BevNET Magazine October 2015

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Contents • Volume 13 • No. 7

33

COLUMNS

FEATURES

ON THE COVER

4 First Drop A Nice Surprise; Introducting Project NOSH

20 Import Beer Guinness Crafts New Relevance

22 Flavor Trends Something Spicy

6 Publisher’s Toast Three Connections to the Business 18 Gerry’s Insights Big Deal Riles DSD’s Future

DEPARTMENTS 8 BevScape Big Beer and Big Craft get new CEO’s 10 New Products Hopped Cold Brew 14 Channel Check Import Beer 42 Promo Parade Jimmy Graham is Just a Kid

26 Enhanced and Functional Water The New Family Tree with Brand News

TRADE SHOWS 30 BevNET Expo East Wrapup All Grown Up 31 Project NOSH Expo East Wrapup Healthy Favorites Reinvented

cover.indd 1

9/25/15 4:35 PM

COVER PHOTO: iStock.com/LICreate

SPECIAL SECTION 33 2015 Craft Spirits and Mixers Guide

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

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The First Drop

By Jeffrey Klineman

It came as something of a surprise to me, but a nice one.

In the process of reporting a recent story about large companies taking on some of the health-conscious and environmentally sensitive product attributes that tend to characterize and fuel smaller, insurgent brands, I found, not so much fear and anger but graciousness and gratitude from those small brands.

The possibility that big companies might be willing to apply some of their massive economic and distribution scale behind movements that include organics, whole grains, non-GMO ingredients and simpler, “free-from” ingredient panels is one that beverage brands like Mamma Chia embraced, even though they’re a brand that could be directly affected by the growth of products that use – and market – organic chia.

Now, there are situations where brands in similar categories start out building alongside each other for a while, until the sharp elbows emerge in the scramble for shelf space. But this seems to be something different, because the entrepreneurs recognize the large scale change that big strategics can offer, and remain incredibly optimistic as they see those strategic brands move towards them.

Having the tails of conscious capitalism wag the big beverage and food company dog pack is meaningful on several levels: first, the big dogs are making these conscious plays in response to customer demand, which is indicative of changing values across the entire consumer base; second, when the strategics can’t meet those values in a significant way themselves, they then look to entrepreneurs to help them achieve the goal, often expanding the message while showering lots of money on those entrepreneurs.

That was the thought that the folks at SUJA had after meeting Seth Goldman from Honest Tea, and that’s why Mamma Chia, Kevita, and other conscious brands hear regularly from strategic firms and institutional investors – because the things they launch are predictive of long term values.

I’d like to believe there’s a third aspect at play here, as well – that on a genera4 OCTOBER 2015 BEVNET MAGAZINE

All Welcome on the Edge of Positive Change tional level, the environmental and social values of the bigger companies themselves aren’t just being driven by consumer demand, but also their internal values.

That’s a tougher faith to maintain when companies do things like set up scientific research to play down the effects of heavy sugar consumption, or hire competing academics to blur the arguments over GMOs with PR campaigns instead of simple truth-telling. It’s also confusing when companies with conscious brands and more traditional, less healthy approaches are thrown together in portfolios that seem to contradict each other. It leads to fears of greenwashing, or of dumbing down the message to irrelevance.

Overall, however, there’s something refreshingly optimistic in the willingness of the entrepreneurs to welcome the big game of the supermarket jungle out onto the edge with them. It’s probably the same optimism that pushed them into the market in the first place, that idea that their own tastes and inclinations can lead to positive change. Either that, or as one entrepreneur told me, they’re too busy being scared

about every single thing they do, every day, for their own companies to worry about what someone else is doing as well.

Housekeeping Note: We are constantly writing about products that are building brand platforms, going into new categories, rolling out line extensions, building verticals.

Guess what? We’re doing a little bit of that now, too.

We’ve spent the past few years expanding the BevNET platform to include craft beer with our Brewbound site and community, and have added educational options through our FBU (Food and Beverage University) web site and events.

Now, we’re launching Project NOSH, planting the BevNET flag in new turf: the food aisle. Through the ProjectNOSH. com web site and events – like the one we are hosting in Los Angeles on Nov. 5 – we’re hoping to create the same kind of energy around the world of entrepreneurial food companies that we’ve covered and encouraged in the drinks world through BevNET. While the dynamics of the businesses have key differences – particularly with regard to scaling nationally and the cost of route-to-market – we’ve talked to so many people within the two worlds that we think we’ll be able to identify the significant stories, trends, people and strategic plays that will allow us to continue helping brands, distributors, investors and retailers reach their full potential.

Things aren’t changing much on the BevNET side, except that you’ll be seeing the occasional story from Project NOSH make its way over to BevNET, or even into this magazine. We think there’s a lot that the two disciplines can teach each other, and to that end, if you think there are things we need to know, as always, drop a line, make a call, extend a hand.

The CPG entrepreneur might work in liquid media, might work in solid, might work in fresh or frozen, but they all work with passion, they all have a lot to teach, and they all have a lot to share. We look forward to helping try to facilitate more discussion, learning, and success as we cover territory both new and familiar.

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Publisher’s Toast

MAGAZINE

Full Cycle

By Barry Nathanson

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

Neil Martinez-Belkin STAFF WRITER nmartinezbelkin@bevnet.com

Jon Landis STAFF WRITER jlandis@bevnet.com

Chris Furnari BREWBOUND EDITOR cfurnari@bevnet.com

David Eisenberg BREWBOUND ASSISTANT EDITOR 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

I have an unabashed love of all things beverage. For 24 years now I’ve have the pleasure of being a part of the joy that this industry has to give. I consider myself lucky to be sought as counsel and sounding board, to have been brought on as an informal critic for launches, repositions and postmortems for hundreds of brands. I have been privy to business plans, graphic executions and ad programs. I’ve sampled more than my share of formulations, and am always as brutally honest as I can be. As I’ve written in these columns, it’s all about the taste.

More often than not, I’m immersed in the day-to-day and don’t have an opportunity to step back and put in perspective the life cycle of the industry. Last week, though, in three meetings, I got a chance.

The first meeting was a joy. A young, excited man came to me to present a concept, a few sketches and the rough framework of a brand he wanted to launch. The unbridled enthusiasm, and naivete, were reminders that the entrepreneurial spirit still lives. I tried to temper him with doses of reality.

Distribution, logistics, co-packers, funding, and the obstacles in his path. He would have no part of it. He had a dream, and he was going to achieve it, no “ifs”, no “ands”, no “buts”. If energy, positivity and good karma are the final arbiters, he just might reach his goal. I will be pulling for him, and I’m thankful he took me away from the skepticism and negativity for a little while.

I’ve steeled myself over the years because of harsh reality, but listening to him re-kindled why I love this industry so much.

6 OCTOBER 2015 BEVNET MAGAZINE

My second meeting was with a longtime friend and serial beverage sales person. I’ve known him through many incarnations and companies over the years. I think he’s terrific, but he has too many dots on his resume. He came because he’s on the prowl for a new position, and figured I’d be a good resource in his search, which is somewhat correct. I’ve connected many people to companies over the years, and helped situate them into new positions. I enjoy helping friends. The visit helped me focus on the nomadic life so many people in the industry have, and how unusual it is for someone to remain at one company for their career. Stability is not a term often used in relation to the industry. I wish it were the case, and feel for the many players who don’t have it.

There are so many good people out there just trying to make a living. I hope they can continue to do so.

My third visit was with a friend from beverages past. He left the industry many years ago. He felt his opportunities were diminishing and jumped. He’s achieved much success there, but still looks back to his beverage days as the most enjoyable of his career. He wished he could be back in the mix.

I think what the meetings reminded me of is the fact that once you’ve had beverages in your blood, it’s hard to separate from it. Last week I met with different cycles of the beverage life, the start, the trying to hang on, and the regret of leaving. It’s a microcosm of life. I wish them all well.

Jacqui Brugliera SALES & MARKETING ADMIN jbrugliera@bevnet.com

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

John Craven CEO & EDITORIAL DIRECTOR jcraven@bevnet.com

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Bevscape The latest news on the brands you sell

SCIENCE SCANDAL Coke CEO Swears Transparency The Coca-Cola Company has responded to recent controversy surrounding the soft drink giant’s financial backing of the Global Energy Balance Network, a nonprofit that operates on the premise that America’s obesity epidemic has more to do with people’s lack of exercise than their caloric intake.

In an op-ed published in The Wall Street Journal, Coke’s chairman and CEO Muhtar Kent said that the company had made mistakes in the way it has “engaged the public health and scientific communities to tackle the global obesity epidemic that is plaguing our children, our families and our communities,” saying that the approach “is not working.”

As part of a company effort to improve transparency in how it produces and markets its beverages, Kent announced a set of new initiatives to be executed under Sandy Douglas, President of Coca-Cola North America, including the publishing of “a list of our efforts to reduce calories and market responsibly, along with a list of health and well-being partnerships and research activities we have funded in the past five years” on the company’s website. Additionally, Coke will assemble an oversight committee to assist in determining and governing its future investments in academic research.

“I am disappointed that some actions we have taken to fund scientific research and health and well-being programs have only served to create more confusion and mistrust,” Kent wrote. “I know our company can do a better job engaging both the public-health and scientific communities – and we will.”

Coke spokeswoman Joanna Price told the Journal that the company will publish the first disclosures on its site “within weeks.”

8 OCTOBER 2015 BEVNET MAGAZINE

CHANGES AT THE TOP MillerCoors Board of Directors Names Gavin Hattersley CEO MillerCoors’ board of directors has named interim CEO Gavin Hattersley as the company’s permanent leader.

Hattersley — who came to the SABMIller/Molson Coors joint venture in July, following former CEO Tom Long’s departure from the company — had been serving as both the chief of MillerCoors and the chief financial officer of Molson Coors. He will continue to serve as Molson Coors’ CFO until a replacement is named in mid-November, the company said in a statement.

“Gavin is the right person to lead MillerCoors forward,” Pete Coors, chairman of the MillerCoors board of directors said in the statement. “Gavin has a great handle on what needs to be done to achieve growth at MillerCoors and he has the complete confidence of the Board, the employees and the distributor network to achieve this aspiration.”

On his first day in charge, Hattersley terminated two top MillerCoors executives — chief marketing officer Andy England and Ed McBrien, who had served as the president of sales and distributor operations. In their place, Hattersley named David Kroll – who joined MillerCoors in 2012 as the vice president of innovation and was responsible for the introduction of products like Redd’s Apple Ale and Smith & Forge Hard Cider — as the company’s new CMO. Kevin Doyle, who had been serving as the MillerCoors’ chief

commercial solutions officer, replaced Ed McBrien as president of sales and distributor operations.

