BevNET Magazine October 2014 by BevNET.com

m s i m i t p o h A LOOK INSIDE CRAFT BEER'S MOST IMPORTANT ASSET

CRAFT SPIRITS & MIXERS GUIDE IMPORT BEER: GUINNESS GOES BLONDE

THE RULES FOR FLAVOR

FOUR LENSES ON WATER ENHANCEMENT

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OCTOBER 2014 M

Contents • Volume 12 • No. 7

COLUMNS

FEATURES

ON THE COVER

4 First Drop What’s Trending? Ask Whole Foods

24 Flavored and Enhanced Water Four Lenses of Enhancement with Brand News

Hoptimism A Look Inside Craft Beer’s Most Important Asset

6 Publisher’s Toast Pressing the Refresh Button 22 Gerry’s Insights Khermouch on Kombucha

DEPARTMENTS 8 BevScape Acquisitions Galore and 99 Cans of Beer 14 New Products Manuka Honey 18 Channel Check Iced Coffee 66 Promo Parade Dude!

32 Import Beer Guinness Goes Blonde 46 The Flavor Rules For Beverages, Taste is Everything

CONFERENCE REVIEW 50 EXPO EAST Cold Stays Hot

SPECIAL SECTION

38 Seeking Simcoe Navigating a Changing Hops Market 42 Bud’s Secret Arsenal Goose Island Shows Off Its Elk Mountain Edge

ism hoptim A LOOK INSIDE CRAFT BEER'S MOST IMPORTANT ASSET

55 Craft Spirits and Mixers Guide Bourbon, BarJuice and More

CRAFT GUIDE

SPIRITS & MIXERS

IMPORT BEER: GUINNESS GOES BLONDE

THE RULES FOR FLAVOR

FOUR LENSES ON WATER ENHANCEMENT

cover.indd 1

9/25/14 8:19 PM

COVER PHOTO Photo by Stuart Grinnell Courtesy of Hops Direct, LLC BevNET Magazine (ISSN 2165-6061, USPS 24-552) is published bi-monthly except monthly in March, June, September, and October by BevNET.com, Inc. 44 Pleasant Street, Suite 110, Watertown, MA 02472. Periodicals postage paid at Boston, MA and additional mailing offices. POSTMASTER: Please send address changes to BevNET Magazine, Subscriber Services, 44 Pleasant Street, Suite 110, Watertown, MA 02472

The First Drop By Jeffrey Klineman

The Paleo lifestyle is on the front of the New York Times’ Style section as I sit down to write this, which kind of steals the thunder from a column about Paleo. The business media has been all over the story of Wal-Mart and Kroger showing strong sales numbers due to increased sales of organic products, which kind of steals the thunder from a column on the mainstreaming of organic. The White House is brewing its own beer; Anheuser Busch bought Bluepoint, and craft brewing is widely recognized as the category’s chief source of momentum, which kind of takes the fizz out of any column on craft beer (although you should check out our package on hops and beer regardless – it’s great stuff!). Food & Wine and The New Yorker are all over the fermentation trend; the Wall Street Journal has recognized the growth of Sparkling Ice; Green Juice has been featured on everything from Girls to Married (“eat your fruit, juice your vegetables!”) and even the differences between raw and cold-pressed have been settled on some labels. Everyone has a favorite cold brew. So where can we go? Or, more importantly, where can Whole Foods go? Now that its 350-plus stores have so significantly influenced American food culture, isn’t the tail starting to wag the dog? After all, with conventional grocery out-pricing the chain on basic organic products, the company has announced its intentions to double down on pricing

4 OCTOBER 2014 BEVNET MAGAZINE

What’s Trending? Ask Whole Foods

reductions and re-devote itself to private label. The stock market sure thinks things have gotten bad for Whole Foods, and there are innovators at places like Kroger and Safeway – as well as Target and Costco – looking to expand their stores’ reputations as sources of products that speak to a new generation of families raised with more healthful and adventurous priorities. So should the company pack it in and head home now that the world has caught up? The company’s actions indicate it’s a long way from doing that. In fact, it’s exploring new ways to execute behind its core competency. The issue isn’t that Whole Foods has lost its edge, it’s that that core competency is discovering and defining innovation, not just selling organic kale. And right now, the company is innovating – identifying, by one executive’s count, 70 new in-store categories with white space. This is immensely important because when Whole Foods puts an emphasis on a category, it moves: look at HPP juices, Coffee, Craft Beer, coconut water, kombucha, and tea. All these categories are now being chased significantly by the mainstream, and the Austin mob had a couple of years to enjoy and sort its strategy. Now, it’s turning to new companies and product types, like Tumeric Alive (high-powered botanicals) and Way Better Snacks (sprouted grains) to keep its lead as a retailer brand with a vision of the new. By staying ahead, the

company has a multi-year head start on most new trends, ones that allow it to reap the high margins from being the “paper of record” for grocery. Right now, as supermarkets consider whether to integrate their organic products or keep them ghettoed in the natural set, Whole Foods is showing brands a template for proper engagement with their consumers, keeping them attuned to the social, nutritional, and culinary mission of the store. The company was criticized in some quarters for pushing too hard on labeling for genetically modified organisms (GMOs), for requiring suppliers to be wary of supply-chain issues and for otherwise raising the bar. But that’s their plan, and they do it better than anyone. By raising the bar, Whole Foods makes the rest of the field aspire to something higher. That the crew from Austin is the one who determines “how high” means that it’s able to keep its nice, long head start. The point of differentiation for stores, as well as brands, needs to be honed, and the point of Whole Foods is category innovation and leadership, not just devotion to the organic or the natural. It’s creating the template and the trail; the others will follow eventually, but the margins will get slimmer while the purpose keeps getting stronger. The tail might be wagging the dog right now, but we know where the head is. It’s pointing forward.

Photo: "Whole Foods Market in the East Village of New York" by David Shankbone

Publisher’s Toast By Barry Nathanson

Pressing the Refresh Button

MAGAZINE www.bevnet.com/magazine Barry J. Nathanson PUBLISHER bnathanson@bevnet.com

Jeffrey Klineman EDITOR-IN-CHIEF jklineman@bevnet.com

Ray Latif MANAGING EDITOR rlatif@bevnet.com

Max Rothman STAFF WRITER mrothman@bevnet.com

Jon Landis STAFF WRITER jlandis@bevnet.com

Chris Furnari BREWBOUND EDITOR cfurnari@bevnet.com

David Eisenberg STAFF WRITER deisenberg@bevnet.com

SALES John McKenna DIRECTOR OF SALES jmckenna@bevnet.com

Adam Stern SENIOR ACCOUNT SPECIALIST astern@bevnet.com

John Fischer ACCOUNT SPECIALIST jfischer@bevnet.com

ART & PRODUCTION Matthew Kennedy CREATIVE DIRECTOR Aaron Willette SENIOR DESIGNER BEVNET.COM, INC. John F. (Jack) Craven CHAIRMAN

I just returned from another dynamic Expo East show. The bad part is that we were there during two beautiful pre-fall days in Baltimore, and we sadly had to spend them inside. The good part is that the show was all sunshine and flowers for the thousands in attendance. Over 100 beverage companies populated the halls, all with a story to tell and excitement to share. I’ll address my observations, but first I just want to touch upon something that is part of our new world food order that baffles me. I have been, and continue to be, perplexed with the plethora of “Gluten-Free” products that comprise the lion’s share of exhibitors. While I may be sorely undereducated, I struggle to understand why why there are so many products of this ilk when a microscopic percentage of our populace is afflicted with Celiac Disease. Shouldn’t there be an appropriate amount of brands to serve the people that actually need a gluten free diet? To me, the preponderance of these products is an overkill of huge proportions. We have always had diet fads and “hot” categories, but this takes the cake. Eating healthy should be the goal, but connecting it to an actual deficiency is silly. Create a regimen that eliminates wheat, 6 OCTOBER 2014 BEVNET MAGAZINE

but using Celiac Disease as the motivation makes no sense. There are enough innovative ways to market new brands, but this isn’t one of them. Enough said, on to the beverages. As I covered the halls, sampled the drinks and spoke to the companies, I was heartened by the number of brands that have hit the refresh button to keep themselves current. There were so many formulation tweaks, new SKUs and packages I thought my head might spin. So many marketers have made tremendous efforts to keep their brands relevant. The marketplace will obviously be the final judge, but to my eyes, many of the new looks, labels, graphics and proprietary packages seemed to be right on target. Cleaning up a mature brand gives it new energy and keeps it going forward. I was duly impressed by how many marketers took the time and effort to create a buzz. For the most part, the brands I sampled were improvements from their earlier incarnations, as they should be. Combined with the multitude of new sku’s introduced, creativity was the standard. I applaud these efforts. As we head into the heart of the 2015 sell-in period, there is a lot to offer. Marketers have done their homework; hopefully, they will be rewarded for their efforts. They’ve already got my attention.

jfcraven@bevnet.com

John Craven CEO & EDITORIAL DIRECTOR jcraven@bevnet.com

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Bevscape The latest news on the brands you sell

TITLE: The Audacity of Hops: The History of America’s Craft Beer Revolution

TITLE: Beyond the Pale: The Story of Sierra Nevada Brewing Co.

AUTHOR: Tom Acitelli

AUTHOR: Ken Grossman, Sierra Nevada Brewing founder

TYPE: Historical chronicle Read this… during your next cross-country flight

TYPE: Autobiographical narrative Read this… while quaffing back a pale ale at your favorite pub

FRESH INK The Latest Beer Books What’s the only thing better than being able to call yourself a professional brewer? Also being able to say that you’re a published author. So this month, we compiled a selection of must-reads for any beer industry professional.

TITLE: The Craft Beer Revolution AUTHOR: Steve Hindy, Brooklyn Brewery co-founder, former journalist TYPE: First person history lesson Read this… on your lunch break

TITLE: So You Want to Start a Brewery? The Lagunitas Story

TITLE: The Brewer’s Tale: A History of the World According to Beer

TITLE: Canned! Artwork of the Modern American Beer Can

AUTHOR: Tony Magee, Lagunitas Brewing Company founder and owner

AUTHOR: William Bostwick, author and beer critic

AUTHOR: Russ Phillips, creator of CraftCans.com

TYPE: Memoir

TYPE: Cultural history lesson

TYPE: Pictorial coffee table book

Read this… before you call it a night

Read this… during a long train ride

Read this… when you’re entertaining guests

EXECUTIVE BEER MOVES Changes at Tenth& Blake Coors Distributing Company president Scott Whitley has been tapped as the new CEO of MillerCoors’ craft and import division, Tenth and Blake Beer Company. Effective Oct. 1, Whitley will replace outgoing CEO Tom Cardella, who is retiring at the end of the year. In a note to employees, MillerCoors CEO Tom Long describes Whitley as a “uniquely qualified” veteran with more than 33 years in the beer industry. “As president of Coors Distributing Company in Denver since 2008, Scott has gained invaluable experience in growing a diverse portfolio of craft and import brands, including leading brands from Blue Moon Brewing Company and Jacob Leinenkugel Brewing Company,” the letter read. 8 OCTOBER 2014 BEVNET MAGAZINE

Tenth and Blake, whose headquarters are in Chicago, markets a variety of craft and import beverages including those from Blue Moon Brewing, Jacob Leinenkugel Brewing, Henry Weinhard’s, Pilsner Urquell, Peroni and Crispin Cider, among others. Whitley previously held a number of senior roles, including vice president of integration planning at MillerCoors, vice president of global strategy at Molson Coors and chief market development officer at Molson Coors Canada. Chris Kozina, the current chief of human resources at MillerCoors and the chairman of Coors Distributing’s board of directors, will succeed Whitley as the president of Coors Distributing Company.

Talking Rain Beverage Co. takes a Bold Step into the Tea Category with the introduction of Sparkling ICE Tea. This exciting new brand delivers the perfect blend of delicious fruit juice and refreshing iced tea in one rejuvenating, bubbly beverage. Each bottle is lightly carbonated includes real fruit juice, a special blend of brewed black & green tea, and is enhanced with vitamins & antioxidants. Sparkling ICE Tea makes drinking tea fun & refreshing!

Learn more at SPARKLINGICETEA.COM

BIG BEER IDEA Packaging Innovation of the Month In an effort to help re-launch its sessionable year-round offering Peacemaker Extra Pale as “Peacemaker Anytime Ale,” Austin Beerworks rolled out an enormous, Texas-sized 99-pack of the 5 percent ABV golden ale. Packaged in cardboard, the multi-pack is seven feet long, weighs 82 lbs., and sells for $99 at Austin package stores. “Peacemaker is a beer that we have always thought deserved more attention,” said Austin Beerworks co-founder Michael Graham. “We wanted to do something big to help reset people’s impression of it.” The brewery originally described Peacemaker as “extra pale” because of its color, but consumers were confusing the beer for a more hop-forward pale ale, which prompted the company to make a change and charge up the marketing behind it. Austin Beerworks turned to creative firm Helms Workshop, an Austin-based company that has also worked with Modern Times Beer and Fullsteam Brewery. The idea, Graham said, was born over a round of beers during the two companies’ weekly meeting. “Most of the ideas we end up executing are our ideas, but they [Helms Workshop] make them more polished and prettier than we ever could,” he said. “It’s been really helpful to have an outside perspective on things. We get so caught up in our little craft beer world and we lose sight of things sometimes.”

With the wheels in motion, Austin Beerworks then turned to one of its packaging suppliers, Pollock Paper, to help engineer a box that would not only grab people’s attention but also bear the load of 99 beers. The result? An elongated multi-pack that takes at least two people to carry. “They jumped at the chance to work on a special one-off project,” said Graham. “We could have created a much simpler box, but what makes this stand out is the awkward shape of it.”

MAKE A SPLASH! CREATE NEW BLENDS! Using Innovative R&D and new product development technologies, DMA creates customized formulas to design unique, original blends for the beverage industry. Ranging from sports drinks to functional smoothies, single ingredient unitizing to compound blending, DMA provides the production and industrial packaging capabilities to make the splash you want for your next product launch. An innovative industry leader in beverage formulating, compounding and aseptic packaging, DMA is . . . Simplifying Innovation.

Visit DMA online at DMaseptics.com or these upcoming tradeshows: • Brewbound San Diego 2014, Dec 4 • BevNET Live Winter 14, Dec 8-9

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Bevscape DEALTIME Big Red Buys Xyience Big Red Ltd., an independent soda company based in Austin, Texas, has acquired Xyience, a zero-calorie energy drink brand best known for its longstanding relationship with the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). As part of the deal, Xyience, currently based in Las Vegas, will end its partnership with the UFC and focus on a broader demographic of healthy consumers. The financial terms of the deal have not been disclosed. Gary Smith, the CEO of Big Red, whose prime asset is its long-running, eponymous soda brand, said that Xyience’s national footprint was an important factor in the acquisition. ‘They’ve done a really good job of building out distributors all over the country and retailers all over the country,” he said. Smith said that he will preserve the brand’s existing distribution partnerships, such as the recently announced deals with Canada Dry New York, Davis Beverage Group andPolar Beverages. The brand also has deep ties with both MillerCoors and Anheuser-Busch distribution companies, such as Hensley Beverage Company in Arizona.

