Beverage Dynamics

Beverage Dynamics May/June 2015

Beverage Dynamics is the largest national business magazine devoted exclusively to the needs of off-premise beverage alcohol retailers, from single liquor stores to big box chains, through coverage of the latest trends in wine, beer and spirits.

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10 Beverage Dynamics • May/June 2015 www.beveragedynamics.com FYI NEWS, NOTES & TRENDS HEINEKEN USA APPOINTS NEW CEO Heineken USA announced that effective July 1, its new CEO will be Ronald den Elzen. He succeeds departing CEO Dolf van den Brink, who will become the new CEO of Cuauhtémoc Moctezuma/Heineken Mexico. Ronald den Elzen is originally from the Netherlands and has been with Heineken for over 20 years. He's held various positions in Finance, Sales and General Management in Heineken's businesses in Amsterdam, the U.K. and Portugal. In his current role as Managing Director of Heineken Portugal, he helped mobilize and energize the organization during an economic depression, according to a press release. Van den Brink has been with Heineken for 17 years. During his six year tenure at Heineken USA, he led a turnaround of the business, restoring top line growth and driving consistent market share gains, the company says. After nearly 16 years of service to the Distilled Spirits Council of the United States (DISCUS), CEO Dr. Peter H. Cressy announced his desire to step down at the end of 2015. Cressy, 73, shared his decision with the DISCUS Board of Directors at its annual meeting. "It has been a great privilege to be CEO of the Distilled Spirits Council and to have worked with such outstanding member companies whose commitment to both social responsibility and market modernization has been remarkable," Cressy said. During Dr. Cressy's tenure, the spirits industry increased its market share 25%, while supplier revenues more than doubled from $10.7 billion annually to over $23 billion. Sunday sales were passed in 17 states, for a total of 38, and liberalized tasting laws were passed in 35 states for a total of 45. ULTIMATE SPIRITS CHALLENGE WINNERS ANNOUNCED Now in its sixth year, Ultimate Spirits Challenge celebrates 33 Chairman Trophy winners, the highest award, along with 162 Finalists as well as Tried & True Awards and Great Values. The Challenge, which grew by 14% from 2014, was held in its specially designed evaluation center in Hawthorne, NY. All products are rated on the 100-point scale by spirits industry judges, including award-winning authors, buyers, journalists, educators and bar owners. The judges for USC 2015 include Founder/ Judging Chairman F. Paul Pacult, James Conley, Tad Carducci, Dale DeGroff, Gregg Glaser, Geoffrey Kleinman, Douglass Miller, Dan Nicolaescu, Steve Olson, Will Shine, Francis Schott, Andy Seymour and Jennifer Simonetti-Bryan, MW. BACARDI ACQUIRES ANGEL'S ENVY Bacardi Limited has expanded its portfolio of spirits with the acquisition of Louisville-based Angel's Share Brands, its subsidiary, Louisville Distilling Co., and its Angel's Envy brand. This deal marks the company's entry into the bourbon category of the North American whiskey sector. Terms of the transaction, closed on March 27, were not disclosed. The fl agship brand, Angel's Envy Port Finished Bourbon, is one of the top ten fastest growing super- premium bourbons in the United States. Angel's Envy is hand-blended in small batches of 8 to 12 barrels. BD FEDS LEGALIZE POWDERED ALCOHOL The company that makes Palcohol — powered, fl avored alcohol — received federal approval to sell its product. The decision is a signifi cant step forward for Palcohol, which had been authorized, and then later denied approval, last spring by the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau. Whether or not the product's labels accurately refl ected Palcohol's contents is the basis of the government rethinking its position. Some state legislators have already moved to ban the product, fearing that its fl avoring may appeal to underage consumers. Since Palcohol is essentially just freeze-dried alcohol sold in pouches, there is also concern that this product may lead to easy or unintentional overdose. The company expects Palcohol to hit shelves this summer. Diageo has announced a global commitment to provide consumers with alcohol content and nutrition information per typical serve. The intention is to provide this info through Diageo's responsible drinking website DRINKiQ.com, and/or on-pack in a majority of Diageo's markets, subject to local regulatory approval, and as soon as practicable. "We are committed to ensuring our consumers have the best possible information from which to make informed choices about our products: this includes alcohol content and nutrition information per typical serve," said Ivan Menezes, Diageo chief executive. "Currently, there is no obligation to provide such information in markets worldwide, but we know that consumers are increasingly discerning about what's in their glass." Diageo will work with regulators around the world to agree on the format of voluntary labels, which provide information on alcohol content and nutrition per typical serve. DIAGEO TO PROVIDE NUTRITIONAL LABEL INFORMATION BACARDI ACQUIRES DISCUS CEO to Step Down

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