Meanwhile, after 25 years at the helm of New Belgium Brewing, co-founder Kim Jordan will step down as CEO and transition into a new role as executive chair of the brewery’s Board of Directors. Current president and chief operations officer Christine Perich, who began her career at New Belgium in 2000 and has also previously served as the company’s chief financial officer, has been named CEO. She will take over on October 9, the company said.

In a conversation with Brewbound, Jordan said it was time for her to take a step back from day-to-day responsibilities and move into a “higher-level strategic role.”

“I have been doing this for 25 years,” she said. “This kind of transition is inevitable and we think it is better to plan for it, rather than wait until people are absolutely burnt out. Christine is enthusiastic, young, and energetic, and it is a good time to make that cutover.”

“She [Perich] has been preparing for this for years,” Jordan added.

In a news release, New Belgium said the move would allow Perich to “focus on short-term strategy, leading the executive team, industry leadership and running day-to-day operations.”

“After spending the past 15 years as a part of the New Belgium team, I am incredibly excited for this opportunity,” Perich said in the statement. “With Kim’s continued guidance as Executive Chair and the strength of our management team, I feel very confident in our ability to drive the business forward while honoring all the fundamental elements that have made New Belgium so successful.”

Jordan, 56, launched New Belgium in 1991 with then-husband Jeff Lebesch.

The company has grown to become the country’s fourth largest craft brewery, according to the Brewers Association and in 2014 produced 945,367 barrels of beer.

New Belgium is 100-percent employeeowned and Perich was instrumental in guiding the company through its second employee stock ownership program (ESOP) transaction in 2012.

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New Products The newest options for cooler and shelf

Coffee Anchorhead Coffee, a specialty roasting and brewing company, has added a new Hopped Cold Brew to its product lineup. The product is made with the company’s fair-trade house blend, Narwhal, as its base. The unsweetened beverage is then steeped with fresh Citra hops to flavor the premium slow-brewed coffee, which adds a layer of natural citrus and floral aromas.

Packaged in 12 oz. glass bottles, the coffee retails for $3.99 and is sold at select QFC, PCC, Metropolitan Market, and Whole Foods stores across the Northwest. For more information, please call Anchorhead at (425) 844-8584.

Califia Farms has released its Pumpkin Spice Latte Cold Brew Iced Coffee with Almondmilk. The beverage is made with real pumpkin puree, cold brew coffee, Califia’s Almondmilk and cane sugar and contains 100 calories per 8 oz. serving. It is soy-free, dairyfree, gluten-free and made with non-GMO ingredients. The product is packaged in a 48 oz. plastic carafe and retails for $5.49. The product can be found nationwide. For more information, please call Califia Farms at (661) 679-1000.

Energy Drinks Living Essentials, LLC has launched a new peach mango-flavored Extra Strength 5-hour ENERGY shot. The new flavor joins strawberry watermelon, sour apple, grape and berry to become the fifth extra strength variety of the popular energy shot, which also has six regular strength flavors as well as a decaf variety.

The products are sold nationwide and prices vary by market. For more information, please call Living Essentials at (866) 960-1700.

made with certified organic greens and fruits and contain no preservatives or artificial flavors. The products have a suggested retail price of $4.49 $5.49 and are available at all Whole Foods stores in the retailer’s Florida region. For more information, please call Juicera at (305) 761-4009.

Lemonade Victoria‘s Kitchen, maker of European-inspired specialty beverages, has released its Organic Ginger Lemonade. The product is made with organic cold-pressed ginger and a hint of cayenne pepper and contains no added flavors or preservatives. Packaged in 16 oz. glass bottles, each 8 oz. serving has 35 calories. The product retails for $2.29 per bottle and is sold at all Fresh & Easy locations. For more information, please call Victoria’s Kitchen at (310) 926-7884.

CSD Rocky’s Ginger Beer is a handcrafted ginger beer made with no artificial colors or sweeteners. Formulated with cane sugar, the product contains 140 calories per 12 oz. serving. Packaged in a BPA-free recyclable plastic bottle, the beverage comes in a 24-pack for $22. It is also available in 6-packs and is sold in the Chicago market. For more information, please call Rocky’s Beverages at (800) 975-3047.

Cocktail Mixers Be Mixed is a new line of all-natural, zerocalorie cocktail mixers. Available in three varieties – Ginger Lime, Margarita, Cucumber Mint – the products are made with natural flavor extracts and a blend of natural sweeteners, including erythritol, stevia extract and monk fruit extract. The mixers retail for $10.99 for a 4-pack of single-serve, 4 oz. bottles. The pack is sold at select retailers including Whole Foods and FreshDirect. For more information, please call Nike Communications at (212) 529-3400.

Wine Juice Juicera has added a kids’ line to its brand of cold-pressed, high pressured processed juices.

The line comes in three varieties: Apple Juice, Lemonade and Pineapple Power. The juices are 10 OCTOBER 2015 BEVNET MAGAZINE

Italia Independent and famed Italian winemaker Marco Fantinel have launched The Independent Prosecco. The sparkling wine is created using Glera grapes from the Fantinel Vineyards in the Tauriano di Spilimbergo region of Italy.

It is then fermented for 100 days with a long

2 wild new flavors are storming the city.

They’re calling for a bevolution.

Introducing Kula Watermelon and Sulawesi Limón.

5 calories, no artificial sweeteners, and tastes amazing? None of this makes sense.

New Products maturation in the bottle. The 2014 vintage has a suggested retail price of $16.99 and will be sold nationwide. For more information, please call Total Beverage Solution at (843) 881-0761.

Qupé, a brand focused production of Rhônestyle wines has launched its 2012 Santa Barbara County Syrah. The 13.5 ABV wine is made using biodynamic and organically grown grapes sourced from the winery’s two coolclimate vineyards, Bien Nacido Vineyard and Sawyer Lindquist Vineyard. Total production of the wine was limited to 1,600 cases. It has a suggested retail price of $30 and is available nationwide. For more information, please call Qupé at (805) 686-4200.

Vodka Twenty Grand Vodka has a new peach flavored variety. Bottled at 80 proof, Twenty Grand Peach is an infusion of French vodka, VS cognac and natural peach flavors. The spirit retails for $29.99 for a 750 mL bottle and is available nationwide. For more information, please call Western Spirits Beverage Co. at (270) 796-5851.

Rum Plantation Pineapple Stiggins’ Fancy Rum first appeared in the U.S. at the 2014 Tales of the Cocktail and was meant to be a limited-edition run made specifically for the event. After receiving overwhelming interest in the spirit, Plantation Rum made it a permanent addition to its portfolio. The flavored rum is made using the rinds (where the pineapple’s essential oil chiefly resides) of ripe Queen Victoria pineapples are infused with Plantation 3 Stars white rum for one week and then distilled in pot stills. Separately, the flesh of the Queen Victoria pineapples are infused with rich, aged Plantation Original Dark Rum for 3 months. Then these two liquids are married together and the rum is placed into casks where it rests for three months. Due to the seasonality of the special Queen Victoria pineapples used, the 80 proof spirit will be available as an annual limited edition item with delivery in April/May and July/August each year. The product is available nationwide with suggested retail price of of $34.99 for a 750 mL bottle.

For more information, please call Savona Communications at (917) 969-1275.

12 OCTOBER 2015 BEVNET MAGAZINE

Whiskey Hood River Distillers, Inc. has expanded its Pendleton Whisky portfolio with the introduction of Pendleton Midnight, a premium select 90 proof Canadian whisky. Crafted with many of Pendleton Whisky’s ingredients, including pure, glacier-fed spring water from Oregon’s Mt. Hood, the new expression’s added complexity and fruit-forward characteristics are achieved through aging a portion of the blend in American brandy barrels. Available in select markets, the spirit retails for approximately $34.99 for a 750 mL bottle. For more information, please call Hood River at (503) 574-3693.

Booker’s Bourbon has released the fourth batch in its 2015 collection, Batch 2015-04, also referred to as the “Oven Buster Batch.” The latest expression was hand-selected during an exclusive tasting by Fred Noe, 7th Generation Master Distiller, and the Booker’s Bourbon Roundtable – a small collection of esteemed bourbon experts, enthusiasts and writers. The whiskey is 127 Proof and aged for over six years.

The spirit has a suggested retail price of $59.99 per 750 mL bottle. For more information, please call Beam Suntory at (847) 444-7844.

Bird Dog Whiskey has two new flavors: Jalapeno Honey and Spiced. Bird Dog Jalapeno Honey Whiskey exhibits a light, sweet honeyed aroma that finishes with a zesty, crisp jalapeno blast, while the brand’s Spiced Whiskey exudes a mild aroma of sweetness that finishes with captivating spice flavors, according to the distillery. Bottled at 80 proof, the whiskeys are priced at $19.99 a 750 ml bottle and are available nationwide. For more information, please call Western Spirits Beverage Co. at (270) 796-5851.

Brandy Copper & Kings American Brandy Co. has launched its first aged apple brandy expression. A blend of exclusively copper pot-distilled apple brandies were aged in bourbon barrels and Oloroso sherry butts and sherry casks. The blend has a minimum age of 4-year-old brandy, and is a full-bodied, 100-proof alcohol strength.

The brandy is 50 percent ABV and retails for $40 per 750 mL bottle. For more information, please call Copper & Kings at (502) 561-0267.

EVEN MORE BREAKING NEWS 3 new coconut flavors have joined the uprising.

Do you know where your tastebuds are?

Introducing Antioxidant Cocofusions.

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Channel Check

SPOTLIGHT CATEGORY

Import Beer SOURCE: IRI, a Chicago-based market research firm (@iriworldwide) 52 Weeks through 8/9/15

What’s hot & what’s not in stores now

Is the import lager the new Michelob? Our profile of Guinness (page 20) gives a look at how an import brand that retains a strong profile among gourmet beer drinkers will look to grow within the sea of craft products. But the bulk of the growth in the import category remains with brands that are easy trade-ups from the light lager that has long dominated U.S. beer. Corona, Modelo, and Dos Equis are all up, but so are Stella and Beck’s. Is it a trade-up from Bud and Miller? It’s a possibility – the flavor profile isn’t as demanding as a hoppier or darker beer, but the brands are well-established and even sell at a discount to most crafts.