12 OCTOBER 2014 BEVNET MAGAZINE

Under Smith, Big Red has gradually acquired a portfolio of brands, including Thomas Kemper Soda and energy water HyDrive, but Xyience is by far the largest brand the company has picked up. The brand had approximately $45 million in sales, according to IRI numbers for the 52week period ending May 24, 2014, although those figures don’t include vendors like gymnasiums and GNCand Vitamin Shoppe-type stores, where it has claimed robust growth. The brand’s position as the leader of an independent chase pack of energy drinks not named Monster, Rockstar or Red Bull was a remarkable turnaround story following years of shaky finances. Under the ownership of the Fertitta brothers, who own Zuffa, the sports promotion company that runs the UFC, Xyience began a gradual ascent led largely by VP of sales Reuben Rios, one of the few holdovers from the brand’s preFertitta ownership, and eventually by John Lennon, a president and veteran of the beer industry brought on in November 2010 to help fill out its distribution footprint. Under Big Red ownership, that footprint may change. The Dr Pepper Snapple Group (DPSG) has a 15 percent stake in Big Red and handles about 75 percent of the distribution for Big Red and HyDrive. Considering those ties, the deal led to immediate questions about shifting some of the distribution responsibilities for Xyience more heavily into the DPSG system. While Smith said that there are certain territories that could be potential DPSG locations, Big Red won’t abandon any existing distribution partnerships. “I don’t know,” he said of DPSG distribution for Xyience. “I think it’s a bit premature to have those conversations.” Smith said that, for now, Xyience will keep its current headquarters in Las Vegas.

Essentia Scores with Private Equity Finishing its second round of fundraising in less than a year, fast-growing Essentia Water announced that it had reached a deal to sell a partial ownership stake to private equity firm Castanea Partners. First Beverage Ventures, the private equity fund run by First Beverage Group, was also an investor in the deal. Essentia CEO Ken Uptain would not comment on the amount raised by the company in the transaction. Under the terms of the deal, Castanea partner Troy Stanfield will take a board seat, joining Uptain and former CFO Keith Huetson as board members. Castanea, which focuses largely on consumer ventures, was also an investor in Fuze before that company was bought out by Coke. “We started networking about a year ago to narrow it down to the right fit,” Uptain said. “We liked the company, the culture, and Troy — they seemed to bring a lot of back-room expertise, and they’re encouraging us to think as big as we can, to be as aggressive as we can be.” Uptain told BevNET that the combined expertise of Castanea and First Beverage should help the company as it continues its expansion. He cited First Beverage executives Tom First and Jason Camillos as adding operational experience in addition to financing due to their long history in the beverage business, including Nantucket Nectars, where First was co-founder. Currently, the company is projected to reach approximately $20 million in sales across natural and conventional channels this year, according to a combination of SPINS and Nielsen retail sales data. Sales are up more than 60 percent for Essentia this year, according to the company. According to the company’s VP of Strategy, Neil Kimberley, the majority of the brand’s growth – 60 percent – is coming from same store sales, while 40 percent is coming from distribution growth.

The next step for Essentia is growing its mainstream retail footprint, according to Uptain. The company is currently in less than 20 percent of that channel, but is continuing to fill out a DSD footprint that will allow it support both grocery, and, eventually, convenience stores, according to Kimberley. To bring the company closer to mainstream consumers, one slight pivot that has taken place is the brand proposition, which has gradually migrated from stressing the brand’s high alkalinity to its place as a hydration vehicle; this year, it has added the tagline “Hydration Perfected.”

Photo courtesy of Essentia

BEVNET MAGAZINE OCTOBER 2014

New Products

Nesquik Girl Scouts Caramel Coconut flavors. Naturally and artificially flavored, the limited-edition products are distributed nationally and retail for $1.99 for a 14 oz. bottle. For more information, please call Nestle USA at (781) 356-4000.

The newest options for cooler and shelf

Juice Coffee ITO EN North America has launched four new varieties to its Jay Street Coffee line, which is brewed with 100% Arabica Coffee and milk coming from dairy herds that have not been treated with rBST. Extra Rich Jay Street Coffee is richer and creamier than the original Jay Street flavors, according to the company, and is available in three flavors: Caramel Macchiato, Hazelnut and Mocha. The drinks contain 150 calories per 9.1 oz. bottle and retail for $1.99. Jay Street Coffee Shot is unsweetened, contains zero calories and includes 150 mg of caffeine per 6.4 oz. steel can.

Kombucha Reed's, Inc. has added a coffee variety to its Reed's Culture Club Kombucha line. The product is made using a proprietary process that blends brewed organic coffee and Reed’s kombucha. The new drink is line-priced at $3.49 for a 13.5 oz. bottle and sold nationwide in natural food stores and mainstream grocery stores across the U.S. For more information, please call Reed’s at (310) 217-9400.

Milk Dean Foods has launched TruMoo Protein Plus milk. The product is made with real milk and contains no artificial growth hormones and no high fructose corn syrup. The drink has 25 grams of protein in each 14 oz. bottle and also contains calcium, vitamins A, D and B12, riboflavin, phosphorus and potassium. It is available in the dairy case at grocery, convenience and drug stores nationwide, in chocolate and vanilla flavors and has a suggested retail price of $1.99$2.29. For more information, please call Dean Foods at (214) 721-7766. As part of a licensing relationship with Girl Scouts of the USA, Nestle USA has launched new Nesquik Girl Scouts Thin Mints and 14 OCTOBER 2014 BEVNET MAGAZINE

Evolution Fresh has launched two new varieties in its line of cold-pressed, high pressure processed juices. Organic Splendid Carrot is made with carrots, orange, pineapple, chia seed powder, cucumber, ginger and turmeric. Organic Avocado Greens is a juice smoothie made with avocado, pineapple, orange, spinach, romaine, kale, cucumber and turmeric. The new products are packaged in 15.2 oz. plastic bottles and sold exclusively at Whole Foods for a suggested retail price of $4.99-$5.99. For more information, please call Starbucks at (206) 318-7100. Honeydrop Beverages, a producer of freshbrewed teas and natural juices made with pure honey has launched a new two-SKU line of cold-pressed juices made with medicinal honey. The company’s Lemon Cayenne Cleanse product is made with a tablespoon of raw local honey sourced from local beekeepers from New York, New Jersey and Connecticut while its Apple, Ginger Lemon beverage is made with raw Manuka Honey sourced from New Zealand and is often referred to as “nature's antibiotic.” Each 10 oz. bottle contains a tablespoon of local raw honey or Manuka honey, is glutenfree, GMO-free, and contains active enzymes, vitamins, minerals and antioxidants. The new juices are available in Whole Foods, Fairway and other natural and gourmet stores in New York, New Jersey and Connecticut and retail for $6.99-$9.99. For more information, please call Honeydrop at (646) 942-8058.

Tea Tea In First is a new, all-natural, ready-todrink spiced chai. The beverage is made with tea, farm fresh milk and natural spices (cardamom, cinnamon, cloves, ginger, and black pepper). The product is distributed in metro New York City and Boston and sold in select natural food stores, bakeries and convenience stores. The chai has a suggested retail price of $2.50 for a 9.5 oz. bottle. For more information, please call Tea in First at (617) 319-5774.

ITO EN has added several new varieties to its TEAS’ TEA line. TEAS’ TEA Unsweetened Herbal Chamomile is a new caffeine-free, zero-calorie herbal tea with a blend of chamomile flowers, peppermint and lemongrass. TEAS’ TEA Sweetened Hibiscus Green is freshly brewed with premium green tea leaves and dried hibiscus petals and is sweetened with cane sugar. TEAS’ TEA Sweetened Pomegranate & Blueberry Green Tea is made with freshly brewed premium green tea and a blend of pomegranate and blueberry. Both sweetened products are made with cane sugar and contain 120 calories per 16.9 oz. bottle. The company has also introduced its first organic teas, which come in two varieties: black tea and green tea. Both products USDA certified organic, unsweetened and contain zero calories. TEAS’ Tea beverages are packaged in 16.9 oz. bottles and distributed across the U.S. with a suggested retail price of $1.99. For more information, please call ITO En at (707) 327-6413.

Mixers Mocktail Beverages has launched a new line of low-calorie non-alcoholic cocktails. The new ready-to-drink products can be served chilled straight from their own unique shaker bottle and consumed with or without alcohol. Flavors include: Karma Sucra Cosmopolitan, The Vida Loca Margarita, Sevilla Red Sangria, and Scottish Lemonade Whiskey Sour. The drinks contain no artificial colors or flavors and are made without high fructose corn syrup or preservatives. Mocktails are distributed at select retailers throughout New England and have a suggested retail price of $12.99 for a 18 oz. bottle. For more information, please call Mocktails at (855) 662-5824.

Wine Delicato Family Vineyards has launched Juxtapoz, a new red wine blend.Crafted by Napa Valley winemaker John Killebrew, the inaugural 2012 vintage features a blend of Syrah, Zinfandel, Petite Sirah, Malbec and Cabernet Sauvignon, with more than 76 percent of the grapes hailing from Napa Valley. The wine is available for national distribution with a suggested retail price of $24.99. For more information, please call Delicato Family Vineyards at (707) 265-1767. Black Stallion Estate Winery has launched the inaugural release of Transcendent Napa

Valley Cabernet Sauvignon. A blend of 89 percent Cabernet Sauvignon and 11 percent Merlot, the wine features a master blend of the vintage’s top vineyard lots from Napa Valley’s most prestigious appellations. All grapes identified for Transcendent consideration were handharvested and fermented separately. The 2010 vintage has a suggested retail price of $135 for a 750 mL bottle. For more information, please call Black Stallion at (707) 227-3250.

Whiskey Jim Beam has released two new expressions as part of its limited release, small batch Signature Craft line: Jim Beam Signature Craft Quarter Cask and Jim Beam Harvest Bourbon Collection. Quarter Cask is the third edition from the Jim Beam Signature Craft line and second limited-edition expression. This Kentucky Straight Bourbon is bottled at 86 proof, and made with Jim Beam Bourbon that is aged at least five years and then finished with a variety of fine quarter cask bourbons, and all aged at least four years in smaller barrels. The whiskey is available in select bars and retailers nationwide and has a suggested retail price of $39.99 for a 750 mL bottle. Harvest Bourbon Collection is a series of six hand-crafted bourbons designed to celebrate the distinctive tastes imparted by the distillation of different grains, according to the company. Bottled at 90 proof, Jim Beam Signature Craft Soft Red Wheat is made with soft red wheat from Kentucky and Indiana and aged for 11 years. Also bottled at 90 proof, Jim Beam Signature Craft Brown Rice contains a taste of toasted grain with sweet oak and rich vanilla flavors from its 11 years of aging. The whiskies are available in select bars and retailers nationwide and have a suggested retail price of $49.99 for a 375 mL bottle. For more information, please call Beam Suntory at (847) 444-7657. Tap Rye Sherry Finished 8 Year Old is an eight-year-old Canadian rye whisky blended with Spanish Amontillado Sherry that is handcrafted in small batches at the oldest distillery in Western Canada and finished in small quantities in Quebec by Master Blender Michel Marcel. The whisky is distilled multiple times using a pot still and continuous distillation from a reserve blend before it is placed in casks for eight years. Once the whisky has come of age, the rye is finished by Marcel with a small amount of Amontillado Sherry and placed in charred white oak bourbon barrels from North America where it rests for no less than 60 days. BEVNET MAGAZINE OCTOBER 2014

New Products The spirit is then bottled in Bruni glass and cork-finished. The spirit is sold nationally for a suggested retail price of $39.99 for a 750 mL bottle. For more information, please call Van Gogh Imports at (888) 539-3361. The Sons of Liberty Spirits Co. has released its 2014 Pumpkin Spice Whiskey. The distillery used 30,000 lbs. of pumpkin that was cut, cored, roasted and pressed by hand to create hundreds of gallons of fresh pumpkin juice that was blended with the whiskey. The spirit is then infused with traditional autumn spices: clove, allspice, vanilla, cinnamon and sweet orange. The product has a suggested retail price of $28-$30 for a 375 mL bottle and $48-$50 for a 750 mL bottle and is sold in select retailers in Rhode Island and Massachusetts. For more information, please call Sons of Liberty at (401) 284-4006. Michter's Distillery has released a new limitededition whiskey. US*1 Toasted Barrel Finish Bourbon uses two different barrels to age the bourbon. For this one-time release, Michter's barrel ages the spirit as usual to full maturation and then transfers it for an additional period of time to a special custom made barrel for finishing. Constructed from wood staves that have been cured by 18 months of air-drying, this unique finishing barrel is toasted for a precise amount of time, but never charred like a typical bourbon barrel. Bottled at 91.4 proof, the whiskey has a suggested retail price of $48 per 750 mL bottle and is sold in select retailers. For more information, please call Michter's at (502) 774-2300.

Gin Anchor Distilling Company introduces Anchor Old Tom Gin, the third style of small-batch gin produced by the distillery. Though produced with the traditional botanicals star anise and licorice root, the new gin also includes stevia. The 90 proof spirit has a classical juniper nose with hints of sweetness, star anise, and licorice on the mid palate with a subtle but sweet and pleasing finish, according to the company. Anchor Old Tom has a suggested retail price of $29.95 for a 750 mL bottle. For more information, please call Anchor Distilling at (415) 863-8350. 35 Maple Street Spirits has launched Uncle Val’s Restorative Gin, which joins the company’s line-up of rum and whiskies. With 16 OCTOBER 2014 BEVNET MAGAZINE

flavors of Juniper, cucumber, lemon, sage and lavender, the gin is named after company president August Sebastian’s Uncle Valerio. Uncle Val’s is available for a suggested retail price of $39 for a 750 mL. bottle and is distributed nationally at select retailers. Purple Valley Imports has introduced Mahon Gin from Spain. Arriving in America for the first time, the spirit is one of only three geographically designated gins in the world. First produced in 1708, the gin is produced in small batches, using centuries’ old wood fired copper stills and a long held secret botanicals recipe by the owning Pons family. Bottled in traditional 1 L caneta-style bottles, the product is available in select markets for a suggested retail price of $47.99. For more information, please call Purple Valley at (704) 497-2793.

Vodka CIROC Ultra Premium Vodka has added a new pineapple flavor. CIROC Pineapple offers a juicy, perfectly ripened pineapple flavor with a subtle hint of vanilla and silky smooth finish, according to the company. The 70 proof vodka is available in 50 mL, 200 mL, 375 mL, and 750 mL, along with 1 L and 1.75 L sizes and has a suggested retail price of $34.99 for a 750 mL bottle. For more information, please call Diageo at (203) 229-4876. Pinnacle CranApple Vodka is the latest addition to the line brand’s line of premium flavored vodkas. The spirit blends flavors of tart cranberries and sweet green apples in a 70 proof, five-time distilled vodka. It is available nationwide at a suggested retail price of $12.99 for a 750 mL bottle. For more information, please call Beam Suntory at (847) 444-7844.

Other Spirits Glendalough Poitin has launched in the U.S. Poitín is the first spirit ever distilled, with earliest records from approx. 584 A.D. in Ireland, according to the manufacturer. Glendalough markets three varieties: Premium Irish Poitin, Sherry Cask Poitin and Mountain Strength Poitin. The products are distributed in Massachusetts and New York and retail for $29.99-$36.99, depending on variety. For more information, please call Glendalough at (617) 599-0955.

