Vera

Now that the days of unregulated hemp beverages are numbered, how is the industry reacting, and what might the next phase look like? While certainty is scarce, optimism remains plentiful.

With a looming ban on hemp-derived THC products set to take effect in months, the leading advocate for hemp beverages talks about their future, their similarities to craft beer, and what happens next.

Senators who oppose hemp-derived intoxicants slipped a ban into the bill that ended the government shutdown. Now it’s law, and businesses making THC beverages have a year to lobby for changes—even while preparing to discontinue those products or close up shop.

Opportunities are knocking in the cannabis-beverage space, but there are also risks and uncertainties. Should your brewing business open the door?

Public hops that any farmer can grow have their supporters, including the Brewers Association. Ultimately, however, the success of new varieties such as Vera and Thora will depend on demand from brewers.

Curious about the heady world of cannabis drinks? The barriers to entry are lower than you might think—but just because your brewery can, doesn’t mean it should.

When done thoughtfully, fruited sours, spiked sodas, and even hard seltzers can address many of the same drinker demands as RTD cocktails.

As a brewer, you have experience in making delicious beverages, but hemp-derived THC drinks are not beer. Here’s what to know about production timelines, sales, staffing, and more.

In roughly half the United States, a growing number of hemp-based THC products are finding customers, often in a regulatory vacuum. There are opportunities there for small breweries—but there are also plenty of questions yet to be resolved.

Breaking up, as they say, is hard to do. When a brewery and its cofounder or head brewer part ways, planning ahead goes a long way toward helping to prevent acrimony.

Our latest in a series on small breweries going beyond beer: From a young brewery built to anticipate the latest trends, the Lulz brand of seltzers finds success by embracing big flavor while shedding all beery pretensions.

In Durango, Colorado, Ska Brewing’s path to hard seltzer and CBD-infused soda began by making flavored water for the team and giving it away to patrons. Scaling up to alcoholic seltzer worth drinking, however, proved to be a bigger challenge than expected.

Many German breweries produce more than beer, and Urban Chestnut’s Florian Kuplent got his start at just such a brewery. Here he explains a pragmatic approach to broadening a brewing business, walking us drink-by-drink through their beverage program.

The programmer’s approach—test out a new thing, see if it works, then fine-tune and launch the update—has led Boston-area brewery Night Shift into a diverse portfolio of beverages and a flourishing distribution business.