Brand

Dollar Sales

Change vs. year earlier

Corona Extra

$1,445,317,177

9.3%

Modelo Especial

$837,464,576

24.2%

Heineken

$724,433,958

3.0%

Dos Equis XX Lager Especial

$316,099,337

14.7%

Stella Artois Lager

$250,658,752

17.7%

Corona Light

$243,910,433

6.7%

Tecate

$151,797,435

-3.4%

Labatt Blue

$78,043,307

-3.2%

Pacifico

$75,362,995

5.8%

Labatt Blue Light

$73,194,908

0.4%

Guiness Draught

$64,774,698

0.9%

Becks

$61,238,920

9.7% -17.7%

Newcastle Brown Ale

$58,916,785

Heineken Premium Light Lager

$57,599,213

-3.1%

Tecate Light

$55,560,766

55.2%

Fosters Lager

$54,312,265

-5.0%

Modelo Especial Chelada

$52,538,164

90.8%

Negra Modelo

$44,448,771

11.5%

Guinness Extra Sout

$38,577,823

8.1%

Dos Equis XX Ambar Lager

$33,367,880

-2.2%

TOPLINE CATEGORY VOLUME $32,649,490,088

3.9%

BOTTLED JUICES

$6,981,225,984

1.95%

BOTTLED WATER

$13,323,223,040

8.37%

ENERGY DRINKS

$11,264,128,000

8.76%

DRINK MIXES

$904,266,816

-2.33%

TEA/COFFEE

$4,958,668,800

12.15%

CSDs

$27,911,321,600

1.34%

BEER

SOURCE: IRI, a Chicago-based market research firm (@iriworldwide) 52 Weeks through 8/9/15

14 OCTOBER 2015 BEVNET MAGAZINE

BREAKING-EST NEWS The Superteas have taken up arms in defense of flavor.

Soon, sugar will surrender.

Stay tuned...

Introducing Antioxidant Superteas.

5 calories, no artificial sweeteners, and tastes amazing? None of this makes sense.

Channel Check ENERGY DRINKS Brand

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HOT! Monster Energy Zero Ultra

Dollar Sales

Change vs. year earlier

Red Bull

$2,949,167,360

9.06%

Monster Energy

$1,427,746,176

10.97%

Red Bull Sugar Free

$645,138,176

4.72%

Monster Energy Zero Ultra

$415,495,680

26.75%

NOS

$400,897,792

25.57%

Monster Energy Lo Carb

$318,306,624

-0.47%

Monster Rehab

$310,741,024

-3.56%

Java Monster

$303,323,456

9.23%

Rockstar

$266,682,688

-3.21%

Monster Mega Energy

$249,769,984

2.08%

SOURCE: IRI, a Chicago-based market research firm (@iriworldwide) 52 Weeks through 8/9/15

NOT! Monster Rehab

• Customer Focused • • Commited to Quality •

BOTTLED WATER Brand

Sovereign Flavors Inc 4020 W. Chandler Ave. Santa Ana, CA 92704 T: 714.437.1996 F: 714.437.1998

HOT! Glaceau Smartwater Dollar Sales

Change vs. year earlier

Private Label

$2,143,600,768

10.85%

Dasani

$1,027,412,736

7.28%

Aquafina

$995,086,528

10.02%

Nestle Pure Life Glaceau Smartwater

$912,401,216

3.76%

$739,531,968

Poland Spring

$608,365,184

6.30%

Glaceau Vitaminwater

$473,821,568

0.58%

Deer Park

$420,394,048

3.14%

Ozarka

$358,413,088

7.05%

Fiji

$284,334,208

13.07%

SOURCE: IRI, a Chicago-based market research firm (@iriworldwide) 52 Weeks through 8/9/15

NOT! Glaceau Vitaminwater

DOMESTIC BEER Brand

HOT! Michelob Ultra Light Dollar Sales

Change vs. year earlier

Bud Light

$6,113,494,780

0.8%

Coors Light

$2,378,617,377

-0.4%

Budweiser

$2,131,579,407

-0.2%

Miller Lite

$1,981,274,666

3.3%

Natural Light

$1,079,420,762

-4.8%

Michelob Ultra Light

$1,005,883,422

16.3%

Busch Light

$840,421,860

0.7%

Busch

$638,287,097

-2.7%

Miller High Life

$467,667,295

0.7%

Keystone Light

$451,751,417

-5.6%

SOURCE: IRI, a Chicago-based market research firm (@iriworldwide) 52 Weeks through 8/9/15

16 OCTOBER 2015 BEVNET MAGAZINE

20.90%

NOT! Keystone Light

RTD TEA Brand

HOT! Gold Peak

Dollar Sales

Change vs. year earlier

AriZona

$673,795,840

2.17%

Lipton Pure Leaf

$494,583,872

33.92%

Lipton Brisk

$348,644,192

0.83%

Lipton

$318,592,352

20.82%

Snapple

$214,383,792

1.99%

Gold Peak

$212,833,056

44.90%

AriZona Arnold Palmer

$206,623,808

-5.19%

Diet Lipton

$189,484,928

-8.00%

Diet Snapple

$180,483,200

Peace Tea

$65,582,712

SOURCE: IRI, a Chicago-based market research firm (@iriworldwide) 52 Weeks through 8/9/15

RTD ALMOND MILK

-1.67% -10.84%

NOT! Peace Tea

HOT! Califia Farms

Brand

Dollar Sales

Change vs. year earlier

Blue Diamond Almond Breeze

$55,266,552

11.64%

Silk Pure ALmond

$27,033,272

0.88%

Private Label

$5,706,555

38.07%

Pacific

$3,588,277

Almond Dream So Delicious Almond Plus

-7.88%

$1,119,736

-30.37%

$1,095,888

-30.73%

Harmony Farms

$194,177

-4.31%

Pacific Natural Foods

$79,479

-9.22%

Silk

$75,007

N/A

Califia Farms

$40,400

569.66%

SOURCE: IRI, a Chicago-based market research firm NOT! So Delicious Almond Plus (@iriworldwide) 52 Weeks through 8/9/15

COFFEE Brand

HOT! Java Monster

Dollar Sales

Change vs. year earlier

Starbucks Frappuccino

$940,390,080

15.90%

Starbucks Doubleshot

$468,018,176

22.57%

Starbucks

$71,492,880

-4.64%

Java Monster

$42,335,460

74.38%

Starbucks Frappuccino Light

$26,457,028

2.29%

Starbucks Doubleshot Light

$13,407,131

16.93%

Illy Issimo

$10,997,888

69.12%

Rockstar Roasted

$8,734,849

N/A

Nestle Skinny Cow

$7,773,277

N/A

Coco Cafe

$6,556,645

-2.28%

SOURCE: IRI, a Chicago-based market research firm (@iriworldwide) 52 Weeks through 8/9/15

NOT! Starbucks

BEVNET MAGAZINE OCTOBER 2015

17

Gerry’s Insights

By Gerry Khermouch

Though rumored for some time, news of a potential merger between Anheuser-Busch InBev and SABMiller nevertheless sent a tremor through my beverage world while it’s nearly inconceivable a potential deal would result in the A-B and MillerCoors distribution networks turning into a single system, it revved anxiety over potential rapid consolidation in the DSD environment. So it’s a good time to offer one of my periodic assessments of distribution in the non-alcoholic beverage segment.

The general recollection among beverage veterans is that a couple of decades ago, DSD distributors truly were brand builders rather than a delivery fleet for brands whose owners are expected to undertake the work of winning retailer authorizations and building awareness. Today’s collective perception is that DSD guys grab a hefty chunk of your margin while offering little value creation, because promising new brands are snapped up by the big soda and bottled water players at earlier stages. So while distributors’ businesses get increasingly tenuous, their routes shrink and their ability to execute erodes. Some brand owners now wonder whether conventional DSD wholesalers are the right solution.

As I said, there’s some truth to that line of argument, but I’ll rebut it with a thought I’ve written often: it’s hard to name any shelf-stable brands of broad appeal that have broken out without the use of DSD. Like democracy, DSD is sloppy and inefficient, but nobody has found a better way so far. Yes, you need to exercise due diligence before making a commitment to a particular shop (talk to its past and present suppliers!), and unless you have vast financial resources and solid confidence that your brand proposition works, be wary of undertaking a national “landgrab” via DSD. Better to start with a small footprint, preferably close to your backyard, and check the fit, while experimenting with broadliners and other alternatives elsewhere.

Still, there’s no questioning concerns over the erosion of the independent DSD tier. Key early-adopter markets like South Florida offer limited coverage these days, and the exit of Buckeye from Ohio was a blow to marketers there. So where are new options going to come from? I feel there are grounds for guarded optimism.

18 OCTOBER 2015 BEVNET MAGAZINE

Proposed Deal Ripples Through Distribution In key markets like New York and Los Angeles, we’ve seen newcomers under names like Preferred, Drink King and L.A. Distributing, and there’s hope some of them will be sustainable, despite other well-publicized failures. Never underestimate the power of a single breakout brand to provide the resources for a distributor to buttress its route structure, staff and logistics, much as Vitaminwater did a decade ago. A near-equivalent these days has been Talking Rain’s Sparkling Ice, which has made a steadfast commitment to DSD for all channels; company CEO Kevin Klock speaks openly of launching or acquiring other brands that would serve to further fortify the independent DSD network.

Further, burgeoning refrigerated categories like cold-pressed juice, cold-brewed coffee and kombucha are empowering another subset of DSD distributors to expand their portfolios to include both refrigerated and ambient brands. Some are dairy houses that already had been hedging against their declining milk sales with Greek yogurts, hummuses and other categories.

In recent years, independent Coca-Cola and PepsiCo bottlers also seem to have become more willing to embrace outside brands – the Pepsi network in the Pacific Northwest, for one, has a reputation as agile and committed, even as its members make sure not to neglect their core brands.

Dr Pepper Snapple Group seems willing to take on brands like Vita Coco for distribution without a serious thought of buying them. Red Bull North America is also continuing a limited experiment with Evian. Early-stage brands also are learning to take a broader view of what DSD entails, sometimes assembling coverage in a given market from a matrix of Korean distributors, candy houses and Bic lighter distributors. Consultancy Cascadia Managing Brands claims to have a roster of hundreds of these alternative DSD options to service its clients when conventional DSD options prove elusive or too costly.

Then there are the beer houses. Currently, there’s infatuation with craft beer, which, at many shops, has squeezed out any thought to building NA portfolios. But as that market gets saturated and privateequity-fueled expansions accelerate, a shakeout seems inevitable; wholesalers may look to rebalance. As for the prospect of an

ABI/SAB deal, most experts believe that antitrust authorities would demand the combined entity spin off the MillerCoors piece in the U.S., preserving two separate networks. While consolidation certainly will continue, we shouldn’t worry about seeing a vital network suddenly vanish.

And at the risk of being naïve, I sometimes look at two other doors that may open in beer. One is that formidable array of MillerCoors houses marshaled by the Reyes family, whose technical mastery is an object of broad admiration within the business.

Over the years the Reyes’ made no secret of its disdain for non-alcoholic brands: to them, it’s an array of undercapitalized brands with fly-by-night owners and slender margins that, if successful, are likely to flee to one of the major soft drink systems for a paltry buyout. That’s weak tea, compared with options on the alcohol side.

What’s changed lately is the Reyes’ recent plunge into the NA pool as CocaCola’s new franchisee in the Chicago area.