Avuá Cachaça has introduced Avuá Cachaça Oak. The single-sourced cachaça is made with a family recipe honed over three generations and distilled in a copper-crafted alembic still. The spirit is matured for up to two years in French oak casks, producing a mix of vanilla and banana notes on both the nose and palate, according to the company. The 40 proof cachaça and has a suggested retail price of $49.99 for a 750 mL bottle and is available in New York, Boston, Washington, DC, San Francisco, Miami and Los Angeles. For more information, please call Wagstaff Worldwide at (212) 227-7575. Hawaii Sea Spirits LLC, the maker of Ocean Organic Vodka, has launched Deep Island Hawaiian Rum. Made from organic sugar cane and blended with deep ocean mineral water, the rum is produced at the company’s farm and distillery in Kula, Maui, Hawai‘i. The 80 proof white rum has a suggested price of of $33.95. It is distributed in Hawai‘i and will be available for sale in the continental U.S. beginning in 2015. For more information, please call Hawaii Sea Spirits at (808) 205-4767. SomPriya Fine Spirits, LLC has introduced SomruS. Literally translated as “Nectar of The Gods” from ancient India, SomruS is an intricate blend of eastern spices, nuts and cream, combined with premium Caribbean rum. The product is all-natural, gluten-free and Kosher. The cordial is packaged in a gold-coated custom-made glass bottle that draws inspiration from an ancient Indian decanter. Distributed in Illinois, New Jersey and New York. SomruS has a suggested retail price per $24.99-$29 for a750 mL bottle. For more information, please call SomPriya at (630) 699-7974. Espolòn Añejo is a new tequila designed by Master Distiller Cirilo Oropeza. The spirit is made by finishing white oak-aged tequila in heavily charred American bourbon barrels allowing the liquid to take on the complex, rich flavor for which bourbon whiskey is best known. The traditional Día de Los Muertos-style imagery on each bottle depicts significant moments in Mexican history and pays homage to the brave men and women who fought to establish modern day Mexico. The bottle celebrates the Jarabe de Jalisco, also known as Mexican Hat Dance. Espolòn Añejo is the third expression in the company’s portfolio, and the 80 proof spirit is available nationally for $34.99 for a 750 mL bottle. For more information, please call Campari America at (415) 315-8000. BEVNET MAGAZINE OCTOBER 2014

Channel Check

SPOTLIGHT CATEGORY

Iced Coffee SOURCE: Symphony/IRI Total food/drug/c-store/mass. 52 Weeks through 9/7/14

What’s hot & what’s not in stores now

Starbucks Iced Coffee has quickly fallen in with the brand’s other strong performers (all part of the Pepsi/Starbucks partnership) at the top of the rankings. Among the new and intrepid, Coco Cafe is the tallest of the small, while Illy is showing positive growth and also indexing in the refrigerated section with another $3 million or so not included here. Still, it’s a long way to the top.

Brand

Dollar Sales

Change vs. year earlier

Starbucks Frappuccino

$807,485,504

9.05%

Starbucks Doubleshot

$380,320,352

8.88%

Starbucks

$75,124,144

48.55%

Starbucks Frappuccino Light

$25,841,136

-3.99%

Starbucks Doubleshot Light

$10,881,639

9.56%

Coco Cafe

$6,950,813

89.90%

Illy Issimo

$6,679,527

51.10%

Private Label

$6,112,022

-16.91%

Marleys One Drop

$2,015,338

57.00%

Realbeanz

$882,018

-5.98%

Madrinas

$579,675

3.31%

Rockstar Roasted

$379,106

N/A

Grumpy Cat

$305,481

N/A

Bustelo

$216,394

-24.25%

KLR BZ

$194,531

12.30%

Cold Stone Creamery

$168,520

-50.23%

Krispy Kreme

$157,468

N/A

Main St Cafe

$141,978

42.03%

AriZona Coco Zona

$138,662

-15.97%

Byrne Dairy

$113,384

-0.13%

TOPLINE CATEGORY VOLUME BEER

$31,456,726,817

4.1%

BOTTLED JUICES

$6,845,906,432

-1.48%

BOTTLED WATER

$12,162,504,704

4.72%

ENERGY DRINKS

$10,414,561,280

5.24%

DRINK MIXES

$908,543,936

-5.80%

TEA/COFFEE

$4,448,832,512

6.10%

SOURCE: Symphony/IRI Total food/drug/c-store/mass. 52 Weeks through 9/7/14

18 OCTOBER 2014 BEVNET MAGAZINE

Channel Check ENERGY DRINKS Brand Red Bull Monster

HOT! Monster Zero Ultra Dollar Sales

Change vs. year earlier

$3,650,000,896 $1,311,171,584

9.93%

Monster Zero Ultra

$331,968,480

42.53%

NOS

$327,330,656

17.40%

Monster Rehab

$320,547,648

-11.00%

Java Monster

$304,851,904

9.90%

Rockstar

$299,261,760

1.65%

Monster Lo Carb

$297,436,256

-9.74%

Monster Mega

$243,648,768

4.15%

Monster Absolute Zero

$186,017,120

-20.40%

SOURCE: Symphony/IRI Total food/drug/c-store/mass. 52 Weeks through 9/7/14

NOT! Monster Absolute Zero

BOTTLED WATER Brand Private Label

HOT! Glaceau Smartwater

Dollar Sales

Change vs. year earlier

$1,946,905,344

7.84%

Dasani

$972,603,264

4.54%

Aquafina

$904,343,488

3.24%

Nestle Pure Life

$899,015,104

-1.42%

Glaceau Smartwater

$620,713,152

15.73%

Poland Spring

$568,576,576

2.52%

Glaceau Vitaminwaer

$510,875,584

-13.86%

Deer Park

$417,206,336

3.20%

Ozarka

$334,394,784

6.40%

Fiji

$248,610,016

5.04%

SOURCE: Symphony/IRI Total food/drug/c-store/mass. 52 Weeks through 9/7/14

NOT! Glaceau Vitaminwater

TEA

HOT! Lipton Pure Leaf

Brand

Dollar Sales

AriZona

$661,032,320

-0.40%

$386,966,720

48.69%

Lipton Pure Leaf

Change vs. year earlier

Lipton Brisk

$343,257,792

2.12%

Lipton

$275,711,008

5.04%

AriZona Arnold Palmer

$217,101,408

-5.40%

Snapple

$208,793,712

0.69%

$204,488,384

-9.23%

Diet Snapple

$182,234,832

-5.67%

Gold Peak

$155,504,752

17.57%

Peace Tea

$74,966,704

-7.46%

Diet Lipton

SOURCE: Symphony/IRI Total food/drug/c-store/mass. 52 Weeks through 9/7/14

20 OCTOBER 2014 BEVNET MAGAZINE

7.90%

NOT! Diet Lipton

SPORTS DRINKS Brand Gatorade Perform

HOT! Gatorade Fierce Dollar Sales

Change vs. year earlier

$3,145,841,920

1.54%

Powerade ION4

$792,180,864

-11.19%

Gatorade Frost

$437,064,608

23.56%

Gatorade G2 Perform

$408,093,152

-18.40%

Gatorade

$202,509,904

45.56%

Powerad

$194,318,144

166.02%

Powerade Zero ION4

$192,916,160

-0.97%

Gatorade Fierce

$137,855,456

521.46%

Gatorade G2

$42,287,648

-9.41%

Gatorade X Factor

$25,863,406

-2.57%

SOURCE: Symphony/IRI Total food/drug/c-store/mass. 52 Weeks through 9/7/14

NOT! Gatorade G2 Perform

SPARKLING WATER

HOT! Glaceau Fruitwater

Brand

Dollar Sales

Change vs. year earlier

Sparkling Ice

$369,808,416

Private Label

$274,623,264

7.08%

Perrier

$172,431,040

12.29%

San Pellegrino

42.19%

$145,389,504

13.93%

La Croix

$88,507,552

27.93%

Glaceau Fruitwater

$45,507,320

53.66%

Topo Chico

$35,771,544

13.84%

Poland Spring

$27,333,758

5.55%

Schweppes

$26,426,848

152.52%

Cascade Ice

$23,941,356

-2.22%

SOURCE: Symphony/IRI Total food/drug/c-store/mass. 52 Weeks through 9/7/14

NOT! Cascade Ice

DOMESTIC BEER Brand Bud Light

HOT! Michelob Ultra Light Dollar Sales $6,070,282,435

Change vs. year earlier 1.1%

Coors Light

$2,378,615,681

Budweiser

$2,129,342,175

-1.2%

Miller Lite

$1,918,119,496

-0.1%

Natural Light

$1,127,668,014

-5.3%

Michelob Ultra Light

$872,787,382

12.2%

Busch Light

$833,198,636

1.2%

Busch

$654,279,130

-2.6%

Keystone Light

$475,115,259

-4.8%

Miller High Life

$463,508,696

-4.8%

SOURCE: Symphony/IRI Total food/drug/c-store/mass. 52 Weeks through 9/7/14

-0.9%

NOT! Natural Light

BEVNET MAGAZINE OCTOBER 2014

Gerry’s Insights

Khermouch on Kombucha

By Gerry Khermouch

It may be hard to imagine how, just a few short years ago, even to an informed readership like BevNET’s, kombucha was just a curiosity. The fermented tea product was the domain of a single significant player, was beset by misunderstandings (that it’s made from mushrooms and the like) and rarely was encountered outside its mainstay natural-foods retail habitat. I remember trying to convince a former colleague of mine who was at the Financial Times to do a story: after all, kombucha had so many quirks, it should be the perfect vehicle for his British editors to indulge their penchant for lampooning Americans and our weird byways. (And besides, Lindsey Lohan was detoxing with the stuff, so there was some celebrity bait too.) My friend duly made his pitch, but even with those lures – too obscure, he was told. It would be premature to deem kombucha mainstream yet but boy are things changing. It’s certainly moving into some mainstream accounts, though whether those shoppers flock to it or not remains to be seen. Live Soda Kombucha is hitting 1,500 Target stores with its hybrid kombucha sodas that mimick brands like Dr Pepper; Reed’s Inc. is using its grocery clout to place its Reed’s Culture Club kombucha into mainline grocers, and Bucha has entered some Costco stores. The category pioneer and leader, GT’s, has started selling kegs of the stuff, tapping growing on-premise interest. Among traditional grocers, those in hotbed markets, like Ralphs in Southern California, are taking a flier on four or five brands, mingling national brands with local and regional ones, much as grocers like to do with craft beers. Kombucha is also crossing over into other categories, not just soda as with Live, and into beer, via players like Unity Vibration and Beyond Kombucha. (It may only be a matter of time before the Brewing Association adopts kombucha beers as a separate judging category at the Great American Beer Festival.) A North Carolina brand called Buchi even has frozen its booch into sorbet that’s available in nearby Whole Foods stores. As with craft beer, some early-adopter markets like Portland, Ore., are offering a glimpse of how far the category can go: last time I passed through Portland’s airport about a year and a half ago, I counted four different kombucha brands for sale in the concessions. Meanwhile, almost all players are adopting formulations that move away from a tart vinegar bite in favor of more approachable palates. Given the premium pricing, local sourcing and avid followings of many brands, it’s exciting to see this category flourish. As with craft beer, ardent homebrewers swap recipes and share their mother cultures, and increasing numbers of bars and restaurants are offering kombucha by the bottle or on draft. By now, the segment even is a year into having its own trade group, the Kombucha Brewers International, with every sizable player up to GT’s represented. There seems to be a lot of momentum to ride. 22 OCTOBER 2014 BEVNET MAGAZINE

But there are quite a few challenges ahead, too, before kombucha can be said to have truly conquered mainstream markets. As I detailed in a recent column in this space on exciting refrigerated segments – not just kombucha, but HPP juices and cold-brewed coffee –distribution remains a bottleneck. True, there are ample numbers of dairy distributors and broadliners with refrigerated capacity, but if kombucha – and those other segments – are to develop into truly high-velocity categories, more classic DSD distributors like beer houses and Snapple distributorships are going to need to get in the game. Some have refrigerated warehouses now, thanks in part to their expanding craft beer portfolios, but most don’t have refrigerated trucks. Kombucha proponents generally seem to feel that, as the category proves its mettle, those accoutrements will come. Another hurdle: kombucha is an exceedingly tricky product to produce, particularly at scale and with consistency. Right now, most producers opt to make it themselves, but perhaps we’ll see some diligent copackers come into this market to ease both the capital burden and reduce the shipping lanes of brands that choose to go big and broad. Participants are nervously watching the entry of institutional capital into the segment: these investors can support the expansions, but will they be patient enough not to meddle with the brands’ authenticity? And while few folks care to talk about it publicly, there’s also the thorny area of compliance: for some people, their first awareness about kombucha arose four years ago when Whole Foods pulled the entire category after several brands were found to contain unacceptable levels of alcohol. (At the time, having heard the rumors, my newsletter was both amused and appalled that Lohan had chosen one of the believed offenders as her detoxing agent.) Progress has been made on that front, but it’s pretty clear that compliance is not universal. Beyond the alcohol issue, some players privately grumble that a few brands are understating their calorie content as well, in a way that tilts the playing field in their favor. Another labeling issue: many players like to present themselves as raw, to distinguish themselves from pasteurized entries that are lower in flavor and efficacy, but given kombucha’s origins in a tea that must initially be steeped, is the “raw” label likely to draw the attention of a hyperactive plaintiff ’s bar? Given the category’s momentum, nobody wants to act as a whistle-blower on their peers and risk destabilizing the entire category again, but these are all topics that producers as an industry will have to work out before kombucha truly is ready for prime time. Longtime beverage-watcher Gerry Khermouch is executive editor of Beverage Business Insights, a twice-weekly e-newsletter covering the nonalcoholic beverage sector. Photo: “Kombucha Mature” by original uploader Mgarten at en.wikipedia

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By Max Rothman As various kinds of water innovation continue to surface in the beverage marketplace, broad modifiers are becoming harder to use. “Functional” or “Enhanced” water means a lot of things these days. You’ve got prenatal supplements. Vitaminenhanced beverages with cap technology. A water that cleanses. Water from trees, health claims or no claims at all. As water’s identity continues to shift, we take a look 24 OCTOBER 2014 BEVNET MAGAZINE

at a few of the emerging subcategories and gauge their progress and challenges. Beverages for Bumps Stacy Rauen, mother of one blond, plumpcheeked boy named Jack, and her second pregnancy underway, knows how women like her view health. As the belly expands, so too does the consciousness, the desire to optimize motherhood in any fathomable way.

