trump – Keep It Overproof!

Distribs Across the Country Share Best Practices

Dear Client: We’ve talked to a ton of distributors over the past week to get a feel for how they’re adapting in the wake of the COVID-19 outbreak. One common theme, no matter the person’s time in the beer industry, “I’ve never seen anything like this.” One distributor described it to me as, “It’s like flying a 747 right above the treeline. You’ll probably be okay, but you can’t make any mistakes.” We are truly in uncharted waters. So with essentially every wholesaler learning on the fly right now, we figured it would...

California, New York, Illinois, Ohio, Massachusetts, Washington, and Indiana Shut Down On-Premise

Posted in Beer, Industry.

Dear Client: Your editor told the Chicago Tribune on Friday that this past weekend would be crucial in telling the tale of how the coronavirus has and will affect the beer industry, particularly on-premise, and indeed the worm has turned. It’s worse than we thought. Much worse. The dam broke on Sunday afternoon on the Ides of March, as Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker ordered all restaurants and bars across the state to be closed to dine-in customers until at least March 30. Delivery and drive up will remain open. This will be effective end-of-business tonight. Ohio Governor...

Diageo ‘buoyant’ on EU trade as Brexit looms

Posted in Beer, Spirits, Wine.

Dan Mobley, Diageo’s global affairs director, said the spirits group is “feeling buoyant” about its trade with the EU and is looking eagerly for the UK to strike its own trade deals with other countries to seize the extra opportunities they could bring. “We are very pleased to see the withdrawal agreement pass and the certainty that gives us,” he told a London press conference, adding the company would take Brexit “in our stride.” “There are two factors for a multinational on leaving the EU, leaving the single market and leaving the customs...

Fine wine predictions for 2020

Posted in Beer, Spirits, Wine.

What could be in store for the fine wine market in 2020? A natural uprising? An Italian renaissance? Is 2019 Bordeaux already in trouble? Will South American labels benefit from anti-EU tariffs? Our recent publication of the Power 100 list (aka the ‘Power Rankings’) and Liv-ex’s own end of year report have examined a number of trends in the secondary market. Many are continuing trends but some are really starting to accelerate. The broadening of the market has been happening for a while but it really stepped up a gear in 2019 with 6,367 wines traded on the Liv-ex Exchange from 995 brands. Bordeaux...

California’s wildfire crisis set to worsen, says leading climate change scientist

Posted in Beer, Spirits, Wine.

The Californian wine industry should prepare for wildfires to become a regular feature in the vineyard cycle, Richard B. Alley, Evan Pugh Professor at Pennsylvania State University, has said. The Kincade fire has scorched over 50,000 acres of land in Sonoma County, California His research suggests that devastating forest fires like the Kincade Fire, which began on October 23 and tore across Sonoma County, could become a yearly occurrence. As of November 6, the fire is over 86 percent contained, but has devastated over 31,000 hectares of vegetation and caused massive property destruction, including...

Trump tariffs could push EU wine prices up 15%

Posted in Beer, Spirits, Wine.

The new tariffs introduced on EU goods by the US could push up prices for French and Spanish wine by 15%, according to the latest Rabobank report. It follows the introduction last month of a 25% ad valorem tariff on still wine under 14.1% ABV that had been made in France, Germany, Spain and the UK, transported in containers of 2 litres or less, as part of the continuing dispute over unfair funding for EU civil aviation company Airbus at the expense of its US rival, Boeing. Sparkling wine, higher alcohol, fortified wines, and wines sent in bulk, as well as wines from Italy were not included...

Craft distillers urge US to make tax cuts permanent

Posted in Spirits.

Almost 2,000 people within the alcoholic beverage industry have urged the US government to permanently introduce a federal tax cut for craft brewers and distillers. On Tuesday (15 October), nearly 2,000 individuals contacted their members of Congress calling for the passage of the Craft Beverage Modernization and Tax Reform Act. The “day of action” resulted in more than 6,000 points of contact with congressional offices via emails, phone calls and social media platforms. A two-year version of the Craft Beverage Modernization and Tax Reform Act was introduced in 2018 as part of US president...

Beer industry blames Trump’s tariffs for loss of 40K jobs

Posted in Beer, Industry, Spirits, Wine.

The beer industry is pinning blame on the Trump administration’s tariffs for thousands of job losses across the country. Source: Beer industry blames Trump’s tariffs for loss of 40K jobs The beer industry is pinning blame on the Trump administration’s tariffs for thousands of job losses across the country. A study released this week by the Beer Institute and National Beer Wholesalers Association found that direct, indirect and induced jobs were at 2.19 million in 2018, a drop of 40,000 jobs from 2016. “Aluminum tariffs are increasing brewers’ costs and are an anchor on a vibrant...

Placing humans at the centre of Artificial Intelligence

Posted in Beer, Industry, Spirits, Wine.

The rise of augmented intelligence – bringing together humans and AI Source: Placing humans at the centre of Artificial Intelligence At birth, we humans are helpless. We spend about a year unable to walk, about two more before we can articulate full thoughts, and many more years unable to fend for ourselves. We are totally dependent on those around us for our survival. Now compare this to many other mammals. Dolphins, for instance, are born swimming; giraffes learn to stand within hours; a baby zebra can run within forty-five minutes of birth. Across the animal kingdom, our cousins are...

What Is Business Intelligence?

Posted in Beer, Industry, Spirits, Wine.

Business Intelligence software collects, stores and analyzes data, turning it into useful information to help businesses make better decisions. Amazon uses Business Intelligence to personalize product recommendations and market products. It also uses BI software for logistical business decisions. As the internet is used by companies to discern and target potential consumer trends, the desire to collect vast amounts of data has grown exponentially. Making sense and use of the data collected Source: What Is Business Intelligence? As the internet is used by companies to discern and target potential...

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