That’s no philosophical contradiction: they’re latching onto a well-developed, deeply penetrated group of brands with complete franchise protection, which should fit their executional strengths. A positive experience may offer grounds for a broader rethinking of the role of NAs. Another pocket of untapped opportunity is the growing network of Bud houses owned and operated by Anheuser-Busch itself. So far, A-B has shown little wavering in dictating that these houses carry only A-B and allied brands. At some point, though, you have to wonder whether A-B executives will conclude that the 100 percent focus is outweighed by the spectacle of lucrative, fast-growing brands going cross-town to rival MillerCoors houses.

Down the road, some industry experts – including respected soft drink veteran Honickman Group COO Bob Brockway – view it as inevitable that beer and beverages will ride the same trucks. That would truly transform the distribution landscape.

In the meantime, though, there seem to be enough bright spots to foster the hope that deserving NA brands will continue to find their way to retail.

Longtime beverage-watcher Gerry Khermouch is executive editor of Beverage Business Insights, a twice-weekly e-newsletter covering the nonalcoholic beverage sector.

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In 2011, President Barack Obama made news during a trip to Ireland when he downed a pint of Guinness in four executive gulps. What’s noteworthy now isn’t that Obama drank the stout, but what he said while doing so: “I tried one of these and I realized it tastes so much better here than it does in the states… What I realized was that you guys, you’re keeping all the best stuff here.” Without parsing fact from pander there, Obama’s endorsement is one that Guinness, founded in 1759 and owned for the last 18 years by multinational alcoholic beverage company Diageo, would most benefit from dismissing entirely.

With dollar sales up nearly 11 percent in multi-outlet and convenience channels (MULC) through Aug. 9, 2015, the import category is the third-fastest growing segment in the American beer space, accord-

20 OCTOBER 2015 BEVNET MAGAZINE

ing to market research company IRI. But a lot of growth has come in recent years from Mexican lagers, which align stylistically with the mass-produced American lagers that comprise the bulk of U.S. beer sales, a bulk that is nevertheless shedding share.

Knowing that the movement is toward craft, better beer, a flight to quality, Guinness is increasing its investment in the U.S., a country where more and more people are demanding, to quote the leader of the free world, “all the best stuff.” But in an import adjustment, the creamy stout, a nitrogenated rite of passage in its homeland, won’t be alone in the company’s effort to toast America’s craft-conscious consumer base. New on-trend products are also being readied to hit shelves and draft lines to satisfy a distinctly American palate.

“Guinness is looking for beer consumers, and better beer consumers,” said Emma Giles, Guinness brand director in North America. “What’s great with all this experimentation that’s going on, consumers are out trying lots of beer and their eyes are coming back to Guinness.”

Even as the company plans on expanding its portfolio, it’s not as though diversification in the marketplace has sounded a death knell for its well-known stout brands, which have long been a ubiquitous fixture in the states. Dollar sales of Guinness Draught were up a slight 2.1 percent in MULC through August 9 (to $42.3 million), and its Extra Stout made a bigger leap, increasing sales 8.2 percent (to $24.5 million) in the same time frame.

Fergal Murray, former master brewer at Guinness, worked there for more than

three decades before leaving last year (he now operates an independent beer consultancy firm). He said that while some die-hard beer aficionados might scoff at Guinness as a craft brand, “talking about independence and stuff like that,” the two top beers continue to succeed in part because they don’t appear out of place next other craft offerings on the shelves.

“Guinness doesn’t find itself as a liquid in the bottle on the shelf and [you] say, ‘Why the hell is that there among the craft section?’” he said. “Guinness doesn’t open that question up.”

Which is to say, the company has already been able to feasibly play in the craft space. And it seems to like it there, and is designing a portfolio to fit in a bit more.

Released last fall, Guinness Blonde American Lager signaled an overtly craft-focused direction for the company, to some small success. In the 52 weeks leading up to August 9, the beer earned $12.8 million dollars in the food and convenience channels combined. Though brewed in Latrobe, Pa., the Blonde lager is considered part of the company’s Brewers Project, a sort of catchall moniker that refers both to its

pilot brewery in Dublin that specializes in product innovation and the expanding line of beers that come from it.

The company is working on a number of beers slated to come out stateside in 2016, Giles said, most imminently, one that should, in theory anyway, resonate even more with American craft drinkers than last year’s Blonde. This fall, the company is releasing Guinness Nitro IPA. The beer will be treated to a nationwide rollout and be available both in cans and on draft.

As far as its strategy for executing behind these newer brands that appeal to American craft drinkers, Giles said the company plans to take the well-traveled route of trumpeting its 256-year history and telling that story however and wherever possible.

“The people that made this beer, [they’re] going to be coming to life,” added Giles. “The broad play would be through the communication methods to start with, using the new TV ads and digital content we’ll have. And at the same time, as our teams go out and sample the beer, we’ll be telling the story around that.”

Michael McGrew, senior director of communications with Constellation

Brands, a major importer that sells prominent Spanish beer brands like Corona, Modelo, and Pacifico in the states, said he believes it’s one of the most effective ways to sell a foreign beer in a marketplace exceedingly loyal to its own home brewed libations.

“Local is important, obviously, you see that as a major component of the way craft beer is positioned in grocery markets and things of that nature,” he said. “At the end of the day, people are drawn to beer with interesting back stories.”

And while the Guinness back story will remain rooted in Dublin, anchored by the stout, it has become clear it hopes to change the conventional wisdom, as echoed by the president, that one need travel to Ireland to get the perfect pint of Guinness. The company is now making some of the so-called “best stuff” with America specifically in mind.

“I think overall the consumer in the U.S. has changed over the last couple of years,” added Giles. “What’s important is we want consumers to know we’re not just the Guinness brand. We are Guinness the brewery.”

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THE HEAT IS ON: FIRMLY ENTRENCHED IN SPIRITS BIZ, SPICY FLAVORS MIGRATE INTO NON-ALC

BY RAY LATIF Drawing inspiration from a thriving craft cocktail movement that continues to tantalize tastebuds, spirits producers have in recent years unleashed dozens of flavored offerings, most of which are designed to be blended into savory elixirs. Among the throng of new entries are spicy varieties, emerging amid an influx of chile flavors in American food culture. A by-product of the increasing popularity of Latin and Asian cuisines, sustained interest in spicy ingredients has propelled the development of a range of flavored spirits, including cinnamon-flavored whiskey, jalapeño-infused tequila and Sriracha-blended vodka.

Demand for peppery potables has not only generated a significant amount of innovation in the spirits category, the non-alco22 OCTOBER 2015 BEVNET MAGAZINE

holic beverage side of the market is also evolving. Spicy ingredients are making their way into a number of beverage categories at a steady rate, with many companies taking their cues from cocktail culture, often using spice to enhance the final product rather than showcase it as a primary taste.

“The sensation of ‘spiciness’ in a beverage presents an unexpected refreshing aspect and is one that more and more people are gravitating towards,” said Tad Carducci, the co-founder of beverage consulting firm Tippling Brothers.

Indeed, a more adventurous American consumer has given way to a significant shift in the appeal for spicy foods in recent years.

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Consumer Trend Report that a majority (54 percent) of consumers polled said they found hot or spicy foods appealing. That number rose by 6 percent as compared to 2011 and 8 percent in 2009. As might be expected, it’s millennials (aged 18-34) that expressed the greatest preference for spicy flavors, but Technomic found that interest in spice rose across nearly all age groups.

Carducci, whose client list includes major spirits conglomerates Diageo, Campari America and Pernod Ricard, believes that although “marketing comes into play to some degree,” he views sustained interest in spicy cocktails and foodie culture as moving the needle for the beverage industry as a whole.

“Beverage producers should always be watching the craft cocktail market and the trends that emerge from there,” said Carducci. “Also by paying attention to emerging food trends.

Various consumer demographics these days are rather savvy to things gastronomic, much more so than they were a scant few years ago.”

The subset of premium carbonated soft drinks offers the clearest example of the growing use of spicy ingredients in the non-alcoholic beverage industry. One such brand is Sipp, which markets a line of organic sparkling drinks and recently released a new “Zesty Orange” variety made with jalapeno extract.

The ingredient is added to offer consumers “a spicy finish” to the orange soda, according to the company.

Another example is Joia, an artisanal soda brand born out of the booming cocktail scene and whose flavor lineup was designed by a mixologist. The drinks, made with a range of savory and spicy ingredients including ginger, clove and allspice.

The craft cocktail movement has also contributed to a burgeoning market for ginger beer, long known as a beverage for those with a predilection toward spice. Positioned both as a mixer and stand-alone drink, ginger beer varieties have flowed into the market, including new entries from established brands like Reed’s and Spindrift as well as a range of early-stage upstarts.

While Carducci noted that “Sriracha, chipotle, habanero and jalapeño are all fairly common at this point in mainstream food vernacular,” it’s ginger that’s one of the most utilized spice-forward ingredients in non-alcoholic products. One major distinction is ginger’s positioning as an ingredient prized for its immune-boosting function as much as it is for flavor, particularly in nascent categories like kombucha and cold-pressed juice.

Ginger-based juices in shot form are increasingly in vogue among cold-pressed juice enthusiasts, with companies like Project Juice and Lumi Juice hawking 2 oz. blends heavy on the ginger, yet formu24 OCTOBER 2015 BEVNET MAGAZINE

lated with a balanced approach to flavor and eminently sippable.

On the flip side, cayenne pepper, which has long been employed as a metabolism-boosting additive in cleanse-focused products, had rarely been employed as flavoring in beverages.

That’s changing. Chia beverage leader Mamma Chia recently introduced a new line of Chia & Greens beverages that includes a variety formulated with cayenne as a way to “spice it up,” according to a description of the product. Last month, flavored water brand Hint launched a new caffeinated brand extension called Hint Kick, a three-SKU line that includes a lemon cayenne variety. Hint founder Kara Goldin said that the product was designed to be flavorful and unique as compared to other enhanced waters. The beverage (whose promoted function is energy) that has little, if anything, to do with cleansing.

Unlike cayenne, coconut water has long been promoted as an ingredient that offers flavor and function. Over the past decade, coconut water has grown in popularity as a refreshment beverage, and in recent years brands have rapidly expanded flavored offerings with a few finding some success in spiced varieties, such as Harmless Harvest which launched its Cinnamon & Clove as a seasonal product but is now part of the permanent lineup. Other spice-enhanced coconut waters include a Thai chili-infused variety from Taste Nirvana and Amy & Brian’s cinnamon-flavored product.

Among all non-alcoholic beverage categories, however, cocktail mixers, led by a sustained wave of new, artisanal brands, have taken the deepest plunge into spice- and heat-focused offerings. Powell & Mahoney, one of the largest companies in the nascent subset, has led the charge, attracting consumer palates with popular products like its Chipotle Bloody Mary and Jalapeño Margarita, each of which are distributed nationally. Cocktail Crate, a relative newcomer by comparison, has also won praise for its Sriracha Margarita, which like Powell & Mahoney is packaged and sold as a ready-to-blend formulation. Meanwhile, concentrated syrups companies are formulating products with esoteric ingredients designed to offer a spicy kick, such as BG Reynolds’ Falernum syrup, promoted as “a blissful and spicy eruption of ginger, clove, almond and fresh lime.” Pickett’s Ginger Beer is another brand which markets syrups designed for cocktails, with a specific focus on heat-forward ginger beer concentrates.