“You start to really look at everything that you put into your body,” she said. But that doesn’t make prenatal vitamins any easier to tolerate. They’re often of the horse pill breed. They can have an unpleasant taste and be tough to stomach. The alternatives, mostly in powder form, are limited and hardly attractive. As a mother looking for a supplement to prenatal vitamins, hoping to help other

9.5pH

pregnant women while she’s at it, Rauen launched Bump Water in February. She did so alongside Amber Wilcox, a mother of two, and their husbands Jon Rauen and Spencer Wilcox (who met while flying helicopters in the Navy). Bump Water, based in Brooklyn, N.Y., offers folic acid to pregnant women and those soonto-be. Folic acid has been known to prevent miscarriage and neural tube defects, which refer to a baby’s brain, spine and spinal cord. The beverage, available in sparkling and soon flat formats, as well as fullcalorie and low-calorie, is offered in five flavors: Cranberry Ginger, Lemonade, Pomegranate Mixed Berry, Strawberry Lemonade and Lemon Lime. It also contains Vitamins A, B6, B12, D and E, calcium, niacin, biotin, zinc and magnesium. Rauen and her team comprehend their target demographic and market the product accordingly. Bump Water doesn’t hide from its purpose. Depending on your interpretation, the logo is a water drop, a protruding belly or both. The brand and the packaging embody simplicity and a straightforward message. “We wanted to be upfront of what we are,” Rauen said. Despite prevailing opinion, targeting a niche market isn’t always the worst thing. The product has already sold well in spots around the borough, including Brooklyn Harvest Market. Rauen is already talking with major retailers about wider distribution. Bump Water welcomes the competition that helps further establish such a nascent category. Bundle Oragnics, which debuted the same month, is a juice line that packs folic acid and omega-3s. Hey Mama Brands, launched just a few months before Bump Water and Bundle Organics, comes in herbal tea form. Rauen, confident at this significant juncture in the promise of her brand and the category, believes she’s onto more than just marketing proactivity. During

26 OCTOBER 2014 BEVNET MAGAZINE

the anticipatory days of powders, vitamin pills and self-consciousness, she’s marketing a sense of normalcy. “It makes you feel a little bit more normal to have something that you can pick off the shelf,” she said. Pushing Along A beverage lifer in the truest sense, C.J. Rapp, the CEO of Karma Culture LLC, knows how to spread an idea. In the mid-1980s, he founded Jolt Cola — often cited as the original energy drink — and drew attention from USA Today before he had a second distributor. He holds longstanding relationships with the same beer distributors that broke into new age, non-alcoholic beverages with Jolt as their earliest partner. But even with his connections and resumé, Rapp’s current project, Karma Wellness Water, is still searching for more attention in the U.S. In Canada, you can find Karma all over — Costco, Walmart, Whole Foods, 7-11. Through a distribution partnership with Lassonde, which Rapp said trails only The Coca-Cola Co. and PepsiCo in Canada, consumers have been able to grow with the technology. Karma’s cap enables its users to mix vitamins into the beverage for “maximum potency and peak freshness.” The company uses three words to guide the consumer through the cap process: peel, push, shake. And after tons of demos and enough shelf space throughout the country, Rapp said that Karma has made its way up north. The challenges for Karma in the U.S. are twofold, he said. The first is teaching

consumers how to work the cap. The three words don’t solve that problem yet. But perhaps the biggest problem is rooted in the state of the beverage industry. “It’s more difficult than ever to build a brand from the bottom up,” he said. Competition has reached unprecedented levels. Beer distributors are often unable to even consider small, emerging brands from the non-alcoholic side. Rapp said that the category’s weakness has likely hampered Karma as well. Activate Drinks, which uses a twist-cap technology, seems like Karma’s biggest competition, but Activate endured a volatile period of shifting executives and distribution plans before co-founder Anders Eisner sold the brand in July. Other cap innovators include 989 On Demand and Tea of a Kind, but these brands are at earlier stages. Rapp plans to license his cap technology to a big-time brand in the U.S. It’s already used by Prosupps, a pre-workout formula, but he’s thinking about a larger scale. He thinks distributors in the U.S. are noticing Karma’s success in Canada, and hopes to strike a deal with one of them. From there, Rapp will follow a formula he knows so well. “When we do enough demos, we start to see the traction, we reach a foundational level of sales,” he said. “And then we start to see some steady growth.” Maple Water Seeks Identity The maple water category has drawn plenty of industry attention for its alluring concept, its tough-to-project scale and its functional benefits, which vary depending on whom you ask. Len Boyko, the CEO of BetterSweet Drinks Inc., which markets BetterSweet Maple Water, refrains from touting functional benefits above all else. His maple water may be good for you, sure, but he believes in refreshment over function. He thinks maple water has enough going for it that the category won’t require claims to succeed.

“I don’t think it needs to be a functional beverage,” he said. “Just enjoy your drink. It doesn’t need to do anything.” This singular philosophy presents an interesting question: which identity — functional or refreshing — gives the maple water category the best chance to grow? Competing brands like Vertical Water, Seva, DRINKmaple, Happy Tree Maple Water and KiKi Maple Sweet Water have all touted functional benefits — from bone health via manganese, to help with digestion, immunity levels and the metabolism. Boyko believes that many of these claims are hard to back up and, in turn, these brands have hurt the credibility of the maple water category. Yet, they’ve also helped establish it as more than a one- or two-horse race. Vertical Water, which recently announced its non-GMO verification, can be found across the country at about 400 traditional and natural grocers including Sprouts Farmers Market, Wegmans, Whole Foods as well as Kroger and the branches in its umbrella. BetterSweet is working through Giant

Eagle stores in the Midwest and the East Coast. The brand recently partnered with JW Sales and Associates to serve as a broker for these markets. but seeks a wider footprint with a simple message. Functional Without Flavor Balance Water is aiming to debunk a common misunderstanding of beverage consumers: Non-flavored water can still be functional, says co-founder Martin Chalk. The brand’s latest release, Balance Cleanse, is a premium spring water made with four different kinds of Australian wildflowers. According to the company, the product imparts a gentle diuretic effect, helping consumers purify their body much like the marketed benefits of a lemon-cayenne juice cleanse. The botanicals are hand-picked in various parts of Australia, shipped to the U.S. and added to spring water from Sierra Nevada, Calif. and the Catskills in New York. With Whole Foods in mind, Chalk said: “we can be local in California and local in New York.”

Kroger, the massive retailer with an eye on the latest in beverage innovation, is betting that consumers will connect the dots — that Balance Cleanse offers refreshment with the functionality of flowers not found in most bottles of water. Chalk said that Kroger never would have brought on Balance without the company’s proven following through same-store sales. While Chalk is going after Smartwater consumers, he did mention the benefits of alkaline water brands sprouting across the country. Brands like NEO and Alkaline Water Co. have a higher pH than Balance and build their brands around the benefits of electrolytes and premium hydration. Yet, even with the marketing differences, the many alkaline water brands of the beverage industry are pushing that same concept that Chalk thinks can elevate his brand into mainstream relevance. It’s one thing to get on the shelf, it’s another to get pulled off. Alongside alkaline waters, even with their differing traits, these brands believe consumers will approach their non-flavored waters with the same desire: a function in mind.

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Brand News

Functional & Enhanced Water

Something Natural will launch an online/print marketing campaign this fall under the tagline: “Give Artificial THE BIRD.” The tagline highlights a key point of difference between Something Natural waters and other artificially-sweetened products in the category. The campaign will be supported with point-of-purchase displays at some of the brand’s largest retailer partners including Whole Foods, Sprouts, Raley’s, Ahold and Harris Teeter. The brand also continues to grow internationally, adding distributor partners in South Korea, China and, most recently, the United Arab Emirates. Bump Water is a beverage conceived in Brooklyn for every pregnant woman. Bump Water has 100 percent of the recommended daily amounts of Vitamins A, B6, B12, D and E, calcium, niacin, biotin, zinc, magnesium, and, most importantly, folic acid found in prenatal vitamins. Bump Water has two sparkling flavors newly available at Diapers. com and Amazon.com, and two new flat flavors appearing this fall. Drink Chia debuted a new look and a larger size this summer. The sleek 12 oz. bottles are being reset at existing retailers and can be found at Albertsons in the Rocky Mountain region, WinnDixie, Bi/LO and Planet Smoothie, among others. This shelf-stable, 50-calorie chia drink with a light texture provides premium hydration for those with an active lifestyle. Qure Water is a stable 9.5+ pH alkaline water brand made using natural ionic alkaline minerals. QURE is excited to announce its expansion into all Fresh Market locations as well as its launch in the Chicago region with Potash Markets and Treasure Island Foods. Sno Water is now widely available across the U.S. and the Caribbean Islands with recent shelf placements at Sprouts, Bristol Farms and Albertsons through distribution partnerships with KeHE, DPI West, Nature’s Best and Bozzuto’s. Sno Water comes in three PET sizes and 750mL/330mL glass bottles for still and sparkling. Protein2o, a line of sparkling flavored beverages with 15 grams of protein per bottle, has expanded its retail presence across the country. The products can be found at Kroger stores in the Midwest, Hy-Vee and Vitamin World. Protein2o is available in Berry Splash, Grape Splash and Lemon Splash. In August, the company pulled in a $6 million raise from CK Capital. 28 OCTOBER 2014 BEVNET MAGAZINE

Hint Water launched Crisp Apple Water this year and it’s already the brand’s top-performing SKU, according ot the company. Hint offers calorie-free, flavored waters in still and sparkling formats. Flavors of the still line include Blackberry, Watermelon, Blood Orange and the aforementioned Crisp Apple. Hint Fizz flavors include Blackberry, Watermelon, Strawberry-Kiwi, Apple Cider, Grapefruit and Peach. Troll Bridge Creek Inc., makers of KiKi Maple Sweet Water, has announced that its line of maple water beverages will be available in Australia and New Zealand by Christmas. The distribution is made possible by a deal signed in August with Green Eets of Australia. New Whey Nutrition’s Nuaquos recently launched throughout the Northeast at Shop Rites in New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Delaware and Connecticut. NuAquos is developing an integrated sales and marketing campaign to enhance and grow sales throughout all Shop Rite stores. NuAquos was launched in January 2014. It offers advanced hydration with 12 grams of complete protein. AquaNew’s Watt-Ahh is using new innovation in water conservation through a licensed purification process. The company hopes to work with breweries, especially those in drought-ridden regions, that need a new water source. The AquaNew purification process reduces water waste and energy use, according to the company. Topo Chico Mineral Water, established in 1895, has released 4-packs of its Mineral Water and Twist of Lime. Reliant Recovery Water is now available at all Washington Harbor Greens Market locations in addition to DrinkReliant.com. The company expects to grow retail distribution rapidly to meet growing consumer demand. Amazonia Beverages is a line of lightly-flavored enhanced waters with 10 percent coconut water. The functional ingredients used in the products, such as urucu, camu camu, and guaranáare, were inspired by the Amazon rainforest. The product has 5 calories per serving and is available in pomegranate, mixed berry and papaya flavors. The brand recently reduced the calorie count from 10 and gained distribution at Costco, Sam’s Club, Duane Reade and Target.

Green Sheep is fighting plastic waste by being the first bottled water in a 100 percent aluminum bottle. Aluminum is recycled more often and more efficiently than any other beverage container. Green Sheep will be available in the Chicago area this fall. 100% All Natural, Inc. has expanded the initial distribution of its 100% Naturalbrand beverages throughout New England, the mid-Atlantic states and the East Coast through a network of major store chains, wholesalers and distribution partners. This spring, water-based beverages includes Spring Water, Sparkling Water and a line of certified organic flavored sparkling waters — Lemon, Lime, Strawberry, Blueberry and Coconut. 100% Naturalbrand beverages are the first to obtain the Nature’s Healthiest Certification mark, according to the company. Nestle Pure Life Exotics are infused with the natural essences of exotic fruits, not sweeteners. The calorie-free line is sold nationwide at Target in four flavors: Mango Peach Pineapple, Strawberry Dragon Fruit, Tangerine and Key Lime.

LaCroix Sparkling Water introduces three new flavors – Apricot, Mango and Passionfruit — launching at Target stores nationwide and select retailers. Passionfruit, Mango and Apricot bring the total LaCroix lineup to 12 flavors, joining Lime, Lemon, Pure, Peach Pear, Grapefruit, Berry, Cran-Raspberry, Orange and Coconut. On the market for more than 30 years, LaCroix has no calories, sweeteners, caffeine, sodium or sugar. LaCroix, 100 percent recyclable, is widely available throughout the natural channel as well as through mainstream grocers, mass merchandisers, clubs and drug stores nationwide. True Drinks recently introduced the AquaBall Club Pack at Sam’s Club. The AquaBall Club Pack contains 16 individual 12 oz. bottles in a variety of Orange, Fruit Punch and Berry Frost flavors. The pack has been designed to enhance product recognition at retail and further encourage parents to choose AquaBall when searching for a healthy kids drink. The pack features a cutout on the front and back of the box to highlight the product, as well as a tear-away panel on the front of the pack to facilitate single-bottle sales.

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BEVNET MAGAZINE OCTOBER 2014

Brand News NY2O, a premium bottled water, recently became the official water of Roc Nation, a global entertainment and sports management company. The partnership enables joint promotional, marketing and public relations opportunities. Riding on the initial success of the partnership with Roc Nation, NY2O has signed New York Jets quarterback Geno Smith as a product endorser. Over the next year, he will participate in selected appearances and activities on behalf of NY2O. VBlast Vitamin and Spring Water has announced the evolution of its bottle cap, redesigned to release a blast of vitamins and flavors into mountain spring water. The new technology replaces the former method of a twist cap with a simplified smart cap that works by pushing the top down in one single motion, letting consumers decide when they’re ready to hydrate. All Beauty Water, a zero-calorie skincare beverage line, contains 8 SkinVitamins and 7 additional SkinNutrients. The brand just launched its third flavor, Strawberry Açaí, and has updated its label design. Superleaf LLC has re-introduced the traditional aloe drink from a high calorie juice to a “super” functional water. DetoxWater is a mineral water infused with bio-active aloe flakes and a range of vitamins to deliver the many health benefits of high polysaccharide retention aloe vera, according to the company. Popwater has landed shelf placements at Albertsons in the Northwest, Smith’s, Admiral Beverage of New Mexico, Southern Wine & Spirits of Nevada and Golden Beverage of Utah. Essentia recently secured a private equity investment to support the brand as it expands its distribution network, sales force and brand activation. In addition to rounding out field sales and marketing teams, Essentia announced its Hydration Specialists program; brand ambassadors who are aligned with its mission and are experts in areas like health, fitness and nutrition. The brand also launched Hydration Patrol, a regional mobile sampling team. Essentia has added direct-store-delivery (DSD) distributors in New England and the Midwest and continues to expand to new markets.

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Acquafibra has updated with its packaging with brighter colors and larger graphics. The product contains six grams of prebiotic fiber and improves digestive function and the absorption of minerals, according to the company. The product contains no added sugar and vitamins B3, B5, B6 and B9. The prebiotic fiber of Acquafibra feeds and promotes the growth of lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium that are part of your intestinal flora. The American Diabetes Association (ADA), recommends that a healthy adult consume between 20 and 35 grams of prebiotic fiber per day. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) reports that 91 percent of the population does not consume the proper amount of fiber. FLUROwater is a vitamin-infused bottled water. Naturally-flavored with no sugar, preservatives or dyes, FLUROwater contains 13 vitamins and 6 grams of fiber in every 16 oz. bottle. Recently, the company refined its formula with the use of spring water, a light blend of stevia and monk fruit. FLUROwater also introduced its new SKU, “Peach Passion.” The product is now available in five flavors: Kiwi Cucumber, Watermelon Raspberry, Dark Cherry, Macoun Apple and Peach Passion. Distribution includes Northern California, Northern Nevada, New York City and select online retailers. Sparkling Ice will proudly display a pink ribbon with the words — “Imagine a World Without Breast Cancer” — on the bottle of the Sparkling Ice Pink Grapefruit flavor starting in October. The company will be donating a minimum of $25,000 to help find a cure. Meanwhile, Kevin Durant has joined the Sparkling Ice family. In addition to enjoying the beverages, Durant shares Sparkling Ice’s authentic vision, adventurous nature and philanthropic spirit. Aquahydrate has received additional capital injections from strategic partners and board members Mark Wahlberg and Sean “Diddy” Combs and reeled in new high profile investment partners. In 2015, Aquahydrate will continue to grow its footprint in national chains and the convenience channel. This growth in distribution will be supported by a nationwide marketing program that will expand integration with Combs and Wahlberg, continuing to focus on experiential consumer-centric activations that drive velocity at shelf and brand loyalty among its fans.

Klarbrunn übr Water is premium water with a combination of electrolytes and high pH to restore and balance the body during intense performance and exercise, as well as provide the body equilibrium in everyday activities. The sleek bottle and upscale label graphics appeal to the everyday consumer as well as those looking for water that makes a statement. Klarbrunn übr Water’s modifier stands for ultimate, balance and refreshment.

updated label is expected to hit shelves this winter and will also be featured on a 1-liter offering expected to debut in early 2015. Good2grow, a line of healthy children’s beverages, has launched the Juicy Waters collection. The new collection of flavored waters debuted at the 2014 Natural Products Expo East. Hitting shelves in early 2015, the collection offers the tastes children love with the nutritional benefits parents crave in three distinct flavors: Juicy Waters Grape, Juicy Waters Fruit Punch and Ultra Purified Water with Electrolytes. Like all good2grow products, the Juicy Waters collection contains no added sugar, high fructose corn syrup, artificial colors, flavors or preservatives, and are also non-GMO and BPA-free in colorful, recyclable packaging.

