership with Kroger in place, Bryant added.  Then too, “it’s nothing new to the state,” Cavalier Dist regional sales mgr, Justin Hue told WCPO, pointing to AB branches.  Gotta note, seems Riverghost is tiny enuf that it hasn’t bothered other Ky distribs and brewers, as there hasn’t been any outspoken contention thus far.   

Rhinegeist has been one of faster growing small brewers in the country after it “started canning in early 2014,” and expects to do between 10,000 and 11,000 bbls this yr, noted paper.  Editor’s Note: its Truth IPA is already 68^th best-selling IPA in natl IRI data, ahead of Victory Hop Devil IPA, Karl Strauss Tower 10 IPA, and Long Trail IPA, to name a few.  Rhinegeist recently added new bottling line for 22oz “bombers” that “runs about the same speed as our canning line,” Bryant said, and “they plan to do at least one release per month for the first year.” And they’ve also got a small amount, over 100 bbls, set aside for barrel-aging program, where “about 15-20 bbls are being used to make sour beers and many of the rest are bourbon barrels.”

As Cigar City continues search for location to build 2^nd brewery, co “will lease space” at 20,000 sq-ft warehouse across the street from brewery, purchased just last week by founder Joey Redner’s father, Joe Redner, reported Tampa Bay Business Journal.  Recall, Joe is “infamous” owner of a local strip club, and a successful entrepreneur in his own right.  The building, “an old Sears Parts & Repair,” was purchased for $1.125 mil, and “will be used for storage and office space” for Joe’s other businesses, as well as Cigar City leased storage space, and as new hq for Joey’s Brew Bus business, a “craft brewery tour company,” noted paper.  Cigar City had actually been leasing space for a while as additional employee parking, and Joe Redner had been “trying to purchase that space for years,” vp Justin Clark told CBN.  So that’ll “free up some space.”  Another venture that’ll free up a bit of space is partnership with Brew Hub in Lakeland, Fla.  Cigar City “didn’t really get up and running [with Brew Hub] until October,” so beer brewed there really only selling in these last 2 mos, Justin said.  All in, should be “right around 1,000 barrels” out of Brew Hub this yr, with plans next yr to do “anywhere between 10,000 to 20,000 barrels.” 

Ballast Point plans to “expand its partnership” with Wirtz Beverage into Wisconsin starting Jan 1, co announced today.  Ballast already partners with Wirtz in each of its other states: Minn, Nev, and Ill.  “We’ve had great interest in our brands throughout the Midwest and people have been asking for years when we’d come to Wisconsin,” ceo and founder, Jack White said in release.  Recall, Ballast also recently entered Colo with Elite Brands and switched distribs in NC from Freedom Bev to Mims Dist this Oct.

If you go by Brewers Assn definition of craft that includes Yuengling, craft acquiring some serious mass in Mass; up 33.4% to 8.5 mil cases, 22 share of total beer in state, according to Mass Beverage Alliance in latest release.  Recall, Yuengling entered state earlier this yr with mostly AB houses, Atlas Dist and Craft Brewers Guild.  Yuengling definitely boosting those numbers, as it snagged 10 share of volume in its intro mo, Mar (see May 9 issue of Express).  It’s since been vocal about tuff selling environment in Boston area in particular.

Mass Bev Alliance Signs 4 New Craft Brewers, 1 Craft Distiller Massachusetts Beverage Alliance, comprised of Burke, Colonial, Atlas, Commercial, and Merrimack Valley, have signed 4 new craft brewers and 1 new craft distiller (Maine Craft Distilling outta Portland) to close out 2014, with particular focus on “smaller artisanal producers,” noted director of sales & mktg, Brian Murphy.  Indeed most of these brewers only available in limited 22oz and/or draft including VT’s Foley Brothers Brewing (brews 15-21 bbls per week), ME’s Hidden Cove Brewing, and Brooklyn NY’s Grimm Artisanal Ales of Brooklyn NY.  Brewmaster Jack of Northampton, MA will be fully available in 6pks, 4pks, draft and limited specialty 22oz and 12oz releases starting mid-Jan 2015.  

It’s been a long-standing dispute in Fla over right to sell 64oz containers, yet yesterday “the Florida Beer Wholesaler Association (FBWA) formally announced its support for a stand-alone ‘growler’ bill…to lift the restriction on 64-ounce growlers,” reported Tampa Times.  “I want to make it clear that we have not changed our support for lifting the restriction on growlers, but we believe it is now time to separate the growler issue from the larger conversation,” (i.e on-site sales), exec director of FBWA, Mitch Rubin said in release.  FBWA offers a “few suggestions” to ensure the bill is “careful to respect existing laws that prohibit open containers, sales to minors” and “address the risks associated with unmarked alcoholic beverage containers.”  

Recall, announcement comes at the heels of lawsuit filed in late Oct by local retailer/growler bar, The Crafted Keg, against the Fla’s Dept of Biz Regulation and its alc bev division, regarding prohibited package size.  And before that an announcement by Beer Industry of Fla (other distribs assn of just MC wholesalers) that it expects “clean” growler bill in next legislative session.  So appears that all tiers in Fla on the same page about growler size now, but direct sales, among other topics, remains more difficult issue.  Justin Clark, vp of Cigar City Brewing and vp of Fla Brewers Guild, was “happy to see” announcement, he told CBN.  He sees announcement as “separating the issue” to help show wholesalers are “supporting us in this.”  Justin is “pro 3-tier” and has “great wholesale partners on both sides of the street” (referencing Brown Dist and JJ Taylor), but also thought some other “slight changes will be necessary” going forward.  Stay tuned.