“The underlying [theme] is savory over sweet,” said Jim Pickett, the owner of Pickett’s Ginger Beer, which markets two varieties: Medium Spicy and Hot N’ Spicy. “I see a big movement where a lot of American cocktails five or 10 years ago were all sugar, fruit sweet bombs, and now they’re going much more savory.”

From Vitaminwater's Roots, Many Branches Enhanced, Functional Waters Evolve With Scientific, Natural Generations. By Neil Martinez-Belkin When The Coca-Cola Company purchased Glaceau in 2007 for $4.2 billion, its acquisition of electrolyte-enhanced water brand Smartwater was more added bonus than essential component of the deal. At the time of its purchase, Smartwater accounted for a small fraction of Glaceau’s $350 million-plus in sales, and was considered largely an afterthought to the behemoth beverage brand that was Vitaminwater.

“The jewel of Glaceau is Vitaminwater, which is vitamin-fortified and offered in flavors. It is among a fast-growing category known as functional foods, which market themselves as offering an additional benefit beyond basic nutrition,” wrote New York Times writer Andrew Ross Sorkin at the time.

But the real diamond in the rough and the saving grace of the Coca-Cola/Glaceau deal turned out to be Smartwater. In 2009, Vitaminwater got slapped with a class action lawsuit from consumer watchdog nonprofit Center for Science in the Public Interest, which claimed the brand’s marketing deceived consumers on the true benefits of the product. The damage was significant. Alongside category contemporaries like PepsiCo’s Sobe LifeWater, sales of Vitaminwater slowed and dropped, as consumers began seeking low or no calorie beverage options with a newfound willingness to give up sugar.

But as one brand was on the decline another one arose to take its place, and luckily for Coke, it was Smartwater, which made up lost ground and, while unflavored, began carrying the torch for a new, different generation of the enhanced and functional waters category – the category that Glaceau had helped to pioneer. The new generation features nuances that magnify the differences between Smartwater and Vitaminwater while forming the core branches of the family tree. Like Vitaminwater, some of the brands are nutritionally enhanced, often to the point where they’re almost unrecognizable as water, although they’re labeled as such; unlike Vitaminwater, those products are often enhanced through juices and other naturally-derived ingredients.

Like Smartwater, another set of brands has been made more functional, often by restructuring the water itself – through their manufacturing processes, and the occasional dusting of electrolytes, these scientifically enhanced waters are supposed to bring an increased level of functionality to the table.

26 OCTOBER 2015 BEVNET MAGAZINE

ON THE SIDE OF SCIENCE “People started flocking to the purest form of hydration which was water,” said Hal Kravitz, a long time Coca-Cola executive who also held a stint as president of Glaceau following its acquisition

by Coke. “They didn’t want calories. They didn’t want coloring.

They didn’t want vitamins. They wanted pure water. But [Smartwater’s success] made it clear that there could still be some variance of that without violating those other requirements.”

Kravitz is now chief executive officer of AQUAHydrate, an electrolyte-enhanced alkaline water brand out of Los Angeles that quickly established itself in the space upon its launch in 2013 through its high-profile affiliations with actor Mark Wahlberg and music mogul Sean “P. Diddy” Combs. With added electrolytes and a pH of 9+, AQUAHydrate’s been positioned as a “performance lifestyle” brand.

AQUAHydrate is just one of many science-based enhanced bottled waters that have found success following the rise of Smartwater.

From high pH alkaline waters like AQUAHydrate, Alkaline88 and Essentia, to oxygenated typeslike Penta and Reliant Recovery Water, to CORE Water, which boasts a “perfect pH”, there’s a range of different purported benefits and functionalities under the “premium hydration” subset that can now be found across the category.

“Consumers have come around to the idea that not all waters are created equal and they’re interested in a more beneficial hydration solution,” said Neil Kimberley, vice president of strategy and brand development at Essentia. “That is what’s driving the innovation and creation of new ideas in the space.”

JUICY ENHANCEMENTS Vitaminwater’s heyday also brought about the trend of using the word “water” (albeit loosely), to communicate a lower-calorie beverage to consumers, even when the product is more than just H2O and some added electrolytes. That’s something that’s played out in the marketing and positioning of naturally-enhanced “waters.” The result: things like a coconut water (juice?), maple water (sap?) or products enhanced with extracts of aloe, artichoke, or cactus.

These products boast a range of antioxidants, nutrients and other beneficial properties that have expanded the parameters of

the space even further, and we’re not just talking about random coconut water-spinoff “plantwater” ideas. There are heavy hitters in the space, as well. In 2014 Ocean Spray, the world’s leading producer of cranberry juice, introduced PACt, a cranberry extract water boasting 80 milligrams of proanthocyandins, which the company says contains cleanse-like benefits.

One place where branches of scientific alteration and natural enhancement intersect is around caffeine, which is naturally occurring – but can be measured out in druglike doses.

Former Glaceau COO Carol Dollard launched Agua Enerviva in 2013, introducing a naturally flavored, electrolyte-enhanced, purified water containing 100 mg of caffeine. Upon its introduction, Enerviva was playing in the caffeinated water subcategory alongside brands like Avitae and Hint Water’s new ‘Kick’ line, but the company just made a much broader move as part of a greater brand overhaul. In addition to dropping its “Enerviva” surname Dollard and co. also introduced its Agua Fruit Essence line extension this summer, consisting of zero-calorie, sugar-free, caffeinefree water with electrolytes. Between the two, Agua’s got a lineup, Dollard says, that not only achieves functionality and meets the low or no calorie and sugar requirements that today’s consumers are demanding, but also provides consumers with something they begrudgingly gave up in their exodus from sugary beverages: flavor.

“A lot of these enhanced waters are interesting ideas but appeal to a pretty specific buyer,” Dollard adds. “I’m looking to bring great taste and those health benefits to the masses. Beverages that people want to drink every day.”

And then there’s Bai. Perhaps more than any of the other aforementioned brands, the coffeefruit-powered brand seems

angled to replace the flavored, low-cal functional water set that Vitaminwater pioneered. But with a ten SKU lineup of its fivecalorie Bai 5 flagship beverage, a carbonated ‘Bubbles’ line, some new teas, and its recently introduced ‘Antiwater’, which will look to compete with the likes of Smartwater and the rest of the premium hydration crowd, Bai doesn’t appear to be content settling for being an established force in just one category.

“Bai will be the brand that’s ubiquitous across every channel of trade. That’s the goal,” says company founder Ben Weiss.

“That will be driven by this new consumer in town and that consumer isn’t going away. The millennial is very much drawn to this franchise we’ve created.”

Undoubtedly more crowded than ever before, the enhanced and functional water category today plays home to a wide spectrum of beverage products, with brands that offer seemingly disparate value propositions overlapping in their functionalities and benefits.

Still, everyone seems to have room to play, at least for now. People are drinking more water and word is they’re not slowing down anytime soon. According to a recent report from industry forecaster Beverage Marketing Corporation, sales of bottled water are expected to surpass those of carbonated soft drinks (the longtime number one beverage category) by as early as 2017.

But the growth of the category means that consumers aren’t drinking just any water. Their shift away from CSDs and other sugary beverages has boosted the enhanced water category, but so has existing bottled water drinkers’ decision to level up after years of pursuit of low-cost, commodity waters. So even though the longest branches in this post-Vitaminwater category might not be fully defined yet, there are certainly some strong limbs in the family tree.

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27

Brand News

Functional & Enhanced Water

Hint has launched a brand extension called Hint Kick, a three-SKU line containing 60 mg of caffeine from coffee bean extract per bottle. Available in Apple Pear, Black Raspberry and Lemon Cayenne flavors, Hint’s new offerings are available in the brand’s traditional 16.9 oz. bottle.

Protein2o has announced a distribution

deal that will bring the brand’s Wild Cherry Splash and Grape Splash flavors to over 750 Walmart stores across 19 states. The company also recently signed a distribution agreement with Australian beverage distributor Direct Brand Distributors.

Troll Bridge Creek, makers of KiKi Maple Sweet Water, have announced that the Canadian brand is now available in the United States through Connecticut-based RSVP Solutions Group. The maple water brand has also made its way into Spain.

Caliwater cactus water continues to become available at additional retailers nationally, in Southern California and across the Southwest. In addition to Whole Foods and The Fresh Market, the brand is now available at Cost Plus World Market nationwide, Ralphs across Southern California and Fry’s Food Stores in Arizona. Caliwater has also added a 1-liter package to compliment its flagship 11.2 oz. Tetra Pak bottle.

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Zpirit Infused Water contains only 30 calories per bottles and is made without artificial ingredients or preservatives.

Bump Water’s Pomegranate Mixed Berry and Strawberry Lemonade still flavors are now available at Whole Foods’ Brooklyn location. The folic acid and prenatal vitaminenhanced flavor waters are also available via subscription at bumpwater.com WANU is infused with 6 grams of fiber per

bottle and vitamins C and E, and is sugar free, low calorie, and non-GMO. Naturally sweetened with a smooth monk fruit blend, WANU is available in Dark Cherry, Watermelon Raspberry, Peach Passion, and Kiwi Cucumber. The brand is available in over 450 Vitamin Shoppe locations nationwide and select retailers throughout California.

GoodonYA Hydrate underwent a rebrand this summer to shift its focus to “female health conscious consumers,” according to the company. USDA Organic and Non-GMO Project verified, it’s distributed by UNFI in the West and East and Seacoast Distribution in Southern California. The brand is also available in Whole Foods’ Midwest, Rocky Mountain, and Pacific Northwest regions.

Avitae caffeinated water added four flavors

Positive Beverage has made Positive H2O

available this year through CoreMark and L.A. Distribution in Southern California.

The product, available in Perfectly Peach, Mandarin Orange and Acai Cranberry, is sugar-free, zero-calorie and sodium-free and offers over 100 percent of daily recommended Vitamins C, D, B2 and B12.

DRINKmaple launched a new 12 oz. bottle and 32 oz. carton. The Vermont-sourced maple water brand also launched in the New York City metro area through Rainforest Distribution and is expanding in the Northeast with stores such as Stop & Shop and Giant.

DRINKmaple is also available in Whole Foods’ Southwest region and select HEB stores.

Zpirit will be making its US debut this Fall, bringing its four fruit & herb varieties - Man-

28 OCTOBER 2015 BEVNET MAGAZINE

to its lineup this past Spring: Açai, Tangerine, Blackberry and Strawberry Guava. This Fall, Avitae will enter Shaw’s and Hy-Vee stores.