Karma Culture, LLC., the makers of Karma Wellness Water, are launching a new variety to join their five core offerings. Karma Tropical Burst will hit stores this fall. Karma believes this variety will appeal to consumers who crave a healthy, yet energizing beverage. Karma Tropical Burst is non-GMO and 20 calories. The new variety is meticulously formulated with 110 percent of seven essential vitamins and natural caffeine.

Real Water has released 1.5 liter bottles and 1 liter glass bottles. The company’s PINK liter bottle remains committed to raising breast cancer awareness. This past summer, Real Water released a limited-edition liter bottle celebrating America.

Blk Beverages is excited to announce an updated package design intended to help further educate consumers on the unique benefits of the functional beverage. The

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The statement “I’m going blond” doesn’t usually imply the long term. Maybe a brunette seeks brief, superficial change to counter the monotony of stylistic routine. Perhaps she just wants to look like Kim Novak. Or Lance Bass. But no matter the motive, going blond is typically seen as something temporary. It remains to be seen if the beer industry should consider Guinness’ recent release of Guinness Blonde American Lager as an act of whimsy. The follow-up to Guinness Black marks the beginning of a new phase for the brewer. Long known for its stout, it’s now ready to be known for more. “Guinness Black Lager brought a whole new audience to the Guinness trademark,” Doug Campbell, Guinness’ brand director, wrote to BevNET. “We learned that consumers were not only open to a new style of beer from Guinness, but also really wanted us to experiment more than we had been.” Experimentation, innovation, broad portfolios, they’ve all become important terms in the beer

business, and that’s a vocabulary that’s being pushed into the forefront by the ongoing growth of domestic craft beer companies. While craft’s rate of expansion has been torrid, imports have had slow but steady growth; last year imports were up 4.5 percent, the year before they were up 2 percent, according to Technomic. Part of the reason for the growth is that imports have been flexible with their portfolios, albeit without the constant churn of selections that has characterized craft’s growth. Guinness, long the iconic importer of Stout, launched Guinness Black in August 2011. Hoping to modernize the brand and make its beer more accessible to mainstream consumers, Guinness launched the brew with a massive ad campaign that featured the mandatory slick-suited fella/exoticknockout combo. The ad went to the middle of the road as it highlighted its ingredients — “carefully crafted with roasted dark barley” — and attractive drinkers, but it also verified that the brand had a right to experiment. BEVNET MAGAZINE OCTOBER 2014

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Ice River Springs Inc. Phone 1-844-764-7336 Email sogreen@iceriversprings.com Plants: Kentland, IN, Allentown, PA, Pittsfield, MA, Morganton, NC, Marianna, FL, High Springs, FL, Shelburne, ON, Feversham, ON, Grafton, ON, Halton Hills, ON, Calgary, AB.

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Brand Dollar Sales Change vs. year earlier Campbell said the Guinness Black launch clarified that loyalists and CORONA EXTRA $1,325,686,094 9.3% standard consumers alike were looking for more innovation. Thus, the August HEINEKEN $706,296,772 2.7% release of Guinness Blonde signals the MODELO ESPECIAL $685,854,728 27.8% beginning of the brewery’s leap into consistent experimentation. It coincided DOS EQUIS XX LAGER ESPECIAL $279,392,764 25.2% with the announcement of the Guinness CORONA LIGHT $229,450,170 4.8% Discovery Series, a concept that will see the bi-annual release of new brews. STELLA ARTOIS LAGER $215,030,455 13.2% Guinness Blonde, the first of the series, TECATE $156,434,205 -3.5% is sold nationwide in 6-packs of 12 oz. bottles (5 percent ABV) for a suggested LABATT BLUE $80,107,542 -4.3% retail price of $8.99. The choice of styles LABATT BLUE LIGHT $72,560,899 -2.9% echoes the preference of many craft beer consumers: as easygoing Belgian styles PACIFICO $71,328,658 8.1% have become some of the movement’s most widespread. In making a blond NEWCASTLE BROWN ALE $70,551,590 -10.4% American lager, Guinness is melding GUINNESS DRAUGHT $64,190,006 -0.4% America’s longstanding love for the lager HEINEKEN PREMIUM LIGHT LAGER $59,093,746 -13.4% with its emerging interest in craft styles. “We feel this is the type of beer innoFOSTERS LAGER $56,800,633 1.9% vation that beer drinkers in the U.S. are BECKS $56,001,366 -3.7% hungry for,” Campbell wrote, “and we’re excited to give them more options.” NEGRA MODELO $40,119,760 10.4% They’re doing it in Great Britain, as TECATE LIGHT $37,231,276 49.4% well, as Diageo recently introduced Guinness Dublin Porter and West Indies Porter. GUINNESS EXTRA STOUT $35,931,540 2.9% Inspired by the diaries of brewers from the DOS EQUIS XX AMBAR LAGER $34,150,111 4.9% 18th and 19th centuries, they mark some of the first offerings from Guinness’ new RED STRIPE $32,360,353 -3.8% brewhouse at the St. James Gate Brewery, SOURCE: Symphony/IRI Total food/drug/c-store/mass. 52 Weeks through 9/7/14 Campbell said. While the blond lager will be sold only in the U.S., the porters will be sold exclusively in Europe. recently launched at select retail and on-premise locations in the Guinness Blonde isn’t the change in traditional hue coming Southeast, with imminent plans for national distribution. to the import market. This past summer, Newcastle, known Another beer importer, Constellation Brands, is staying in the best for its Brown Ale, re-released a pair of seasonals: Werenews with innovation and growth for its own Hispanic-focused wolf Blood-Red Ale (the top-selling imported limited-edition brands. In April, Constellation announced that it will follow the in 2013, according to the company) and Bombshell Blonde launch of Modelo Especial Chelada with the nationwide expanAle. As one might expect from a name like “Bombshell,” the sion of that product’s distribution. In July, Corona Extra unveiled brand’s 6-packs are bannered with a blonde gal in a low-cut limited-edition bottles that feature Golden Boy Promotions boxers blue dress, recalling pinups from the past. It’s a well-honed such as Marcos Maidana, Paulie Malignaggi and Daniel Ponce de strategy, the company admits. León. The bottles were introduced at the weigh-in of the recent “No matter how much we talk about how smooth and greatCanelo Alvarez/Erislandy Lara fight, and their arrival included a tasting Newcastle Bombshell is,” brand director Quinn Kilbury sweepstakes of a VIP trip to the recent Floyd Mayweather, Jr./Marsaid in a release, “we’ll catch more people’s attention with an cos Maidana fight. And while Corona has long been known for its attractive woman on the packaging.” clear bottles that showcase the golden liquid, this past spring, the Adhering to the preferences of craft-beer consumers remains company rolled out plans to strengthen its presence at the tap with a top priority for import beer marketers, however, targeting the expansion of Corona Light draft to 35 additional U.S. markets. the Hispanic market also sits at the forefront. This past April, Even those who pass on import innovation and go for the Heineken USA introduced Desperados, a tequila-flavored lager. classics should expect the new stuff to stick around. Mirroring Desperados is squarely focused on the highly sought-after Histhe evolving identities of its rivals, Guinness is going blond. panic market; it’s currently available in 66 countries – where it And it’s more than the flavor of the week. has double-digit growth, according to a company release – and it

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SEEKING SIMCOE NAVIGATING A CHANGING HOPS MARKET BY DAVID EISENBERG

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The most popular hop of tomorrow won’t go under trellis today. That is to say, to innovate in the hops market is to play long odds. The Simcoe hop, for instance, was nearly torn completely out of the ground and discarded as a failed experiment. Perrault Farms just couldn’t sell the aromatic hop during the early aughts. Situated in Washington’s Yakima Valley, the farm invested in commercial acreage for the flower — about 40 acres worth — based on its presumed potential. But its inability to bloom in the marketplace forced the farm to face the wilted reality: Simcoe was a disappointment. Whittled down to two acres, its doom looming, Simcoe’s extinction was delayed by a small uptick in demand. “Then it just blew up,” said Jason Perrault, the farm’s general manager and a fourth generation hop grower. “It’s been a struggle to keep up with it.” Since, it’s only grown: There’s now 2,100 acres of Simcoe planted with about 900 acres more on the way. Surprisingly enough, in these hop forward times, Simcoe’s backstory is hardly unusual. Bred by Select Botanicals Group, (where Perrault doubles as vice president of research and development, a hop breeder managing the selection and crossing of different strains) Perrault said all experimental hops are statistical miracles. Palisade, Citra, Mosaic, Ahtanum, and Equinox, are all Select breeds he helped develop; and every one of them is an aberration. “Most of what we do is a disappointment,” he said. Nevertheless, he and the rest of the crew at Select Botanicals – jointly owned with Perrault by BT Loftus Ranches and Carpenter Ranches – weed through the failures, forecasting a decade or more in advance how the beer drinker’s palate will evolve. But there’s more to Perrault’s gig as both a farmer and breeder than tracing the ebb and flow of the beer drinker’s taste buds and breeding to match, especially as growers and brewers alike navigate a hops market in flux.

Photo courtesy of Hops Direct, LLC

As has been written everywhere from the Wall Street Journal to Esquire, there’s a hops shortage on the horizon; the former publication recently reported that the price for higher end hops, the kinds Perrault breeds and grows, could exceed $10 per pound by the end of this year, a direct result of too much demand and too little land to grow. To that end, Goose Island brewmaster Brett Porter figures 17,000 additional acres of hop growing land needs to become available in the next five years if the craft beer industry is to maintain its growth rate. To do its part, Perrault Farms is undertaking a $10 million expansion effort – “A pretty significant investment,” said Perrault – to grow its acreage and harvesting facilities. Perrault isn’t the only one making the investment. Throughout Washington, 29,021 acres of hops were strung for harvest in 2014, a 7.2 percent uptick over the year prior, according to the United States Department of Agriculture. On a national scale, hops acreage grew a touch over 11.5 percent – to roughly 39,272 acres – according to data obtained by Hop Growers of America. So at least some of the necessary land is being added. Still, Perrault says growers have unfairly been burdened with much of the blame for rising hops prices. He sees things a bit differently, explaining “The key to a stable hop market is of course contracts at fair prices.” “Contracts give growers the information needed to plan and expand,” he said. “Growers are actively expanding acreage and picking facilities to keep up with contracted demand, and they are doing it successfully.” Using contracted volume as its baseline, the farms of Select Botanicals were able to produce over 100 percent of their contracted demand for Simcoe, for

BEVNET MAGAZINE OCTOBER 2014

TOP OF THE HOPS We hear all about the variety behind the hops, but can you tell your Centennial from your Amarillo? Next time you’re facing a brand rep – or a bartender – refer to this handly list of the 10 most common types: CASCADE • Typically found in Pale Ales, IPAs • Aroma:Floriated with notes of citrus and grapefruit CENTENNIAL • Typically found in Ales • Aroma: Bitter with ﬂoral, citrusy notes CHINOOK • Typically found in Pale Ales, Lagers • Aroma: Spicy, piney, with a bitter bite COLUMBUS/TOMAHAWK/ZEUS (CTZ) • Typically found in bitter ales, American IPAs • Aroma: Citrus, herbal, woody, spicy and quite bitter. SIMCOE • Typically found in IPAs • Aroma: Pungent passionfruit with notes of pine, earth, and citrus AMARILLO • Typically found in American Ales • Aroma: Flowery, tropical, and citrusy

instance, eschewing some of the tumult surrounding the reported hops shortage. “On the flip side, spot markets are, by definition, volatile,” he said. Adds Ann George, executive director of Hop Growers of America, “Do you have a shortage just because a brewer that happens to want the latest and hot-

Consider for a moment, when Perrault’s farm first secured acreage for Simcoe in 2000 (years after it was first conceived), the aromatic craze hardly resembled what it does today. In 2003, according to the Brewers Association, 25.3 percent of all hop acreage was devoted to aroma hops – like Simcoe. In 2013? 62.7 percent.

“Jason has a bit of a hop whisperer quality to him. It seems like almost any variety that he’s involved with from an experimental standpoint seems to be pretty good.” -Vinnie Cilurzo, owner of Russian River Brewing Co. test new variety – of which there is little acreage – couldn’t have that because they didn’t contract for it?” While Perrault says contracting for hops is at “unprecedented levels,” he notes also that it can’t always address the issues of unforeseen expansions, of both breweries and their brands, or of every new startup operation. Thus, improved communication with suppliers is paramount to the long-term health of the industry. But as a breeder, Perrault’s focus needs to be split between the business side of the industry as well as the creative side. And while he’s far from the face of the industry, Perrault’s resume as a hop breeder has earned him high praise from some of craft beer’s heaviest hitters.

“They started Simcoe back in the early 90s when there was hardly any IPAs in America. And they bred that hop,” said Vinnie Cilurzo, owner of Russian River Brewing Co. “We as brewers really rely on these guys a lot for what the next flavor’s going to be.” Russian River’s renowned Pliny the Elder was created around the Simcoe hop specifically. “Jason has a bit of a hop whisperer quality to him,” added Cilurzo. “It seems like almost any variety that he’s involved with from an experimental standpoint seems to be pretty good.” Tony Magee, owner of Lagunitas Brewing Co., has, to say the least, never been one to mince words. His thoughts?

CRYSTAL • Typically found in IPAs • Aroma: Mildly spiced, a touch ﬂorid WILLAMETTE • Typically found in English-style Ales • Aroma: Meek ﬂoral tones with a thin spice SAAZ • Typically found in Belgian-style Ales • Aroma: Earthy notes, a tad spicy US GOLDING • Typically found in English Ales • Aroma: Subdued with sweet characteristics

40 OCTOBER 2014 BEVNET MAGAZINE

Photos courtesy of Perrault Farm

“[T]he most important person n (sic) US craft brewing?” he tweeted in 2011. “He’s a hop grower named Jason Perrault!” For Perrault, 40, it’s in his blood. “I grew up on my family’s hop farm, so I’ve been involved in one way, shape or form as long as I can remember,” he said. “This legacy aspect of our business

is exceptionally meaningful. To know we are continuing in the footsteps of those before us as well as expanding their legacy for future generations certainly gives us a deeper meaning to what we do.” So how does Perrault, or, more specifically, Select Botanicals, or, even more specifically, every hop breeder in the

world, take the pulse of the craft beer industry at large? “That’s the million dollar question,” said Perrault. “You don’t know what’s going to be popular 10 years from now. When we released the crosses for Equinox and Mosaic, we didn’t know at the time [what the demand would be].” As such, there’s a bit of a shotgun approach at the start of things. “What we did do is make a diversity of crops. You have to be prepared for anything,” he said. “We were just kind of looking toward the future and saying, ‘What are the possibilities?’ That allows you have as much a foundation as possible.” Most of that foundation, however, whether brought down by disease or less than acceptable quality, gets tossed and forgotten (a fate Simcoe narrowly escaped): Since 2008, Select Botanicals has only released three new hop varieties – Citra, Mosaic, and Equinox. Perrault said he’s optimistic for the future though, both creatively and economically. Even if it means harvesting a bit of disappointment along the way.

