Slapjack Jackfruit Vodka, brewed in the northern hills of Georgia, has made its debut. More details from the distillery are below.

This original jackfruit vodka is so smooth, juicy and tropical—with a touch of sweet heat— it can be enjoyed all by itself. For a flavored vodka, that’s saying something.

SLAPJACK is a sure hit as a shooter, particularly chilled, with delicious flavors of mango, banana, pineapple, orange and peach (plus a déjà vu flavor profile you know you’ve had before, but just can’t place – until you do). But at the same time the complexity and subtle savory notes appeal to spirits connoisseurs always on the look out for an interesting new sipping spirit or a liquor for creative and unusual cocktails.

It only gets more interesting from there.

Jackfruit itself is a fascinating fruit, loaded with superpowers. It enjoys superfood status for its antioxidants, nutrients and vitamins. Its size is as big as its flavor, bigger than most watermelons. And it happens to be great for the planet because the tree it grows on is naturally pest-and drought-resistant, flourishes easily, and has a high yield. Those in the know call it a permaculture dream.

Now jackfruit is trending up, as fast as ever, primarily for its amazing flavor.

The SLAPJACK brand is proving appealing to millennials’ sense of sustainability, identity and uniqueness while still satisfying a desire for flat-out great flavor and fun.

Noel Canning & Bottling in Yakima, Washington has announced the ability to package alcoholic beverages and distilled spirits. More details are below.

YAKIMA, Wash. — With licensing and permitting at the State and Federal levels recently completed, Noel Canning and Bottling in Yakima, WA has expanded their alcohol co-packing services. In addition to their existing wine and hard cider canning capabilities they are now able to package brewed alcoholic beverages (such as flavored hard seltzers) and distilled spirits based beverages (such as cocktails in the can).

Multiple can and finished package sizes are available, as Noel Canning and Bottling continues to add capabilities to better serve growing beverage categories.

Please contact Mike Sutton, Noel Canning and Bottling Contract Packaging Manager at 800 822 1313 or 509 248 4545 for more information.

For More Information: noelcanning.com

Jiant Hard Kombucha in Los Angeles, California has announced a partnership with Craft LA and Craft SD to expand its distribution throughout southern California. The full release from the company is below.

LOS ANGELES – Jiant Hard Kombucha is pleased to announce its partnership with Craft Los Angeles (Craft LA) and Craft San Diego (Craft SD). Craft will be Jiant’s exclusive distributor throughout Southern California.

“We’re thrilled to bring Jiant into our portfolio of world-class brands. We love the hard kombucha category and feel that Jiant is well-positioned to become a category leader within our Southern California footprint. Not only have they built an exciting and beautiful brand, but they’ve really differentiated themselves with the liquid they’ve created,” said Kyle Sartanowicz, general manager of Craft LA and Craft SD.

KEEL Vodka in Providence, Rhode Island has announced a vodka-based hard seltzer called KEEL Sparkling, which is available now. More details from the company are below.

PROVIDENCE, R.I.– KEEL Vodka, the world’s first premium light spirit, has announced the launch of KEEL Sparkling, a vodka-based hard seltzer crafted with the perfect blend of premium KEEL potato vodka, soda water and all-natural lemon-lime and grapefruit flavors. KEEL Vodka, a pioneer in the low alcohol by volume (ABV) category, is bottled at 23.8% abv, allowing drinkers to stay balanced as they socialize, so they can enjoy the now and the later. KEEL Sparkling provides a better-for-you, gluten-free canned vodka soda option when compared to malt-based seltzers on the market, with only 80 calories, 0 carbs, and 0 sugar per 12 oz (355ml) serving. KEEL Sparkling delivers the light, refreshing smoothness of KEEL Vodka in a convenient, go-anywhere can – perfect for year round hiking adventures, tailgating, and backyard get-togethers.

Atwater Brewery in Detroit, Michigan has announced an increase in production of its line of hard seltzers. More details from the brewery are below.

DETROIT — Detroit’s Atwater Brewery is doubling down on its Hard Seltzer production after its initial production quantities sold out quickly and received high marks from industry insiders, customers and reviewers.

“We didn’t want to rush our Hard Seltzers to market,” said Mark Rieth, Atwater owner. “It was important to us that our products tasted like the flavors we promised – cherry, mango and lime – and not ‘fake’ like some of the other products we sampled. Our product needed to be clear and crisp with just the right amount of fizz. We think we accomplished that, and we’re thrilled, as are our customers, to be restocking store shelves.”

Even with its unexpectedly huge sales boom, some in the industry expected Seltzers to be a summer fad with sales cooling off with the weather. What’s clear to Atwater is that sales aren’t going to die down anytime soon. That’s largely due to refreshing taste and an enthusiastic audience of health and fitness conscience millennials and Gen Z customers.

Wyder's Cider in Middlebury, Vermont has announced its first-ever canned offerings. Full details are below.