Essentia Water is reporting 102 percent

sales growth in the 52-week period ending Aug. 1 2015. The brand has broadened its retailer base beyond the natural channel to mainstream grocery, drug and C-stores. In October, the brand will make its debut at the 2015 NACS Show in Las Vegas.

VROU has added a Watermelon Basil flavor

to its five-SKU line of fruit and herb-infused waters. The brand is now available at Whole Foods Markets in Connecticut, New Jersey and New York as well as online.

Sway Water is releasing a seasonal fall flavor, Apple Cinnamon, which joins the brand’s ex-

ing to its existing five SKU lineup. Karma Tropical Burst contains 20 calories, natural caffeine, and is formulated with 110 percent of seven essential vitamins.

isting roster. Sway Water infuses purified water with organic fruits and vegetables.

NYSW Beverage Brands has introduced a

Mango Guanabana flavor to its VBlast line of vitamin-infused waters. The zero-calorie, sugar-free beverage is geared towards athletes of all types, whether they be looking to fulfil their pre-workout or post-workout needs.

AQUAhydrate is now available in over 30,000 locations in all 50 states across the country. The brand recently added distributors including Haralambos and Crescent Crown, which join the brand’s existing accounts with Polar, Hensley and Columbia.

britewater is an unflavored natural energy water with added electrolytes and zero calories, sugars or preservatives. Infused with 68 mg of natural caffeine per 1 L bottle, britewater is sold at Albertson’s stores in Southern California, all Mother’s Market & Kitchen locations, all Lassens locations and several independent natural grocers in Arizona, Nevada and Utah.

Reliant Recovery Water launched in June in Whole Foods’ Pacific Northwest and Northern California regions and has since made its way into specialty retailers in those markets. Available in three flavor varieties Essence of Peach, Essence of Cucumber & Mint, and Original - the brand will expand outside of the West Coast in 2016, according to the company.

Karma Culture, LLC, makers of Karma Wellness Water, has added a caffeinated offer-

®

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Infused with antioxidant electrons.

Helps remove acidic toxins.

Experience increased cellular hydration. pH Balance Chart

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BEVNET MAGAZINE OCTOBER 2015

29

Conference Overview: EXPO EAST 2015

All Grown Up

By Neil Martinez-Belkin Perhaps more than any particular hot new trend, what stuck out at the just-concluded Natural Products Expo East trade show in Baltimore was the visible growth and continued maturation of beverage categories and brands which were in their infancy just a few short years ago.

Suja Juice, for example, arrived in Baltimore as a “Gold” sponsor of Expo East alongside other Coca-Cola companybacked heavy hitters like Honest Tea and Zico. Suja’s high profile presence at this year’s show comes just two and half years after having its coming out party at 2013’s Expo West show in Anaheim. Fresh of the announcement off a $90 million investment from Coke last month, Suja continues to lead the way in a cold-pressed juice movement that shows no signs of letting up.

Another booming category, cold brewed coffee, was also well represented at Expo East. Fresh off a $4 million raise from Boulder Food Group, the Austin, Texasbased Chameleon Cold Brew is emerging as a leader in its space just five years after its inception, alongside Califia Farms and

30 OCTOBER 2015 BEVNET MAGAZINE

fellow Austin-based company High-Brew.

Califia, which, alongside cold-brew, makes almond milks, creamers, and juices was also present at the BCC, weeks after the company revealed a $50 million investment from New York private equity firm Stripes Group.

“Just a year ago conventional retailers weren’t ready for [cold brew coffee]” said Califia CEO Greg Steltenpohl. “But the public awareness of cold brew in the last year has completely inverted.”

Further validation of Steltenpohl’s sentiment has also come by way of recent findings from global market data and research firm Mintel, which reported last week that retail sales of cold brew have grown 115 percent in the last 12 months. Perhaps owing to only recently scannable growth in tracked channels, the report put sales of cold brew at a comparatively paltry $7.9 million; as the data picture fills in, it’s likely that number will be left in the rear-view in the months to come.

Along with strategic investments, another indication of category maturation has been brands’ visible push into conventional retailers. Despite its presence at the natural foods show, Califia’s gearing up for a mainstream push. The company recently announced the hire of Dan Mader as Vice President of Sales. Mader previously spent eight years at Annie’s, contributing to the natural channel darling’s wildly success-

ful move into conventional supermarkets and club stores.

Even the brands without $50 million in added firepower are dipping their toes outside the natural channel; Expo East had a handful of them, and buyers from places like Sam’s Club in the mix to look for them.

Daily Greens, for example, which secured $3 million from WhiteWave Food Co. at the top of 2015, was in Baltimore showcasing its 12 oz. bottles, a more price-friendly, palatable extension from its core 16 oz. offerings, aimed at a mainstream crowd.

Temple Turmeric, which debuted its upcoming Pure Fire Cider Super Tonic and Holiday Spiced Lassi seasonal flavors, also had its “Super Lights” line on deck.

The Super Lights are the brand’s “gateway product,” created ahead of its entry into Kroger earlier this year, according to company founder Daniel Sullivan.

Temple’s ‘Fire Cider’ wasn’t the only tonic in town for Expo East. Tonic upstarts like California-based Teaonic joined existing players in the space including Shire City Herbals’ Fire Cider and Herbal Revolution’s lineup of drinking vinegars.

The second coming of coconut water was another subcategory present. Where Harmless Harvest once stood alone, as the lone high-end and high pressure processed (HPP) coconut water brand, now the company shared the trade show floor with two other HPP coconut water companies, San Francisco-based Invo as well as Sri Lanka Gold, the latter of whom is backed by “conscious capital” private equity firm MetaBrand.

Waiting in the wings for their own postcoconut water moment were the likes of Vertical Water, DRINKmaple, Happy Tree and Sap on Tap, each of whom seem to be vying for the up-for-grabs title of frontrunner in a tree-based water category that continues to show promise, and has expanded to include its own subcategory: the show featured the debut of Säpp (a company selling water drawn from birch trees).

Healthy Reinventions of Classic Favorites

By Carol Ortenberg, Project NOSH Editor Editor’s Note: Mining food trends for beverage innovation is nothing new. With that in mind, here’s Expo East through the trusty eyes of our Project NOSH team.

Sometimes you don’t need to reinvent the wheel, you just need to figure out how to make a more efficient one. At this year’s Natural Products Expo East, there were plenty of brand new foods, but many of the most important, talked about and interesting products were classic favorites, such as brownies, mayo and pasta, reinvented for the health-conscious consumer.

One example is Pure Genius Provisions, a brand that launched at Expo East. The gluten-free, vegan, nut-free, non-GMO brownies and blondies weren’t just remarkable because they were delicious –despite missing the typical baked goods ingredients of eggs and flour — but because they also include an unlikely ingredient: beans. The blondies include chickpeas in the formulation while Pure Genius brownies are made with black beans, giving both higher protein than a typical baked good.

Another classic American baked favorite was found at Capellos. After seeing success with its grain-free pastas and cookie dough, Capellos previewed its new grain-free frozen pizzas at the show. The pizzas will be available in cheese, pepperoni, and plain crust. The cheese, according to founder Ben Frohlichstein, is “as close to paleo” as you can get in a frozen pizza.

The frozen aisle saw lots of reinvention at Expo East. As consumers increasingly shop the perimeter of stores — where produce and fresh foods are often located — frozen food brands are infusing more vegetables and fruits into classic items in an attempt to draw more traffic to the aisle. Veggie Fries showed off frozen french fries that have a traditional texture and flavor but are also made with broccoli, carrots, kale and more. Similarly, Kid Fresh had frozen favorites such as chicken nuggets, frozen dinners (including macaroni and cheese), meatballs, and fish

sticks, with vegetables and whole grains hidden in every entree.

While adult shoppers may be produce fans, children are still clearly a little wary.

Like Veggie Fries and Kid Fresh, many other products featured familiar kid favorites formulated with a vegetable boost.

That even extends to cookies. Fresh off a promotion in Target, Bitsy’s Brainfood has created alphabet cookies in familiar flavors but with the addition of sweet potatoes, beets, zucchini and other fruits and vegetables. Hidden Garden was also at Expo East, showing off veggie-fied red velvet, chocolate chip and gingersnap cookies.

For even younger consumers, the next generation of baby food had a big presence at Expo East. Little Spoon debuted a line of sophisticated flavor varieties packaged in BPA-free containers (complete with spoon). The first high pressure processed (HPP) baby food on the market, Little Spoon is launching at Whole Foods Market, where the retailer has agreed to cut branded, refrigerated coolers into the baby food aisle to highlight the products.

New company Once Upon a Farm also showed off HPP squeeze pack baby foods, launching widely during the event.

That’s not to say that all the “classics” at Expo East were dishes and products your great-grandmother would recognize. As consumer preferences have shifted, new classics have emerged. Paleo, primal-and gluten-free diets and products are now familiar, while non-GMO and nut-free seem like the basic level to enter many categories. One hot ingredient reflective of these diets was avocado. The ingredient was seen in everything from Aveyo’s avocado-based mayo to Avoke’s HPP cold-pressed avocado pudding bowls. Moreover, the winner of “The Best of East Awards,” Chosen Foods, won for its Avocado Oil Mayo.

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BEVNET MAGAZINE OCTOBER 2015

31

BEVNET MAGAZINE OCTOBER 2015

33

American Juice Company - Lady Lychee

Copper & Kings American Brandy

American Juice Company

Copper & Kings American Brandy Company

PACKAGING: 16 oz. Glass PACKAGING: 750 mL Glass A blend of lychee, strawberry, and rose.

Barritt's Ginger Beer

COPPER POT-DISTILLED AMERICAN BRANDY

Dulce Vida Extra Añejo Tequila North American Beverage Co.

Dulce Vida Organic Tequila

PACKAGING: 12 oz. Can

PACKAGING: 750 mL Glass

Founded in 1874. Family owned. Still in Bermuda.

With 100% sustainably sourced blue agave.

Barritt's Ginger Beer

Essential Cocktail Syrups North American Beverage Co.

Liber & Co.

PACKAGING: 10 oz. Glass

PACKAGING: 8.5 oz. Glass, 17 oz. Glass

New Package - Bar Friendly with resealable cap

Authentic, Award Winning Craft Bar Syrups

Belvoir Ginger Cordial

Fruitations Craft Soda & Cocktail Mixer Belvoir Fruit Farms

New England Cranberry Brands

PACKAGING: 500 mL Glass

PACKAGING: 1 L Glass

Made of ginger, this cordial is the perfect mixer

Fruitations Craft Soda & Cocktail Mixers were founded by food and beverage veteran Allison Goldberg when she was unable to find authentic all-natural mixers for her family to drink. Today, Fruitations is an important element of an increasing number of exceptional craft cocktails and mocktails, mixing with luxury, premium and well brands, providing unmatched taste and consistency that drives sales, manages cost of goods sold and exceeds expectations of guests of all ages. Available in 1L bottles that fit both pour and pump, Fruitations varieties include Cranberry, Tangerine, Grapefruit, Cherry and Grenadine, with more to come.