BEVNET MAGAZINE OCTOBER 2014

BUD’S SECRET ARSENAL GOOSE ISLAND SHOWS OFF ITS ELK MOUNTAIN EDGE BY DAVID EISENBERG

42 OCTOBER 2014 BEVNET MAGAZINE

Rubbing the guts of a Cascade hop off his nose, Andy Goeler is in awe of the 1,500 acres of hops under trellis that surround him, resting at the foot of northern Idaho’s Selkirk Mountain Range. He’s gushing poetic adjectives, verbally painting a picture that needs no help painting itself. After a career spanning three decades at Anheuser-Busch, Goeler is now two years into his tenure as CEO of Goose Island Beer, the Chicago-based brewery his former employer acquired for $38.8 million in 2011. But right now, he’s just breathing in this bucolic, somewhat hidden, and until recently, under-utilized stretch of earth. But Elk Mountain Farm is more than just a postcard of a sweeping green hop farm, a bit muddy from the morning rain. This is a place of business, as evidenced hours later during a bumpy ride in a golf cart with Goeler and brewmaster Brett Porter on the way to the kiln. “So you’re not crazy about the Kolsch?” asks Goeler. “I’m not crazy about the Kolsch,” Porter responds, not turning around from the driver’s seat. “But I want to do what’s going to sell.” Despite the roaming cell reception, this place 10 miles south of the Canadian bor-

der is becoming increasingly important to Goeler, Porter, and the rest of the Goose Island team. Few breweries of Goose Island’s size have access to their very own hop farm – A-B bought Elk Mountain in 1987 – and Goose is taking full advantage of the resource, relying on its hop supply more and more every year as it grows as a company. And while Goose wouldn’t be impervious to the hops shortage reportedly on the horizon, having Elk Mountain in its backyard certainly helps. Still, expansive as the land is, there are only so many acres to be harvested here. Just how much of the hops used by Goose Island come from Elk Mountain is hard to pin down exactly (“Every year more,” says Porter, offering up the closest thing to an actual figure), but a little more than half of the farm’s output is allocated to Goose, the rest to A-B brands. “I can put it better this way,” adds Porter. “All the Cascades that they’ll grow here

BEVNET MAGAZINE OCTOBER 2014

Here, there’s limited room to grow. With 1,500 acres planted as of harvest time, Elk Mountain has just a couple hundred to go before reaching maximum capacity. Kraemer says they’ve got their eye on a piece of land to potentially expand with, but doesn’t plan to add any acreage before filling up what they’ve got. From an innovation standpoint, access to the farm – and its willingness to take requests from Goose regarding what to put in the ground – has enabled the company to scale up its innovation projects as well. “We have access to some of their experimental hops and they have so much unplanned acreage that if we like something, they can put something in the ground for us,” says Gabbett. “So if we

will go into Goose Island beers. All the Mt. Hoods will go into Goose Island beers.” Call it a perk of teaming up with the world’s biggest beer company. Consider the case of the Amarillo hop, which was tough to find a few years ago, according to Goose Island’s lead brewer, Keith Gabbett. Had it still been independently owned and operated at that time, retroactively stripped of its keys to Elk Mountain, Goose would have had to contract the hop from any number of farms, which would have dramatically influenced the production scale of various beers in its portfolio that prominently feature it. “Elk Mountain Farms was able to grow about 700 acres or so of Amarillo, and that allowed us to produce beers like 312 Pale,

The good innovator is the one that recognizes a trend somewhere that can be scaled up and can be bigger. - Pete Kraemer, head brewmaster and vice president of A-B which has Amarillo, Endless, which is an all Amarillo IPA,” he says. “Without that, without having Elk Mountain Farm and that acreage there or our relationship with [A-B], there’s no way we would’ve been able to do that on such a large scale.” But it’s a hole card that A-B and other large breweries have played for years; even before the company moved to sell more craft beer, it played the futures game, locking in hops and barley years in advance. When you’re large enough as a craft brewer, you consider demand planning as well, which worked out well for the rest of the industry in 2012, when Boston Beer famously sold off extra hops to other craft brewers. It’s just plain good economics, according to A-B brass. “We have long term contracts so we’re not subject to the short term swings in the market,” said Pete Kraemer, head brewmaster and vice president of A-B. “We have a stable supply. We know who’s going to grow our hops, we know how much we’re going to pay for them.” The companies source hops from a variety of other suppliers as well, includ-

44 OCTOBER 2014 BEVNET MAGAZINE

ing an A-B farm based in Huell, Germany, keeping the reserve steady for both Goose and its mammoth parent. “Do smaller brewers have the same luxury?” asks Jane Killebrew, A-B’s director of brewing, quality and innovation. “Not the ones I’ve seen.” In fact, Porter insists the amount of hops the company buys from other farms has not decreased whatsoever due to the company’s increased production. And that’s where Goose is faced with the same predicament confronting other brewers amid growing talk of a hops shortage, according to Gabbett. “As far as the specialty hops out there, Simcoe, Citra, Nelson Sauvin, all those wacky little hops everyone’s clamoring for, we’re in the same boat as everyone else,” he says. “The same droughts hit us all, really.” Even if Elk Mountain maxed out, Porter still sees a need to grow the industry. By his calculations, 17,000 additional acres of hop growing land will be necessary within the next five years for the craft beer industry at large to sustain the rate of growth it is now displaying.

find something that we like and have an idea of what we want to do with it, we can plan for that, instead of sort of reacting to what’s out there on the market already.” That’s the artisanal right brain of Goose at work. Kraemer explains the analytical left of A-B: “There’s a professor that, I can’t remember his name, but he had a quote and he said, ‘The future’s already here, it’s just not evenly distributed.’ And his point was that, you know, all big innovations and things that became big weren’t invented over night. They already existed somewhere. They just weren’t available to the mass market and as they became available, they became more and more popular. The good innovator is the one that recognizes a trend somewhere that can be scaled up and can be bigger.” A few hours later, Mark Burford, coowner of New York’s Blue Point Brewing, which A-B acquired earlier this year in a deal reportedly valued near $24 million, will make his first appearance of the three-day trip. He’s here now to check out the farm.

THE

RULES

BY JEFFREY KLINEMAN

Flavor rules. Promising brand propositions can fall apart if the flavor isn’t there, while marginally functional products can catch fire behind great taste. Brands will do whatever they can to maintain their flavor advantage (Coke’s secret formula, anyone?) while a switch in sweetener mix can totally undermine a product (Vitaminwater’s recent stevia experiment comes to mind). But if flavor rules, what are The Flavor Rules? Retailers and distributors looking at both new companies and at growing brands alike would be wise to understand that brands can use flavor varieties to:

46 OCTOBER 2014 BEVNET MAGAZINE

1. Get them into places that they haven’t been, and 2. Help them differentiate from competition and grow a category But they need to keep in mind that: 1. Flavors aren’t a substitute for quality 2. They have to reflect a product’s core mission and message How can we understand the positive impact of flavor variety? Look to the moon – or, more accurately, to the moonshine.

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Ole Smoky Tennessee Moonshine is one of the fastest-growing liquor brands in the country, and it’s been using three levels of flavor variety to allow it to expand its reach into different retail channels. Moonshine, unaged corn liquor that was long produced illegally, is itself considered harsh and unforgiving. But as the market for legal moonshine has evolved (driven by an overall U.S. whiskey craze) adding flavors has allowed what had been a family business in Tennessee to expand into new areas – particularly since it resonates with the history of the stuff. “When people think of moonshine products, they were really for the guys,” said Ole Smoky CEO John Cochran. But in addition to early moonshiners buying off the law, Cochran added, “the way they’d

to build record-setting summer programs with accounts like Outback Steakhouse and Buffalo Wild Wings, while its core brand has led to tie-ins with companies as diverse as Harley-Davidson and Southern Wine and Spirits. Meanwhile, a broad reach from the flavors has led to marketing platforms like a sponsorship of country superstar Dierks Bentley. “It’s the flexibility of the line that gives the accounts the ability to have fun and create,” Cochran said. “We’re building field marketing programs around instilling in folks the basics, but aligning it with the slightly naughty, barely legal, fun part of what makes moonshine so great.” Flavors can also help build a brand’s reputation for innovation and reach new audiences. Wild Flavors’ Bob Bloom had a

miracle product they’re inventing to get it in the store.” But those flavors have to be right, and they have to leave an uncomplicated route for the brand to grow. Douglas Rash, vice president of global sales with flavor company Treatt, recommends that brands working in crowded categories rethink the idea of flavor differentiation as the key to growth. “Look at tea today,” Rash said. “There’s such a significant growth rate, that market is pretty saturated. You do your black teas, your green teas, but what’s the next tea going to taste like? Guys aren’t going to buy the same tea pieces of the puzzle just to repeat the puzzle.” Still, with a move toward herbal and nutraceutical benefits pervading many

“With added functional benefit, you are going to have a challenge, and that’s to make a product taste palatable. If you try to get more nutraceutical, you still have to taste good.” – Douglas Rash, vice president of global sales, Treatt

stay out of trouble with the church ladies and women of the communities would be to make fruit brandies. Two of the most traditional flavors were peach and apple pie.” From that ingenious bit of the historical record, the brand has built a line with three levels of proof intensity – a 100 proof, three flavor line consisting of “Original,” “White Lightnin’” and a barrel-aged “Charred;” 80-proof Lemon Drop Lightnin’, Strawberry Lightnin’ and Hunch Punch Lightnin, which are shot-oriented, and 40-proof “sipping” versions like Apple Pie, Blackberry, Moonshine Cherries, Peach and some limited varieties. “The flavor products give the mixologist, the fans, our folks a ton of flexibility,” Cochran said. “The flavors augment the strong value proposition of the clear products.” The flavors have allowed Ole Smoky to go into more conventional accounts where the hills of Tennessee aren’t necessarily thought of. The brand has used flavors

48 OCTOBER 2014 BEVNET MAGAZINE

front row seat working with energy drinks from the early days, and he cited both Monster and Rockstar as brands that were able to use flavor varieties to create more room in their category. “They both started with what we could call the Red Bull-esque ‘fantasy fruit flavor,” he said. “But a year or two later they went to a diet version. What they realized is they might bring in new users by offering a wider variety of flavors and textures. From one or two, they went to I don’t know how many at this point.” Both Monster and Rockstar have been brands for whom innovation is a key brand building-block, in fact. “There are very beneficial uses of flavor as a brand enhancement,” Bloom said. “Generally, retailers don’t want single SKUs,” because they worry a new product will get lost on the shelf. So for new brands, Bloom said, “we recommend three varieties of whatever

categories, flavor continues to be an important way for brands to avoid putting themselves at a disadvantage. “With added functional benefit, you are going to have a challenge, and that’s to make a product taste palatable,” Rash said. “If you try to get more nutraceutical, you still have to taste good.” And flavors can’t be a panacea for brands. Simon Ginsberg, the founder of the Blue Monkey brand of coconut waters, said that flavors aren’t necessarily the best way to get consumers into a brand – and in fact can sometimes get in the way of a brand’s ability to maximize its potential. “We had the blends, but we dropped them. It was only 10 percent of our overall sales. Mostly, the product just sits there.” The taste of coconut water, with its salty body, is polarizing – although, Ginsberg said, that can make things simpler at times. While the brand still uses earthy flavors like chocolate or coffee,

those are line extensions that speak to a different need state, and move the base product into a new subcategory. But the hydration related soul of coconut water is paramount. “Someone who’s into coconut water is only interested in coconut water,” Ginsberg said. “It’s one of these love or hate flavors. You have a group of people who are obsessed with it, and they just want the real thing.” For larger companies, however, for whom brand has become more important than simple product introduction, flavors continue to play a larger strategic role. At Vita Coco, flavor extensions help the brand hold shelf space, for example, while new products like lemonade or bolt-on Coco Café (now Vita Coco Café) keep the brand moving into new need states. The strategic applications of flavor variety aren’t lost on the team at Talking Rain, either, where Sparkling Ice has managed to expand its shelf presence in its core channel, grocery, by developing a strong commitment to new, finely-tuned flavors.

Managing flavor is something the brand learned from one of its models – Vitaminwater. “You could go to the shelf and see 1,000 different flavors,” said Kevin Klock, the company’s CEO. “It made a fantastic banner. But you have to have space adequate for expansion.” Now with more than 15 flavors, Klock still tries to follow that rule, keeping the brand highly conventional in the choices it makes. “Don’t spend a lot of time in the crazy,” he said. “If your brand promise is mass appeal, don’t spend too much time on who you aren’t. There’s nothing wrong with a small niche brand, but as you get bigger, you need flavors that will hit the mainstream.” Some flavor styles come and go, like acai, dragonfruit, even coconut. Is lemonade, one of the hottest new flavor profiles of recent years, here to stay? It’s hard to predict, he said. Regardless of flavor choice, however, one guideline the brand tries to follow

is that it will look for multiple facings of single flavors. “You’d rather have multiple placements of single SKUs than single placements of multiple SKUs,” he said. Currently one of the fastest-growing brands in the market, Sparkling Ice’s flavor assortment can lead to tough calls when it has to prune its space. Often, he said, it will look to distributors to help it make those decisions, and hope they won’t make the wrong call – as that can lead to returned product. “We haven’t had any dogs,” he said. “It’s been hard for us to make that decision. If they don’t have the room on the shelf for you, you have some hard decisions to make.” Avoiding “dogs” means that flavor integrity is important. When the company was rebooting Sparkling Ice it was also in the midst of a flavor company switch, which allowed the new management team to focus on flavors that would “pop.” That’s an emphasis that has continued as it has grown. “Doing the flavors ‘right’ is much more important than having the variety,” he said.

BEVNET MAGAZINE OCTOBER 2014

Two undeniable realities from the show floor at Natural Products Expo East 2014: one, traffic was noticeably slower as compared to in recent years, and two, companies continue to embrace cold-processing as a way to attract new consumers, both in substance and style. Though most exhibitors described attendance and energy at the show as being somewhat lethargic, Expo East nonetheless showcased the ongoing evolution of cold-pressed juices and coldbrewed coffee, each of which are emerging as standard-bearers for the natural channel. And with placement in conventional retailers quickly materializing, the dash to formulate (or, in some cases, reformulate) new cold-processed products appears to have supplanted interest for ingredients once thought to be trailblazing for beverages, such as aloe and acai.

Yet while going smaller for some consumers, Daily Greens is planning to go big for others. The company is also prepping for the introduction of a 32 oz. bottle, which Martin said would also launch at the beginning of the year with Target or “a big box store” as a likely retailer. If the new product does indeed land at Target, it will be sharing space with Suja. The top-selling coldpressed juice brand entered 1,200 Target stores with its Essentials and a subset of its classic line in September.