MIDDLEBURY, Vt. – Wyder’s Hard Cider joins many other hard cider brands by offering their cider in cans. The combination of consumer lifestyle trends and production capabilities have led to this shift for Wyder’s. The change started this pastfall with the discontinuation of their Pear and Raspberry 22oz bottle and replacing them with the 19.2 oz. can, which has had great reception from retailers and consumers.

Starting in 2020, Wyder’s will be launching a “Fruit Basket” six-pack variety pack with12oz sleek cans that includes two (2) cans of their popular styles Pear, Raspberry andPrickly Pineapple. Because of Wyder’s dedication to offering fruit-forward styles, they thought “Fruit-Basket” was the perfect name to pay homage to the brand’s history.

“Our fans are active people so we wanted to give them a package that fit their lifestyle better” said Bridget Blacklock, Wyder’s Vice President of Marketing. “Additionally, our retailer and distributor partners have been asking us to consider can packages for sometime and with updates to our production capabilities we knew this was the right time.”

Silver Eagle Distributors has announced plans to roll out Bud Light Seltzer in the Houston area. More details from the company are below.

HOUSTON – Silver Eagle Distributors Houston, LLC is now distributing Anheuser-Busch’s newest innovation to the Bud Light family – Bud Light Seltzer. The brand “sparkling” new Bud Light Seltzer is made with real cane sugar and natural fruit flavors with 100 calories, 5% ABV, 2g carbs and <1g of sugar per serving. This gluten-free offering comes in four flavors: Black Cherry, Lemon Lime, Strawberry and Mango.

“Silver Eagle Houston is very excited to distribute the highly-anticipated Bud Light Seltzer to our Houston-area accounts,” said John Johnson, president of Silver Eagle Distributors Houston, LLC. “We’re expecting Bud Light Seltzer to be a new favorite among Houstonians with its refreshing, sparkling and fruit-flavored taste.”

Kicking off just in time for Super Bowl LIV, the Bud Light brand, which now includes Bud Light Seltzer, will have a media play during the big game. Check out the official teaser to this ad here.

Bud Light Seltzer is available locally in select retail accounts and on-premise locations in a variety 12-pack and single-flavor 12-packs.

About Silver Eagle Distributors Houston, LLC

Wild Basin Boozy Sparkling Water by Oskar Blues Brewery has announced three new flavors in its Berry Mix 12-Pack. More details are below.

Longmont, Colo. — Oskar Blues Brewery introduces the Wild Basin Boozy Sparkling Water Berry Mix Pack, a collection of four audacious, tantalizing berry flavors. The new Berry Mix Pack, a 12-pack of 12 oz. cans, will hit shelves nationwide in mid-January.

The new pack bursts with berry flavors including three new additions to the lineup: Yumberry, Blueberry Mango and Strawberry Coconut, plus tried-and-true Black Raspberry. Wild Basin is gluten free and vegan, with only 100 calories and 1 gram carb per 12 oz. serving.

Yumberry: Yes, it’s a real berry! Juicy with cranberry-like tartness, Yumberry is a sparkling subtropical superfruit. Who knew?

Blueberry Mango: In this unconventional pairing, ripe blueberry tangoes with fresh tropical mango.

Strawberry Coconut: Sun-ripened strawberry flavor is accentuated by hints of coconut, to transport your taste buds to a tropical beach with every sip.

Black Raspberry: Sun-kissed black raspberry flavor that’s jammy and slightly tart.

The Craft Distillers and Brewers Association has announced that its industry expo will take place from May 10 to 13 in Kissimmee, Florida. More details from the association are below.

Kissimmee, FL – Craft Distillers & Brewers Association will present the Craft Distillers & Brewers Association Expo & Convention, taking place at the Gaylord Palms Resort & Convention Center from May 10 – 13, 2020. This industry expo will put roughly 400 craft spirit and craft beer producers on display for over 1,500 representatives from alcohol distributors, wholesalers and retailers. These two sides of the craft spirit industry will network for 2 full days with the collective goal of bringing new products to the market and expanding the market for those currently in distribution.

The expo will also host 2 full days of craft spirit and alcohol industry leaders to speak about a myriad of relevant topics spanning from TTB compliance to market trends and business strategy for the craft distiller and craft brewer.

Japanese craft beer is produced using the clear water that flows through various regions of Japan as well as brewing techniques that have been developed for the production of sake, soy sauce, and miso.

In addition, Japanese craft beer is unique for its rich flavor variety born from the use of a wide range of secondary ingredients made available by the seasonal variations in Japan. This article explores breweries that continue to strive for the creation of these rich flavors.

Yeast That Matches Unique Attributes of Beer

Miyazaki Hideji Beer is a brewery located in Kyushu in southern Japan. While most breweries purchase yeast from distributors and use the same yeast repeatedly, Miyazaki Hideji Beer cultivates its own yeast for each brewing session and only uses yeast that has undergone quality fermentation.