Coca-Cola has established a federally permitted alcohol subsidiary called Red Tree Beverages to further explore the US alcohol beverage business, Coke’s Chief of New Revenue Streams Dan White told BD in an interview. The unit, created late last year and “firewalled” from Coca-Cola’s non-alcoholic operations, is permitted to participate in marketing and strategy around ready-to-drink alcohol brands based on Coke trademarks that are produced by third parties including...

Despite PepsiCo’s considerable work to keep its Blue Cloud alcohol distribution operation separate from its non-alcoholic business, the subsidiary has become a magnet for criticism as it forges new ground in the highly regulated and competitive US alcohol beverage market. In a new interview, Blue Cloud Distribution GM Emiliano Di Vincenzo, and Blue Cloud Chief Legal Officer Randy Liebowitz, said the organization has...

A collection of recent developments from around the industry to keep you up to speed...

Ale-8-One has launched a limited-edition Peach flavor of its ginger soda. The drink is sold in four-packs while supplies last.

Spindrift added a Peach Strawberry flavor to its juice-infused sparkling water lineup.

Fever-Tree has added...

Coca-Cola’s Topo Chico sparkling water brand has launched a premium line infused with fruit juice and herbal extracts called Topo Chico Sabores. Flavors are Tangerine with Ginger, Blueberry with Hibiscus, and Lime with Mint.

Chamberlain Coffee, the bagged coffee brand founded by YouTube influencer Emma Chamberlain, has launched a line of ready-to-drink canned lattes through Walmart. Flavors are Cold Brew Latte, Mocha Latte, Cinnamon Bun Latte, and Vanilla Latte....

Occasionally, my late grandfather drank an ice-cold Miller Lite after mowing his yard on a humid Memphis day. He’d pour it into a mug and tap in a bit of salt. He had quit any social drinking decades earlier, but that cold beer spelled refreshment to him.

Refreshment has never been my only reason for drinking beer. Which is probably why the appeal of non-alcoholic beer has puzzled me, especially at the same price as a regular beer. Beer commands the price it does in part because of the functionality of alcohol. For refreshment, I’ll take a sports drink, or a soda. That’s why I wrote in this column last year that I am a non-alcoholic beer skeptic. I write today to tell you that I am becoming a believer — with a caveat.

Recently, I found...