Sizing Up, Down and All Around For cold-pressed juice companies, it’s clear that package variety is the name of the game in hopes of reaching a broad market of consumers. While 16 oz. PET bottles are ubiquitous in the category, upstart brands like Daily Greens, Lumi and Vital Juice have introduced a range of bottle shapes and sizes designed to make it in mainstream channels. Daily Greens founder Shauna Martin said that her company’s new 12 oz. size was created for conventional retail and, while it is still packed with 4 ½ lbs. of produce per bottle, the drinks will be come with a more wallet-friendly price of $5.49-$5.99. Launching on Jan. 1, Martin was not yet able to name retailer partners for the new products, however, she noted that “the plan is not to be in the same stores” as its flagship line. “I don’t think we would ever size down our marquee flavors at Whole Foods,” Martin said. “That’s the right place for a 16 oz. bottle. We’ve been gathering feedback that [for] folks that shop at conventional, 16 oz. is a bit much for them, especially as dense as our green juices are. Eight to twelve ounces is more of the right size for somebody that’s starting into green juice.” Lumi founder Hillary Lewis concurs. Her company is currently testing a new 10 oz. bottle size, which, priced at $3.99-$4.25, is distributed in Charlottesville and Richmond, Va. By comparison, Lumi’s 16 oz. juices retail for $8.99. 50 OCTOBER 2014 BEVNET MAGAZINE

Meanwhile, Vital Juice is set to launch perhaps the smallest package for a cold-pressed juice on the market, albeit one designed for children. The company is transitioning to a 6 oz. bottle for its Vital Kids products, which launched in July and debuted in 10 oz. bottles. The drinks will be priced at $2.99 and have been reformulated to include more pear juice and no almond milk. Vital’s Almond smoothie line has also been retooled and now includes a full serving of protein (7 grams) and fruits and vegetables, according to Jina Wye, the company’s vice president of marketing. The line also now features an everyday price of $4.99, while the flagship juices are now priced at $6.99 for a 16 oz. bottle. Wye, the former director of sales and marketing at BluePrint, joined Vital Juice earlier this year, along with director of operations Beth Gantz, who is also a veteran of BluePrint. Wye heads up the outreach strategy for the brand, which now promotes the tagline “The Best Juices on the Planet.” Certainly, the role of high pressure processing (HPP) has been key to the early success and continued retail placement of cold-

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pressed brands, many of which employ and promote the food safety technology, which uses pressure instead of heat. In the natural channel, HPP is today not only a broadly understood term, it’s become highly sought after by suppliers and retailers of the products. “2012 was the first year I attended [Natural Products] Expo West, where I found only a handful of people had heard of HPP,” said Joyce Longfield, an HPP expert and the founder and CEO of JL Nutrition and Food Regulatory Consulting. “Just two years later at Expo East, I didn’t have to explain what HPP meant to a single person.” However, unlike the dozens of start-ups that have leapt at the opportunity created by demand for cold-pressed juice and extended by HPP, most legacy juice companies have yet to test the waters. Lakewood Organic, which has been selling bottled juice since 1935, is one of the first to make a move, having unveiled a seven-SKU line of organic, cold-pressed juices called Lakewood Basics. Packaged in 12 oz. bottles, the products are named according to function, all beginning with the letter “R” (i.e. Rebuild, Restore, Relax).

Although Five Star Foodies is a few decades younger than Lakewood Organic, the vegan-focused food company is also attempting to acquire some traction in the cold-pressed category with a rebrand and new formulation of its ready-to-drink ciders. Now cold-pressed and high pressure processed, the line comes in three varieties -- Ginger, Hibiscus and Jamaican -- each packaged in 12 oz. bottles. The drinks come with a suggested retail price of $4.99 and are sold in Whole Foods store and other specialty retailers in the mid-Atlantic. In the case of Honeydrop’s new “Raw Honey” line, the coldpressed, HPP beverages are a significant departure from its honey-sweetened teas and juice products -- in both formulation and branding -- as the brand attempts to reach what company founder David Luks describes as the “hipster consumer.” Luks and managing partner Andrew Lorig began developing the line in the spring of 2013 when the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy 52 OCTOBER 2014 BEVNET MAGAZINE

plagued metro New York with high pollen counts and mold issues, creating a allergy nightmare for many residents. The cleanse-inspired Lemon Cayenne juice that is made with local honey from New York and promoted as a natural solution for allergy sufferers. Honeydrop’s “daily immunity” Apple Ginger Lemon variety contains New Zealand-sourced Manuka honey, which is said to have immunity-boosting effects. Luks said that sales of the products have doubled every 2-3 weeks since their debut in July. Distributed by Dora’s Naturals, the drinks are sold in Whole Foods, Fairway and other natural and gourmet stores in New York, New Jersey and Connecticut. And though the company built its own bottling line for the juice, Honeydrop will turn production over to a co-packer in order to keep up with demand for the beverages, which retail for $6.999.99 per 10 oz. bottle. As for maintaining its ability to market a product that is labeled as containing “local honey,” Luks said that Honeydrop will source the ingredient from regions specific to where the beverage is sold.

Yes, We Can: Cold-Brew Gets Aluminum Boost Though High Brew Coffee founder David Smith noted that many consumers still confuse “cold-brew” as meaning “iced coffee,” it’s nonetheless the key selling point for the low-calorie line of coffee drinks, he said. Launched in March, High Brew is sold nationally at Whole Foods, where the shelf-stable coffee is available in four varieties, and soon to be five. The brand debuted a new Black & Bold flavor that contains less milk and sugar than its original products, all of which are priced at $2.49 per 8 oz. can. Though High Brew was the first cold-brew coffee brand to be sold in a can, the package is now employed by two other companies: Kohana, which markets a line of cold-brew coffee concentrates and organic energy drink maker Hiball. Coinciding with a rebrand that plays up its Hawaiian roots, Kohana’s new ready-to-drink brand extension comes in four varieties, each made with organic, cold-brewed coffee. Sweetened with a blend of monkfruit, erythritol and sugar, the beverages clock in at 100 calories per 8 oz. can. With a suggested retail price of $2.79 per can, the line will be distributed by KeHE and debut next week at the Central Market, a nine-store grocery chain which operates out of Texas and specializes in natural and gourmet foods. As for Hiball, its new three-SKU “Rich & Creamy” line is formulated with 100 percent Arabica fair trade organic cold brew coffee that is blended with nonfat milk, cream, organic fair trade cane sugar and infused with a small amount of organic guarana, ginseng and b-vitamins. Packaged in 8 oz. cans, the drinks contain of 120 mg organic caffeine and are available in Coffee, Vanilla and Mocha varieties. The line will launch in Feb. 2015 as a 90-day exclusive at Whole Foods where it will be sold for a suggested retail price of $2.99 per can. Though Chameleon Cold-Brew has no plans to get into the canned coffee business, the company is preparing to extend its line of ready-to-drink products with three new varieties that, like Hiball’s cold-brew products, will launch exclusively at Whole Foods. Chameleon CEO Chris Campbell said that the new beverages were a few weeks from their debut, along with a new bag-in-box package that the company teased at the show. The

multi-serve package is slated for foodservice distribution through Labatt and US Foods, Campbell said.

GMOh, Right; Eye on Organic for Ito En Notably, the rush to attain non-GMO certification, an issue that was on seemingly on the tip of everyone’s tongue at the Natural Products Expo West 2014 show in March, was a relatively minor talking point at Expo East. Most brands, taking heed of Whole Foods’ decree of “full GMO transparency” in its stores by 2018, have already completed a certification process via The NonGMO Project, adding its well-recognized seal to their labels. One exception: companies that use dairy in their products. The genetically engineered hormone rbGH, also known as rbST, is commonly injected into cows to boost milk production, and the process by which milk can be certified as non-GMO is taking a bit longer than with non-dairy products, according to Adam Hertel, the vice president of grocery and natural sales of Ito En. The Japanese-owned tea company markets Jay Street Coffee, a line of iced coffee drinks made with milk, and unveiled four new varieties to the line: Extra Rich Jay Street Coffee, which, packaged in 9.1 oz. bottles, comes in three flavors -- Caramel Macchiato, Hazelnut and Mocha -- and Jay Street Coffee Shot, an unsweetened, zero calorie product that contains 150 mg of caffeine per 6.4 oz. steel can. If non-GMO becoming less of a buzzword than in recent months, organic, on the other hand, is as in demand as ever, and with the launch of the first USDA certified organic Teas’ Tea products, Ito En has laid the groundwork for what could be an across-the-board evolution. The company introduced Teas’

Tea Organic, a twoSKU line available in green tea and black tea varieties, at the show, and while COO Jim Hoagland said that Ito En would “feel them out” in how it forecasts production and rolls out innovation for 2015, he noted that Ito En is in the process of converting its tea farms in Australia to organic and pointed to General Mills’ recent acquisition of Annie’s, Inc. as further validation of the strong pull for organic products. Hertel added that while Ito En will see some sales cannibalization of its other products with the addition of its organic teas, that’s reasonable considering that the drinks will also open new doors for the company and address calls by some foodservice operators, which are increasingly asking for organic formulations, particularly for millennial consumers.

BEVNET MAGAZINE OCTOBER 2014

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Peppercorn spice finishing w/ a hint of sweetness.

Mixologists can create distinctive cocktails with our natural Flower Extracts www.b-lure.com. Versatile, natural ingredients for cutting edge menus or retail shelves. bâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;LURE, made from butterfly pea flowers with a color that shimmers from bright blue to purple with magical color change abilities when citrus is added (pH reaction). Rose+Hibiscus, made from the natural essence of premium Bulgarian rose petals and fresh hibiscus juice for a bright pink color, amazing aroma/flavor. Hibiscus Flower, made from a mix of fresh and dried hibiscus for an intense mixed berry-like flavor and vibrant red color. Flower Extracts come with easy to use droppers. All-natural, gluten-free, Non-GMO and kosher. Use like bitters in cocktails with just a few drops in ice, foams, spritzers, infusions, plate painting and desserts. Also available, Wild Hibiscus Flowers in Syrup www.wildhibiscus.com, delicious and versatile hibiscus flowers. Hibiscus Salt www.hibiscus-salt.com, a pretty finishing salt.

KeVita Sparkling Probiotic Drinks KeVita PACKAGING: 15.2 oz. Glass Live Probiotic Cultures, Organic, Low Calorie

Kombucha Revive Kombucha PACKAGING: 16 oz. Glass, 64 oz. Glass Add a delicious probiotic boost to your cocktail

Lighthouse Vodka

OLD PORT RUM Door County Distillery PACKAGING: 750 mL Glass Blend of subtle citrus, mineral & herb aromatics.

58 OCTOBER 2014 BEVNET MAGAZINE

PURPLE VALLEY IMPORTS PACKAGING: 750 mL Glass AWARD WINNING RUM FROM AMRUT

Ole Smoky Tennessee Moonshine Ole Smoky Tennessee Moonshine

RIPE Bar Juice Freshbev LLC PACKAGING: 1L PET

PACKAGING: 750 mL Glass In large retail & local liquor stores nationwide.

Original White Lightning American Born Moonshine PACKAGING: 750 mL Glass 103 proof, 100% authentic unaged corn whiskey

Richland Rum Richland Distilling Company PACKAGING: 750 mL Glass Handcrafted with pure sugarcane & natural water.

Freshbev, the nation’s first Craft Juicery was founded by food and beverage industry veterans who’s core mission was to redefine fresh juice in America. What makes RIPE Craft Bar Juice squeeze out the shelf stable bar mixer competition? After several years in the making Freshbev’s founders developed a proprietary juicing process utilizing a combination of cold-press juice extraction and high pressure. Freshbev’s team of juice crafters can extract juice, bottle within hours and have fresh juice available on shelf, stocked in a bar or shipped to a consumer within 24 hours of production and at FOB shelf lives north of 80 days but cold. RIPE Craft Bar Juice™ is a very innovative option for turn fresh cocktails for the at home, weekend warrior mixologist to some of the top restaurant, bar and food operations in the country. Visit us at drinkripe.com for more info!

BEVNET MAGAZINE OCTOBER 2014

Roasted Jalapeno Margarita

Venus Spirits Gin Blend No. 01

Powell & Mahoney, Ltd.

Venus Spirits

PACKAGING: 750 mL Glass

Award Winning Mix. Tangy lime and spicy jalape単o.

Botanicals made of beauty: We take the freshest he

Sriracha Bloody Mary

VLiNG Hydration Mixers Powell & Mahoney, Ltd.

VLiNG, LLC

PACKAGING: 750 mL Glass

PACKAGING: 12 oz. Can, 48 oz. 4-pack carton

Award Winning. Fiery blend of tomato and sriracha.

VLiNG is the first electrolyteinfused cocktail mixer designed to mix with your favorite spirits, taste great and keep your body hydrated in the process. VLiNG is a unique combination of no-caffeine, low-carb, lowcalorie and low sugar premium hydration. Each serving of VLiNG contains over twice the electrolytes as the leading sports drinks. The VLiNG mixer line-up brings a new twist to traditional mixers with four great tasting mixable flavors, Cranberry-Pomegranate, Soda Water, Tonic Water and Citrus. For more information please contact info@vlingmixers.com.

Sugarlands Shine Butterscotch Gold Sugarlands Distilling Company PACKAGING: 750 mL Glass A creamy caramel and butter flavor.

Tatoosh Small Batch Bourbon Whiskey Tatoosh Distillery & Spirits PACKAGING: 750 mL Glass Family recipe; aged for a minimum of 3 years

Watershed Four Peel Gin

Triple Smoke Whiskey Corsair Distillery

Watershed Distillery

PACKAGING: 750 mL Glass

"Artisan Whiskey of the year" Whisky Advocate

Layered over the juniper note associated with gin.

Young Buck Bourbon

TWO INDIES RUM PURPLE VALLEY IMPORTS

J.K. Williams Distilling PACKAGING: 750 mL Glass

PACKAGING: 750 mL Glass EAST MEETS WEST IN THIS EXOTIC RUM 60 OCTOBER 2014 BEVNET MAGAZINE

Small batch bourbon handcrafted from local grains

Assured Automation

G2 Flow Meter offers durable, compact, precise fluid measurement. Easily installs in-line or at the end of a hose. Large easy to read display with compact,lightweight 316SS housing and sealed electronic circuitry provides years of use. Displays instantaneous flow rate and has two flow totalizers.

Dex-O-Tex by Crossfield Products Corp

Urethane Mortar Flooring

Genesis Beverage Brands

MHW, Ltd.

Genesis Beverage Brands is a specialized wholesale div. of MHW, serving as an incubator and test market platform, for new brands looking to enter the New York market. Services Include: access to key accounts, team of sales reps, listings in industry publications, customized tradeshow package & more.

MHW, Ltd. is the foremost solutions partner assisting brands from over 70 countries with importation and national distribution. We provide an all-inclusive platform that allows direct access to sell into all 50 states. Additionally, we offer direct to retail test market programs in NY, NJ & CA.

Bay Cities

Esencia (Laffort USA)

Inland Label

Monvera Glass Décor

Bay Cities is the leading designer and manufacturer of POP displays, retail and industrial packaging, instore signage, and digital printing. Services include structural and graphic design, cold sealing, assembly, supply chain management, logistics, packout, and fulfillment.

Esencia supplies aromas and flavoring components for alcoholbased beverages: Spirits (Brandy, Bourbon, Gin, Vodka, Whisky), Wine based (Wine coolers / Sangria / Vermouth), Malted beverages (Beers), Cider, etc. Esencia is located in CA and is part of Laffort, a french familyowned comp. since 1895.

Inland Label is a family-owned company with global reach. After 70 years of strong and deliberate growth, we're in full acceleration mode. Long known as the premier label printer for the big beer brands — and the entire craft brewing industry — Inland Label has become a packaging powerhouse.

Monvera provides industry-leading glass decoration services such as screen printing, bottle etching and decals to the wine & spirits, beer, cosmetics, specialty food and beverage industries.

BLINDTIGER Design

FBC Industries, Inc.

J.H. Dunning

Moonshine University

It’s crowded out there. We can help your distillery noticed.

FBC Industries, Inc. specializes in the manufacturing of liquid products with the ability to customize formulas to customer specifications. Our products include acidulants, benzoates, sorbates, citrates, phosphates, lactates and calcium chloride.

Making your product stand out against your competition is what we do, by using our creative and purposeful custom floor and counter P.O.P. retail display solutions. For over 105 years, our experienced design team has been building quality, custom point-of-purchase displays, permanent floor displays, and display racks.

Technical training and business management education for entrepreneurs, industry professionals, and those looking for careers in the distilling industry. A practical, hands-on learning experience. Fully-equipped distillery, classroom, beverage lab, and bottling line.

Dex-O-Tex by Crossfield Products Corp

Flavorman

MANE, Inc.

