Kate Bernot

Say It Loud — Alcoholic Sports Drinks Chase Success With More Explicit Positioning

As is so often the case, @kbernot.bsky.social's reporting and trend analysis showed me the way on this column: feelgoodsinsights.com/analysis/alc...

This might be an Oklahoma-only play so could explain lack of TTB knuckle-slapping

A pink and blue pop up sign for the CannaBev Summit with palm trees and blue skies in the background

Good morning CannaBev Summit! 👋

En route to CannaBev Summit in Miami this morning, where Jon Halper and I will be sharing knowledge about brand loyalty in THC beverages on Friday morning.

It's a topic we at Feel Goods have been all over recently: feelgoodsinsights.com/analysis/thc...

Hey if any media types are interested in what shapes meat prices, I’m your person.

https://maureenogle.com/

Odds that initial anonymous $5K is just ... the founders' parents?

Glutenberg had a good following! Not sure what the cause of their disruptions are but they haven't had supply stateside since last summer, it seems.

Big Gluten-Free Brands Are Disappearing, Opening the Door for Craft Brewers With brands such as RedBridge and Glutenberg no longer widely available, smaller breweries are finding success in a “need state” niche.

There’s at least one corner of the craft beer world experiencing notable demand: gluten-free beer.

When three major brands disappeared from shelves last year, it opened a lucrative niche for smaller producers: www.brewingindustryguide.com/gluten-free-...

Hell yeah NJ drinks writer mafia stand up! Where did you grow up, Matthew?

DOG AT THE OLYMPICS
FULL COMPETITION HIGHLIGHTS

Why artificial intelligence detectors could penalize academic writing - Nature Human Behaviour Writing produced using artificial intelligence is becoming more common in academia, which has prompted institutions to look for ways to detect it. Bo Hu warns that an overreliance on fixed linguistic ...

“As some universities and journals adopt AI-text detectors, they risk creating a feedback loop that constrains how authors express themselves. I have seen colleagues intentionally simplify their grammar or break down complex rhetorical structures to avoid arousing algorithmic suspicion.”

broken clock, etc

not wrong

Big fan of the Guinness NA, too. Replicates the flavors of "the real thing" (a major point we cover in the newsletter) and bc of that signature texture, it feels substantive.

Wowza data point in here: Within NA beer, the highest customer conversion rate in the category belongs to Athletic. NIQ data shows that 53% of ppl who try Athletic purchase it again—the only instance among brands included in the survey where consumers were more likely to repurchase than not. 👀

A stylized photo illustration of two people toasting with glasses of brown liquid over a bar stocked with many non-alcoholic spirits bottles.

Where is brand loyalty in adult non-alc beer, wine, and spirits? Hard to come by.

In a recent Feel Goods Insights newsletter, we dug into the two major hurdles brands face and how to solve for it. feelgoodsinsights.com/analysis/whe...

Melania's budget could've paid the salaries of every fired Washington Post employee, three times over An incomplete breakdown of Jeff Bezos' financial priorities, weighing one piece of propaganda (Melania) against 300 journalists.

we crunched some numbers www.avclub.com/melania-budg...

Fart Point

Dream team!

Such a pleasure to recap last year's biggest bev-alc stories and share what we're watching in 2026 with David Steinman + @brewbound.com's @jessicainfante.bsky.social, and Zoe Licata.

So it’s purely for the brand aesthetics?

[looks at the aesthetics]

😬👀

This is 90% of what I understood journalism to be in undergrad.

costco should be allowed to sell weed. i want the Kirkland Select Kush. a 300-count fish oil pill sized bottle of 5mg gummies would fix this country

Say It Loud — Alcoholic Sports Drinks Chase Success With More Explicit Positioning

"'Gatorade with alcohol' is a lot easier to understand than 'hard refresher.' As a result, brands across malt- and spirits-based products seem more eager to get in on this second wave." @kbernot.bsky.social

feelgoodsinsights.com/analysis/alc...

Brewbound Podcast: The Year in Booze News A new year means it’s Brewbound’s annual roundtable conversation with our peers in beer industry journalism. This year, the Brewbound team is joined by Kate Bernot, lead analyst for Feel Goods Insights,...

Brewbound Podcast 🎧📉: Kate Bernot & David Steinman on 2025’s bev‑alc news — middle‑tier consolidation, consumer pressure and projected low‑to‑mid single‑digit declines in beer.

NEW: On Thursday morning, the country's second-largest distributor told its employees that its largest remaining liquor supplier was pulling its business in all markets. It's another body blow for RNDC, which has emerged as the sick man of the middle tier over the past 18 months.

This is the entirety of the 2025-2030 Dietary Guidelines for Americans' content about alcohol consumption: cdn.realfood.gov/DGA.pdf

Big Flavor, Zero Compromise: Modelo Debuts First-Ever Non-Alcoholic Option Modelo launches new Chelada® Limón y Sal Non-Alcoholic – bold and zesty flavor meets moderation j...

Modelo, the top-selling U.S. beer brand, launches its first non-alcoholic beer: Modelo Chelada Limón y Sal Non-Alcoholic, rolling out nationally with 60 calories per 12 oz can and priced in line with Corona Non-Alcoholic

he's ready for taprooms, let him loose

Welcome to Alcohol’s Slop Era Over the past two years, BuzzBallz has been beset by imposters. The Texas-based canned cocktail company was one of beverage-alcohol’s last true innovators, coming up with its signature vacuum-sealed s...

"For every MPACT MAX, there are countless others popping unbidden into alcohol’s growing slopverse that’ll never be seen by an appellate judge—only a slew of overstimulated shoppers unable to distinguish the Surfsides from the Skimmers, the BuzzBallz from the Bombtails." vinepair.com/articles/alc...

🍷 Best Other Beverage Reporting

The world of beer overlaps with cider, wine, spirits, THC, and more. The Best Other Beverage Reporting winners explored those intersections with nuance and curiosity. Congratulations!

https://bit.ly/4ij2Pc9


#BeyondBeer #BeverageMedia #NAGBWAwards2025