BUCCANEER BLACK SPIRITS Buccaneer Spirits PACKAGING: 275 mL Glass Patent brew of black rum, gin, vodka, bourbon

Cocktail Crate Sriracha Margarita Cocktail Crate PACKAGING: 375 mL Glass on-trend flavors made from fresh ingredients

34 OCTOBER 2015 BEVNET MAGAZINE

Fruitations supporters include some of the biggest events and bartenders in the mixology world: Tales of the Cocktail, Todd Richman, Diageo Master of Whiskey; Willy Shine, Shine Drinks; Pamela Wiznitzer, Seamstress NY; Duane Fernandez, Jr., Purity Vodka.

For more information visit www.justaddfruitations.com or contact Allison directly: Allison@justaddfruitations.com

Hop Soda

New 750 mL DRY Sparkling Celebration Bottles Proper Soda

DRY Sparkling

PACKAGING: 8.4 oz. Can

PACKAGING: 750 mL Glass

A Proper Englishman: Hop Soda & London Dry Gin

Innovative avors, crisp taste, four ingredients.

Mango Passion Fruit Margarita

Owl's Brew

Powell & Mahoney, Ltd.

Owl's Brew

PACKAGING: 750 mL Glass

PACKAGING: 8 oz. Glass, 32 oz. Glass

Voted "Best in Class" in 2015 Consumer Taste Test

Mulberry Love

Owl's Brew is a tea-based craft cocktail mixer

Pickett's American Craft Ginger Beer Mulberry Love LLC

Pickett Brothers Beverage

PACKAGING: 8.4 oz. Glass

PACKAGING: 16 oz. & 32 oz.

Glass, 5 gal. Bag in a box, 8.4 oz. Can

Mulberry Juice Coconut Water and Grape Juice

All Natural Ginger Beer Syrup-spicy mule cocktails

BEVNET MAGAZINE OCTOBER 2015

35

Reed's Stronger Ginger Brew Reed's Inc.

Top Hat Craft Ginger Beer Concentrate Top Hat Provisions PACKAGING: 375 mL Glass, 1 L Glass, 3 gal. Bag in a box

Reed's stronger ginger brew is 50% stronger.

Rogue Oregon Rye Whiskey Rogue Spirits PACKAGING: 750 mL Glass Handcrafted with Rogue's own rye from Oregon.

Sriracha Bloody Mary Powell & Mahoney, Ltd. PACKAGING: 750 mL Glass Recipient of numerous taste testing awards.

Small Batch Tonic Syrup

We started handcrafting kegs of ginger beer in 2011 to serve Moscow Mules on draft at Coachella Music Festival in 2011. After four years of handcrafting ginger beer on the road at music festivals all over the country, we have found a home on the edge of San Francisco to professionally craft & bottle our delicious ginger beer concentrate.

Top Hat is made with Organic Ginger Extract, Organic Cane Juice, Natural Lemon, Citric Acid, Apple Cider Vinegar & one preservative to ensure safety and longevity in bar rails & on draft.Our craft concentrate is available in 375ml bottles, 1 Liter bottles & 3-gallon Bag-in-a-Box units to activate soda gun systems.

The Moscow Mule may be the first drink that comes to mind when you think Ginger Beer, but we have activated an award winning portfolio of delicious craft cocktails that have been widely enjoyed by 100’s of thousands of people at bars, restaurants & festivals.

See http://TopHatProvisions.com for more information.

Turbo Energy Drink

Jack Rudy Cocktail Co.

Sunny Sky Products

PACKAGING: 17 oz. Glass

PACKAGING: 1 gal. Bag in a box

We believe we’ve managed to create the closest possible thing to a perfect Gin & Tonic.

Our Small Batch Tonic is essentially a quinine concentrate. It’s designed to pair with your favorite Gin or Vodka, and is then stretched with soda water to make a bright, light, refreshing highball.

With a backbone of quinine, culled from the Cinchona Tree, we’ve added a delicate mix of botanicals, and then sweetened it with real cane sugar; the final product is a complex mixture that introduces a fine bitterness to any cocktail, and a great pairing with the botanicals of the finest Gins in the world.

36 OCTOBER 2015 BEVNET MAGAZINE

Closest taste profile to Red Bull™* in the country

Uncle Val’s Restorative Gin 35 Maple Street Spirits PACKAGING: 750 mL Glass Juniper, cucumber, lemon, sage, lavender flavors

Wild Poppy Juice Wild Poppy Juice Company PACKAGING: 10 oz. Glass Authentic juices with clean, organic ingredients.

Beck Flavors

Custom Ingredients, Inc.

Franklin Baker, Inc.

Iowa Rotocast Plastics, Inc.

Natural Oak Extract - Naturally derived from Oak Starves, achieve a nice aged flavor without the aging process. Blueberry Flavor (Natural & Artificial) - Great flavor for beers and malt beverages.

Natural Grapefruit Extract - Great flavor that pairs well with Wheat Beers and IPA's

Your value-added partner for Natural, Organic Compliant, and Non-GMO Flavors. We manufacture both liquid & powder Flavors for all food, beverage, & supplement applications. As the "Experts in Custom Flavor Creation," we offer full service beverage development to match your unique Flavor profile.

Franklin Baker, Inc. is the premier supplier of coconut ingredients to the global food and beverage market for over 100 years. We offer Coconut Water SS, Coconut Water Concentrate, Coconut Cream, Coconut Milk, Coconut Concentrate, Creamed Coconut, Coconut Sugar, & other Coconut products.

IRP’s Latest Great Merchandising Innovation from the Beverage and Food experts.

Just about anywhere you go, from the corner convenience store to the most famous venues in the country, odds are you’ll find a flurry of activity surrounding a merchandising display designed and manufactured by IRP.

BSG Distilling

Enhance America

Global Essence Inc

McLean Design, Inc.

With distilling malts from Rahr Malting Co., Weyermann®, Simpsons, Crisp and Malting Company of Ireland, and various yeasts, yeast nutrients, enzymes and flavors and botanicals, we have a wide range of distilling ingredients to help you create high quality, artisanal spirits.

Enhance America is a leading manufacturer of LED & Neon Signs. We provide full service Management Design, Production, Warehouse & Fulfillment. Let us help you design a program to increase Brand awareness. Signage, Bar Rail Mat, Glorifiers, LED, Infinity Mirrors, Pub Signs and More.

Global Essence was founded in 1993 and in the twenty years since, it has grown into a multinational operation with offices in the US, UK and Singapore. We bring to the table over 150 years of combined experience in the flavor and fragrance industry, allowing us to offer the highest quality products.

McLean Design has been creating market-beating beverage packaging for over two decades. Based in the San Francisco Bay Area, we specialize in brand strategy, brand identity, packaging design, and custom structures.

CP Kelco

FBC Industries, Inc.

Inland

Monvera Glass Décor

Partner with CP Kelco to create a uniquely textured cocktail experience. At the forefront of developing naturally-derived hydrocolloids allows us to provide functional benefits and sensorial attributes such as viscosity modification, suspension, thickening, stabilization, gelation, and mouthfeel.

FBC Industries, Inc. is a manufacturer of quality liquid additives and preservatives for the food & beverage industries. Our products include: Benzoates, Calcium Chloride, Citrates, Lactates, Phosphates, Sorbates, Whey processing aids and custom blends. GFSI/ BRC Certified at all locations.

Inland, a leader in advanced packaging technology, has experienced an impressive 70-year transformation from local supplier to global partner. Long known as the premier label printer for the big beer brands—and the entire craft brewing industry— Inland 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.

CROWN Beverage Packaging

Flavorman

International Beverage Management, Inc.

Moonshine University

CROWN Beverage Packaging is the world leader in metal packaging to the craft spirits and mixers category. Our new sleek can line is specifically designed to differentiate, and build your brand. We have a wide variety of can sizes and graphics capabilities.

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.

We are a technical beverage development team! Let us work with you to create innovative and quality drinks and mixers! We can make a splash together!!

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.

BEVNET MAGAZINE OCTOBER 2015

37

Neenah Packaging

O-I

Phoenix Packaging

SETHNESS PRODUCTS COMPANY

Neenah is a premium paper manufacturer specializing in packaging solutions — everything a brand needs to package and present its quality products. We are paper craftsmen, with over 140 years of expertise in the art and science of creating colors and textures that inspire and connect with consumers.

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.

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.

Hue and alcohol solubility play a primary role in choosing the correct Sethness Caramel Color for spirits and liqueurs. Red-toned Caramel Colors are often used in rums, while yellow-toned Caramel Colors are utilized in whiskeys, brandies and tequilas.

Northwest Naturals

Overnight Labels, Inc.

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.

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!

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.

Sales Systems Development, Inc. Synergy Flavors

38 OCTOBER 2015 BEVNET MAGAZINE

Sales & Management Training Programs for Craft Distilleries & Distributors. Bob Brown offers 25 years experience training 100+ industry clients in effective sales execution processes Training Programs…

• Building Brands Thru Distributors • Selling Key Accounts • Selling & Merchandising • Negotiation

Synergy Flavors is a leading manufacturer and supplier of flavorings, extracts and essences. We have extensive experience across the food and beverage industry, developing high quality taste solutions including all natural tea, coffee and botanical extracts/essences & a full line of natural flavors.

Sensient Flavors

The Barrel Mill/Oak Infusion Spiral

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.

The Barrel Mill is a cooperage in MN that manufactures charred oak barrels, and the Oak Infusion Spiral, an alternative to new barrels. Barrel aged in a bottle is the consumer version of the spiral. This size is geared towards the mixologist and craft beverage enthusiast.

Treatt

Tripack

Treatt is a leading global independent supplier of innovative ingredient solutions for the avour, fragrance and consumer goods industries. We partner with many of the leading beverage brands who utilise our easy to apply natural and nature identical solutions to create stand out products.

Tripack is an industry leading, U.S. manufacturer of shrink sleeve labeling systems with additional turn-key bottle decorating, can labeling, contract packaging and 3PL services.

Tree Top Fruit Ingredients

Verso Corporation

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 purĂŠes, fruit preps, dried apples, and bulk apple sauce.

More Fruits, More Forms, More Possibilities.

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

WILD Flavors & Specialty Ingredients/Archer Daniels Midland

ADM WILD Flavors & Specialty Ingredients offers a wide range of ingredients that address taste, texture, nutrition and functionality in meat, beverage, health and nutrition, snack, confection baked goods, cereal and personal care markets.