New Westgate Glass Packaging

Scientifically SuperiorTM and performance proven, Dex-O-Tex floor, wall and waterproofing systems are made for demanding environments that require long-term protection, durability, cleanliness and aesthetics. Urethanes-Terrazzo-Epoxy-Overhead-PatchingUnderlayment-Waterproofing-Wall Coatings

Custom product development for flavored vodkas, moonshine, rums, whiskeys and compounded gins. Whiskey blending, gin distillation and custom development of liqueurs, cocktails and mixers. On-site beverage lab, bottling line and distillery.

MANE is a privately held flavor company, ranked among the top ten leading flavor/fragrance companies globally. MANE utilizes an extensive palette of flavor/technology expertise to design customized flavor creations to meet your needs, delivering solutions to boost both taste and aromatic appeal.

New Westgate Glass is a familyowned, boutique company specializing in sourcing glass packaging for the spirits, wine, food and non-alcoholic beverage industries. We source from top Chinese and European manufacturers providing our customers access to high quality products at competitive prices.

BLINDTIGER Design is a creative agency dedicated to the unique needs of the craft beverage industry. With more than a decade of experience, we design specifically for this industry and build flexible brands the market will respond to.

62 OCTOBER 2014 BEVNET MAGAZINE

NewPage Corporation

Phoenix Packaging

SETHNESS PRODUCT COMPANY

TricorBraun

A leading producer of specialty papers, our innovations team works closely with customers to develop label paper solutions that meet their needs for sustainability, consistent quality, durability and label converting performance, while delivering the best possible label graphics for your beverage.

Phoenix specializes in unique and custom packaging solutions for the craft spirits community. We provide rare and exotic bottles from international sources as well as custom bottle design and manufacturing. Custom packaging elements such as closures, labels, and decoration are also available.

Sethness Colors add eye appeal to your spirits

Industry-leading supplier of packaging for wine and spirits products, including glass and plastic bottles, pouches, bag-in-box packaging, as well as closures and capsules, from both domestic and international sources. TricorBraun also provides custom package design and development services.

Northwest Naturals

Repsly

Steviva Ingredients, Inc.

Northwest Naturals is recognized as one of the industry leaders in expert formulation and processing of turnkey fruit bases for the alcohol industry. Other specialties include all-natural, specialty blended, fruit juice concentrates, WONF concentrates and frozen dairy-style bases, and essences.

Repsly’s mobile solution simplifies processes for field teams and their managers. By enabling companies to improve the efficiency of their field teams, and greatly simplify the collection and analysis of field data, Repsly’s helps companies create a tight connection between the field and operations.

Steviva Ingredients, Inc. is a global ingredient supplier with a focus on all-natural high-intensity sweeteners and customer sweetening solutions for manufacturers. Steviva Ingredients sweeteners and bulk ingredients are all natural, GMO free, soy free, corn free and allergen free.

O-I

RMS Roller Grinder

TimBar Packaging & Display

O-I helps distillers make powerful connections with consumers through glass packaging that sets products apart in a growing global marketplace. We offer scalable solutions available by the pallet to one-of-kind bottles that command a premium on-shelf presence without losing speed to market.

RMS grist mills can be customized to fit your brewery, microbrewery or distillery. Our patented design allows for higher extraction rates and brew house yields. Two, four, and six roll options available for precise cracking and particle size control. Our mills are made in the USA with quality parts.

Established in 1955, a designer and manufacturer of merchandising displays and retail packaging including shipping cartons, case boxes, gift boxes and folding cartons. Custom and semi-custom designs available. G7 master printer and SFI fiber sourcing certified facilities.

Overnight Labels, Inc.

Sensient Flavors

Tree Top, Inc.

Established in 1987, Overnight Labels Inc. is a multi-award winning US based manufacturer of a variety of flexible packaging options including pressure-sensitive and non pressure-sensitive labels, shrink sleeves, neck bands, sample packaging, rotary silkscreen, cold foil, tactile varnishes and more!

With industry-leading expertise in the beverage market, we provide comprehensive solutions that meet our customers’ flavor and functionality requirements. At Sensient Flavors, we use our advanced proprietary development technologies to create fresh, unique flavor systems.

Tree Top processes virtually every fruit under the sun into high-quality, value-added products, which include fruit powders, frozen fruit, specialty fruit juice concentrates, fruit purées, fruit preps, dried apples, and bulk apple sauce. More Fruits, More Forms, More Possibilities.

BEVNET MAGAZINE OCTOBER 2014

COMPANY CONTACT INFORMATION COMPANY

CONTACT NAME

ADDRESS

CITY

2 Skinny Drunks Premium Organics

Dianna Mulcahy

1212 York Road

American Born Moonshine

Alex Schneider

209 10th Ave. South

Assured Automation

Mike ONeill

19 Walnut Avenue

Austin Cocktails

Jill Burns

Baron Spirits International

STATE

ZIP CODE

PHONE NUMBER

WEB SITE

Lutherville

21093

443-677-9477

2skinnydrunks.com

Nashville

37203

615-678-4785

americanbornmoonshine.com

Clark

07066

732-381-2255

assuredautomation.com

512-364-1636

austincocktails.com

Austin

Manhasset

baronspirits.com

Bay Cities

Sahar Mehrabzadeh

5138 Industry Ave

Pico Rivera

90660

562-551-2940

bay-cities.com

BLINDTIGER Design

Oceania Eagan

2228 1st Ave

Seattle

98121

206-258-4431

blindtigerdesign.com

228 Redbud Lane

Bostic

28018

828-245-2041

defiantwhisky.com

Blue Ridge Distilling Co. Brands of Britain, LLC

Marie Christoffersen

2410 Camino Ramon

San Ramon

94583

800-646-6965

Buccaneer Spirits Inc.

Mervyn Price

15455 Dallas Parkway

Addison

75001

972-764-8000

buccaneerblack.com

Bungalow 23

Rick Ferrone

127 W. Fairbanks Avenue, #421

Winter Park

32789

407-389-9918

B23mixers.com

Charron Favreau

Kurt Charron

4555 Franklin Ave. #5

Los Angeles

90027

818-326-5916

chareau.us

Copper & Kings American Brandy Company

1111 East Washington Street

Louisville

40206

502-561-0267

copperandkings.com

Coppercraft Distillery

184 120th Avenue

Holland

49424

Corsair Distillery

Darek Bell

1200 Clinton St

Nashville

37203

615-200-0320

corsairartisan.com

Dex-O-Tex by Crossfield Products Corp.

Steven C Schroeder

3000 E Harcourt Street

Rancho Dominguez

90221

310-886-9100

dexotex.com

Door County Distillery

coppercraftdistillery.com

5806 State Highway 42

Sturgeon Bay

54235

920-746-8463

doorcountydistillery.com

DRY Soda

Charlie McHugh

410 1st Ave S

Seattle

98104

206-669-7286

DRYSoda.com

Esencia (Laffort USA)

Cyril Derreumaux

1460, Cader Lane

Petaluma

94954

707-318-6135

esencia-extract.com

FBC Industries, Inc.

Gina Peart

1933 N. Meacham Rd.

Schaumburg

60173

847-839-0880

fbcindustries.com

Ficks & Co

Matt McDonald

Bush Street

San Francisco

94115

303-875-9296

ficksdrink.com

Flavorman

Kate Ratliff

809 S. 8th St.

Louisville

40203

502-266-7377

flavorman.com

Freshbev LLC

Michel Boissy

26 Kendall Street

New Haven

06511

475-227-3296

drinkripe.com

Genesis Beverage Brands

Yira Vallejo

1129 Northern Blvd

Manhasset

11030

516-869-9170

mhwltd.com

Grand Teton Distillery

Lea Beckett

1755 North Hwy 33

Driggs

83422

208-354-7263

tetondistillery.com

Inland Label

Shawna Koss Dale

2009 West Ave S

La Crosse

54601

608-788-5800

inlandlabel.com

J.K. Williams Distilling

Jesse Williams

526 High Point Lane

East Peoria

61611

309-839-0591

jkwilliamsdistilling.com

KeVita

Bill Lange

2220 Celsius Ave

Oxnard

93030

805-256-3056

KeVita.com

MANE, Inc.

Angie Begley

2501 Henkle Drive

Lebanon

45036

513-248-9876

mane.com

MAPLE LANE SPIRITS

Allyn Brown

50 NW Corner RD

Preston

06365

860-889-3766

foggyharbor.com

MHW, Ltd.

Melanie Gbowu

1129 Northern Blvd.

Manhasset

11030

516-869-9170

mhwltd.com

MOCKED UP LLC

Randy Shefshick

321 West 2nd street

South Boston

02127

202-421-3785

mocktailsthatrock.com

Monvera Glass DĂŠcor

Dylan Idlet

1414 Harbour Way South

Richmond

94804

510-444-9463

monvera.com

Moonshine University

Colleen Thomas

801 S. 8th St.

Louisville

40203

502-301-8126

moonshineuniversity.com

New Westgate Glass Packaging

Ron Chang

3 Columbus Circle

New York

10019

212-520-1691

newwestgateglass.com

NewPage Corporation

Cory Boettcher

707 Arlington Place

Stevens Point

54481

715-345-8046

WherePaperWorks.com

Northwest Naturals

Mike Marquand

11805 N Creek Parkway, South, Suite A-104

Bothell

98011

425-881-2200

northwestnaturals.com

O-I

Danielle Catley

One Michael Owens Way

Perrysburg

43551

412-548-1038

o-i.com

o2living

Rosemary Devlin

792 Route 35

Cross River

10518

914-763-6320

o2living.com

903 Parkway Ole Smoky Moonshine Holler

Gatlinburg

37738

865-436-6995

olesmoky.com

Ole Smoky Tennessee Moonshine Overnight Labels, Inc.

Lindsay Quinn

151-15 West Industry Court

Deer Park

11729

631-242-4240

overnightlabels.com

P&H Soda Co.

Anton Nocito

1053 Manhattan Ave.

Brooklyn

11222

516-313-3937

PandHSodaCo.com

12285 McNulty Road

Philadelphia

19154

215-671-0346

philadelphiadistilling.com

2530 Rue Lapierre

Montreal

H8N 2W9

514-487-6660

phoenixpackaging.com

Philadelphia Distilling Phoenix Packaging

Greg Illson

64 OCTOBER 2014 BEVNET MAGAZINE

COMPANY

CONTACT NAME

ADDRESS

CITY

Powell & Mahoney, Ltd.

KC Commoss

39 Norman Street

Purple Valley Imports

Raj Sabharwal

3409 Butler St.

Repsly

Matthew Brogie

Revive Kombucha

Rebekah Lovett

Richland Distilling Company

STATE

ZIP CODE

PHONE NUMBER

WEB SITE

Salem

01970

978-745-4332

powellandmahoney.com

Pittsburgh

15201

704-497-2493

pviglobal.com

745 Atlantic Ave

Boston

02111

617-356-8125

repsly.com

399 Business Park Court

Windso

95492

707-536-1193

revivedrinks.com

333 Broad Street

Richland

31825

229-887-3537

richlandrum.com rmsroller-grinder.com

RMS Roller Grinder

Jaki Hofer

27271 Ironworks Ave

Harrisburg

57032

605-368-9007

Sensient Flavors

Teresa Olah

5115 Sedge Blvd.

Hoffman Estates

60192

847-755-5300

SensientFlavors.com

Sethness Product Company

Thomas E. Schufreider

3422 W. Touhy Avenue

Skokie

60076

888-772-1880

sethness.com

Steviva Ingredients, Inc.

Thomas King

725 NW Flanders St., Suite 402

Portland

97209

310-455-9876

stevivaingredients.com

805 Parkway

Gatlinburg

37738

865 - 325-1355

sugarlandsdistilling.com

888-964-3906

tatooshdistillery.com

Sugarlands Distilling Company Tatoosh Distillery & Spirits TimBar Packaging & Display

Kevin Vandaveer

201 S. College Ave

New Oxford

17350

717-624-3500

timbar.com

Tree Top, Inc.

Jeannie Swedberg

220 East Second Street

Selah

98942

800-367-6571

treetopingredients.com

TricorBraun

Tom Deegan

6 City Place

Saint Louis

63141

707-399-5826

tricorbraun.com

Ultimate Super Foods

Natalie Susi

5445 Endeavour Court

Moorpark

93021

302-562-9455

baremixers.com

Venus Spirits

Sean Venus

427 A Swift Street

Santa Cruz

95060

831-427-9673

venusspirits.com

VLiNG, LLC

Fritz Berghausen

4524 Este Ave

Cincinnati

45232

855-848-5464

vlingmixers.com

1145 Chesapeake Ave Suite D

Columbus

43212

614-357-1936

watersheddistillery.com

P.O. Box 246

Richford

05476

800-499-8490

b-lure.com

1224 North Post Oak, Suite 100

Houston

77055

281-886-8757

yellowrosedistilling.com

Watershed Distillery Wild Hibiscus Flower Company Yellow Rose Distilling

Chris Muir

BEVNET MAGAZINE OCTOBER 2014

Promo Parade Promotions, events & specials for the industry

Kahlua and Renowned Actor Jeff Bridges Team-Up for “The White Russian,” A Kahlua Productions Film Kahlua, the classic rum and coffee liqueur, has joined forces with Academy Award-winning actor Jeff Bridges to release “The White Russian,” a Kahlua Productions short film honoring the classic cocktail. Bridges, who narrates and stars in the short film, recounts an adventurefilled story with twists and turns for the characters, all while sipping on a classic White Russian cocktail. The debut of “The White Russian” film represents a return to the brand’s heritage in the world of classic cocktails. This Kahlua Production film marks a new global creative look and feel that has been

created for the brand given its long history in films. As the key ingredient behind one of the most popular classic cocktails, and as a point of conversation for so many pop-culture moments, the brand is on a crusade to inspire retro experiences and drinking occasions – the very heart of the Kahlua brand. “The White Russian” short film was directed by Ivan Zacharias and is an intriguing story about the unlikely meeting of two men from different worlds, as told by a man reminiscing about his past adventures. That man is none other than film legend Jeff Bridges. With a few surprise charac-

ters and plot twists, present-day Bridges narrates the unusual adventure all while sipping a White Russian cocktail at a bar. The Kahlua Productions film debut celebrates the brand’s unique heritage, enduring role in classic cocktail culture and association with pop-culture. “The White Russian” will debut in Hollywood with a private screening hosted by Bridges and on YouTube.com/KahluaVideo. The film will be supported online via a series of static and dynamic digital content to be posted across Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Pinterest, and offline through retro experiences for fans across the country

Lillet and Designer Catherine Malandrino Partner for Women’s Charity Lillet, the quintessential aperitif of France, has partnered with designer Catherine Malandrino to create a limited edition tote bag that was inspired by the two brands' French heritage but, more importantly, to celebrate women across the globe. All proceeds from the sale of the bag will go to Women Thrive Worldwide, a non-profit which brings

66 OCTOBER 2014 BEVNET MAGAZINE

the voice of women around the world directly to decision-makers in Washington, D.C. The Lillet tote allows those on the go to carry all their belongings – especially a bottle or two of Lillet (Rose, Rouge or Blanc) to bring to a party. The bag is made from canvas with detailed beaded designs and exquisite leather handles, and sells for $50.

D rink it in. The sun.

The science. The focus to find calm in the energy all around.

Suntheanine improves focus, attention and clarity while reducing the negative effects of caffeine *. To learn how we can partner together to help give your beverage a clear advantage, visit suntheanine.com/beverage.

ÂŠ2014 Taiyo International, Inc., Taiyo Kagaku Co., Ltd. *These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease.