Craft Brewing and Distilling News for May 3, 2016
May 3, 2016•Escondido, California-based Stone Brewing Company has announced itself as the founding member of a new craft beer investment fund called True Craft, which plans to make minority investments in craft brewers to allow them to remain independent. Stone co-founder Greg Koch says True Craft will begin with $100 million that he has secured from a group of independent investors. In addition to financial support, True Craft will offer operational guidance to craft brewers. The news comes as craft producers both large and small continue to be acquired at a lightning pace by major brewers and private equity groups. Most recently, Anheuser-Busch acquired Virginia’s Devils Backbone Brewing last month.
•Cape Cod-based South Hollow Spirits has added Dry Line Cape Cod Gin to its small-batch spirits portfolio. Dry Line is made from fermented sugar cane juice steeped with local botanicals like Eastern Red Cedar juniper berries, orange peel, lemon peel, cardamom, allspice, coriander, orris root, grains of paradise, angelica root, anise and dried cranberry. Dry Line gin (47% abv) will be available beginning May 20 throughout Massachusetts, retailing $29.99 a 375-ml. and $44.99 a 750-ml. South Hollow Spirits, owned and operated by the Roberts family who also own Truro Vineyards of Cape Cod, has a lineup that also includes Twenty Boat Hand-Crafted Cape Cod Spiced Rum and Amber Rum.
•Wisconsin craft distiller Death’s Door Spirits has named Tom Bick as vice president of sales and marketing. Bick was previously senior director of marketing at Kraft Foods, where he led strategy on the $3 billion Oscar Mayer brand. Death’s Door, which has a distribution alliance with Serrallés USA, produces gin, vodka and white whiskey under its namesake brand, as well as Schoolcraft’s Original Wisconsin Wondermint Schnapps.
Subscribe to Shanken News Daily’s Email Newsletter, delivered to your inbox each morning.Tagged : Anheuser-Busch, Death's Door Spirits, Devils Backbone Brewing, Dry Line Cape Cod Gin, Kraft Foods, Oscar Mayer, Schoolcraft's, Serralles USA, South Hollow Spirits, Stone Brewing Co., True Craft, Truro Vineyard of Cape Cod, Twenty Boat