BEVNET MAGAZINE OCTOBER 2015

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COMPANY CONTACT INFORMATION COMPANY

CONTACT NAME

35 Maple Street Spirits

STATE

ZIP CODE

PHONE NUMBER

Sonoma

CA

95476

707-996-8463 35maplestreet.com

ADDRESS

CITY

32 Patten Street

WEB SITE

American Juice Company

Christopher Wirth

21 East 87th Street

New York

NY

10128

347-620-0252 americanjuicecompany.com

Beck Flavors

Marshall Howard

1858 Craig Park Court

St. Louis

MO

63146

314-878-7522 beckflavors.net

Belvoir Fruit Farms

Alexandra Creteur

689 Mamaroneck Ave

Mamaroneck

NY

10543

914-621-1288 belvoirfruitfarms.com

BSG Distilling

Customer Service

800 West First Ave.

Shakopee

MN

55379

800-374-2739 bsgdistilling.com

Buccaneer Spirits

Mervyn Price

15455 Dallas Parkway

Addison

TX

75001

972-764-2748 buccaneerblack.com

Cocktail Crate

Alex Abbott Boyd

23-23 Borden Avenue

Long Island City

NY

11101

718-316-2033 cocktailcrate.com

Copper & Kings American Brandy Company

Curtis Shields

1121 E. Washington ST

Louisville

KY

40206

502-561-0267 copperandkings.com

CP Kelco

Leanne Levy

3100 Cumberland Blvd.

Atlanta

GA

30339

678-247-7454 cpkelco.com

CROWN Beverage Packaging

Ron Skotleski

One Crown Way

Philadelphia

PA

19154

215-718-1303 CrownCork.com

Custom Ingredients, Inc.

Mike Wendling

160 Calle Iglesia

San Clemente

CA

92672

949-276-7995 customingredientsinc.com

DRY Sparkling

Melody Conner

410 First Avenue South

Seattle

WA

98104

206-652-2345 drysparkling.com

11310 W. Highway 290

Austin

TX

78737

512-697-4000 dulcevidaspirits.com

Dulce Vida Organic Tequila Enhance America

Jeff Hasting

15 W Main St

Washington,

MO

63090

314-630-0549 EnhanceAmerica.com

FBC Industries, Inc.

Gina Peart

1933 N. Meacham Road

Schaumburg

IL

60173

847-839-0880 fbcindustries.com

Flavorman

Kate Ratliff

809 S. 8th St.

Louisville

KY

40203

502-266-7377 flavorman.com

Franklin Baker, Inc.

John Slade

8275 Tournament Drive

Memphis

TN

38125

901-881-6681 franklinbaker.com

Global Essence Inc

Jeanna Johnson

8 Marlen Drive

Hamilton

NJ

08691

732-677-1100 globalessence.com

Inland

Adam Boehlke

2009 West Ave S

La Crosse

WI

54601

608-788-5800 inlandpackaging.com

International Beverage Management, Inc.

Dianne Hustus

200 Main Street

Monroe

CT

06468

203-880-9370

Iowa Rotocast Plastics, Inc.

Charlie Rolfs

1712 Moellers Drive

Decorah

IA

52101

563-382-9636 irpinc.com

Jack Rudy Cocktail Co.

Taylor Huber

164 Market Street

Charleston

SC

29401

843-814-9286 jackrudycocktailco.com

Liber & Co.

Chris Harrison

2204 Forbes Dr.

Austin

TX

78754

979-204-9092 liberandcompany.com

McLean Design, Inc.

Rifle Hughes

1401 N. Broadway

Walnut Creek

CA

94596

925-944-9500 mclean-design.com

Monvera Glass DĂŠcor

Dylan Idlet

1414 Harbour Way South Richmond

CA

94804

510-444-9463 monvera.com

Moonshine University

Colleen Thomas

801 S. 8th St.

Louisville

KY

40203

502-301-8126 moonshineuniversity.com

Mulberry Love LLC

Dianne Burnett

30765 Pacific Coast Hwy #352

Malibu

CA

90265

310-505-0036 mulberrylove.com

Neenah Packaging

Elizabeth Corbett

3460 Preston Ridge Road

Alpharetta

GA

30005

206-225-3448 neenahpackaging.com

New England Cranberry Brands

Allison Goldberg

82 Sanderson Avenue

Lynn

MA

01902

781-738-8978 justaddfruitations.com

North American Beverage Co.

Paul Imbesi

901 Ocean Ave

Ocean City

NJ

08226

609-399-1490 bermudasgingerbeer.com

40 OCTOBER 2015 BEVNET MAGAZINE

internationalbeveragemanagement.com

STATE

ZIP CODE

PHONE NUMBER

Bothell

WA

98011

425-881-2200 northwestnaturals.com

One Michael Owens Way

Perrysburg

OH

43551

567-336-1981 o-i.com

Lindsay Quinn

151-15 West Industry Court

Deer Park

NY

11729

631-242-4240 overnightlabels.com

Owl's Brew

Jennie Ripps/Maria Littlefield

135 W. 29th Street

New York

NY

10001

212-564-0218 theowlsbrew.com

Phoenix Packaging

Greg Illson

2530 Rue Lapierre

Montreal

QC

H8N 2W9

514-487-6660 phoenixpackaging.com

Pickett Brothers Beverage

Jim/Matt Pickett

697 Grand St

Brooklyn

NY

11211

347-881-3868 pickettsgingerbeer.com

Powell & Mahoney, Ltd.

Brian Powell

39 Norman Street

Salem

MA

01970

978-745-4332 powellandmahoney.com

Proper Soda

Stephen Curtis

P.O. Box 2725

Grand Rapids

MI

49501

616-889-8266 propersoda.com

Reed's Inc.

Neal Cohane

15 The Old rd.

Newtown

CT

06470

203-278-6652 reedsinc.com

Repsly

Matthew Brogie

745 Atlantic Ave

Boston

MA

02111

617-356-8125 repsly.com

COMPANY

CONTACT NAME

ADDRESS

CITY

Northwest Naturals

Mike Marquand

11805 N Creek Parkway, South, Suite A-104

O-I

Melissa Kimball

Overnight Labels, Inc.

Rogue Spirits

OR

WEB SITE

rogue.com/roguespirits

Sales Systems Development, Inc.

Bob Brown

Two Worlds Center, Ste 71

Mountain View

CA

94040

650-691-9622 salessystems.net

Sensient Flavors

Lauren Williams

5115 Sedge Blvd.

Hoffman Estates

IL

60192

847-755-5300 SensientFlavors.com

SETHNESS PRODUCTS COMPANY

Tom Schufreider

3422 W. Touhy Avenue

Skokie

IL

60076

888-772-1880 sethness.com

Steviva Ingredients, Inc.

Thomas King

725 NW Flanders St., Suite 402

Portland

OR

97209

310-455-9876 stevivaingredients.com

Sunny Sky Products

Chris Hannemann

4580 Blalock Road

Houston

TX

77041

832-320-4343 turbo-nrg.com

Synergy Flavors

Tamara Johnsen

1500 Synergy Drive

Wauconda

IL

60084

847-487-1011 synergytaste.com

The Barrel Mill/Oak Infusion Spiral

Richard Hobbs

640 chinook ave SW

Avon

MN

56304

barrelagedinabottle.com infusionspiral.com whis800-201-7125 keybarrel.com thebarrelmill.com

Top Hat Provisions

Shane McKnight

6 Richards Cir

San Francisco

CA

94124

415-902-7821 TopHatProvisions.com

Treatt

Douglas Rash

Treatt

Lakeland

FL

33805

863-668-9500 treatt.com

Tree Top Fruit Ingredients

Jeannie Swedberg

220 East Second Street

Selah

WA

98942

800-367-6571 treetopingredients.com

Tripack

Matt Linz

7930 Kentucky Drive

Florence

KY

41042

859-282-7914 tripack.net

Verso Corporation

Cory Boettcher

707 Arlington Place

Stevens Point

WI

54481

715-345-8046 versoco.com

WILD Flavors & Specialty Ingredients / Archer Daniels Midland

ADM/WILD Flavors & 1261 Pacific Ave Specialty Ingredients

Erlanger

KY

41018

800-637-5843 adm.com/food

Wild Poppy Juice Company

George Bryson

Los Angeles

CA

90064

310-384-1004 wildpoppyjuice.com

2355 Westwood Blvd.

BEVNET MAGAZINE OCTOBER 2015

41

Promo Parade Promotions, events & specials for the industry

Seattle Seahawks’ Jimmy Graham Stars in Next Chapter of Powerade’s “Just A Kid” Campaign As he begins the next chapter of his career in Seattle, sports drink brand Powerade is recalling football superstar Jimmy Graham’s humble beginnings. Before he was a 6-foot7, 265-pound tight end and considered among the best professionals to ever play the position, Graham was just a kid from Goldsboro, N.C. His inspiring story — from state-run group home to gridiron greatness — is told through the latest creative of the “Just A Kid” campaign from Powerade.

The Powerade “Just A Kid” campaign

aims to inspire by taking a passionate stand for the potential in every young athlete. It supports the belief that no matter where athletes get their start, or what obstacles they face in life, they can advance from the very bottom to the very top through hard work and determination.

The biographical 15-, 30- and 60-second spots, titled “Churn,” portray Graham arriving at a community group home in 1998, where he is immediately confronted by violence, intimidation and

evian And Designer Alexander Wang Release 2016 Limited Edition Bottle evian and New York-based fashion designer Alexander Wang have unveiled the 2016 evian Limited Edition bottle. Wang’s design features his signature bar code logo on two contrasting bottles, one black and one white. The purity of evian water is emphasized through clean graphics and highlighted by the play of the lines on the bottles.

Wang applies the barcode logo in different ways and throughout different collections and seasons. Inspired by the unique purity of evian water, Wang put it into new context on its iconic glass bottle. The design is clean, simple and, at the same time, interacts with the dynamic reflections of water as a natural element.

Since 2008, evian has worked with some of the world’s most prestigious designers to create a limited edition bottle. Through the creative vision of artists such as Diane von Furstenberg, Paul Smith, Jean-Paul Gaultier, Elie Saab and KENZO, each collaboration is a renewed celebration of purity and playfulness and a reinterpretation of evian’s spirit through art and design.

42 OCTOBER 2015 BEVNET MAGAZINE

despair. As Graham matures, he develops a mental edge and dominating physique, which translates to his success on the football field and basketball court.

To further support young athletes, Powerade has launched an online marketplace where fans can design and purchase customized “Just A Kid” apparel touting the name of their hometown. The collection includes sweatshirts, T-shirts and hats. Net proceeds from the marketplace will be donated to the Boys & Girls Clubs of America.

“I need problem solving for our beverage line” Business.

Feeding your

BROADER PORTFOLIO If you want to make a splash in the increasingly competitive beverage market, let ADM be your total solutions partner. With everything from sweeteners to beverage alcohols to natural flavors and colors from WILD, we’re ready to collaborate with you to find the perfect mix of ingredients, including nutritional and functional formulations for today’s active consumers. To feed your food business, visit ADM.com.

© 2015 Archer Daniels Midland Company

Feeding your Food Business