New Association for Black Brewers Launches
A group of Black brewers and brewery owners has formed the National Black Brewers Association, or NB2A. Making the announcement at the Craft Brewers Conference in Nashville, the group aims to correct the underrepresentation of Black people in the industry, noting that only about 1 percent of nearly 10,000 breweries in the United States are Black-owned. The association says it aims to promote and encourage more Black involvement at all levels of the industry, especially as owners and brewmasters.
The group appointed Kevin Asato as its first executive director. The inaugural board of directors includes Garrett Oliver of Brooklyn Brewery, Marcus Baskerville of Weathered Souls in San Antonio, Celeste Beatty of Harlem Brewing in New York City, Rodney Hines of Métier in Seattle, Chris Harris of Black Frog in Holland, Ohio, Khris Johnson of Green Bench in Tampa, Florida, and several other prominent Black brewers and brewery operators. Among other activities, the group says it will sponsor the Barrel & Flow Fest in Pittsburgh on August 12 and the Peoples Jubilee Beer Fest in Sacramento, California, on October 14.
Founders Shuts Detroit Taproom
Grand Rapids, Michigan–based Founders Brewing announced the closure of its Detroit taproom on May 2, citing “the struggle to regain foot traffic” after the pandemic. However, on the same day, a former employee at that location filed a racial discrimination complaint against the company in U.S. District Court alleging an “objectively racially hostile” workplace, according to local news reports. Founders also faced a high-profile racial discrimination suit in 2018, eventually settling with a former employee the following year. In a May 3 statement, the brewery says it was unaware of the new complaint when it closed the Detroit taproom. “We take these claims very seriously, and we are conducting a thorough internal investigation,” the statement says. “Since 2019, we have instituted mandatory bias, discrimination, and harassment training throughout our organization. We have reexamined our policies and enacted new policies, along with implementing new procedures for the reporting of workplace concerns. … As to the pending lawsuit, we are sorry that this individual did not have a good experience with us, and to the extent it was due to our actions or inactions that contributed to that, we are deeply sorry.”
BA to Host Industry Event Ahead of Homebrew Con
Even as the Craft Brewers Conference draws to a close, the Brewers Association says it will host a new industry-facing event on June 21, just before the Homebrewers Conference in San Diego. Called Full Pour, the event features midyear updates from BA chief economist Bart Watson, Chris Shepard of Beer Marketer’s Insights, and New Realm cofounder Mitch Steele. To be held at San Diego’s Town & Country Resort, the event costs $99 for BA members and $199 for nonmembers until June 9. Registration opens May 16.
South Africa’s Richmond Hill Wins African Beer Cup
Africa’s largest beer competition recently named a Shiraz barrel–aged dark ale with raspberries and peaches as the continent’s best beer. The 2023 African Beer Cup featured 232 beers from across the continent. The winner of Best Beer in Africa was RHBC Barrel-Aged Sour from Richmond Hill Brewing in Gqeberha, South Africa. The competition also names an annual African Celebration Award for beers that feature traditional African ingredients; that honor went to the beer African Wild Soul from Soul Barrel in Cape Winelands, South Africa. African Wild Soul is a blend of farmhouse ale and umqombothi, a traditional South African sorghum beer. Held annually in conjunction with the BeerEx Africa conference and trade show, this was the African Beer Cup’s fourth year.
BrewDog Hires Former Coffee Exec as U.S. CEO
Scotland-based BrewDog says it has named John Graham, most recently the CMO of the Oregon-based Dutch Bros. coffee shop chain, as the CEO of its U.S.-based company, BrewDog USA. Former CEO Jason Block has left the company to pursue other business interests, according to the announcement. According to the most recent rankings from the Brewers Association, BrewDog USA is the country’s 38th largest craft brewer by volume.