Beer-articles 913

by: Larry Potash, Lauren Jiggetts

Posted: May 28, 2024 / 08:59 AM CDT

Updated: May 28, 2024 / 08:59 AM CDT

Since 2017, Reggie Duvalsaint has been on a mission to serve beer in every NFL and MLB stadium in the country… he was at the White Sox game yesterday!

Love the WGN Morning News? We love you, too. And you can have all the hijinks delivered to your inbox every weekday morning. Sign up and subscribe to our WGN Morning News newsletter.

Submit

Δ

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

Your HTML is already clean and doesn’t need any changes according to the requirements stated. Please, provide the original HTML to proceed with cleaning and rewriting.

During the summer, we’re going to be talking to local brewers and other beer professionals about what you can look forward to when visiting breweries in our area. We start today with Progression Brewing’s Todd Sullivan.

Progression Brewing Company is located at 9 Pearl St. in Northampton. (George Lenker photo)George Lenker

When you’re hiring a brewer for a new brewery that’s only one city block away from another incredibly popular one that’s been thriving for more than three decades, you’d better make a great choice.

So it’s a good thing Progression Brewing – which in 2018 opened a mere 5-minute walk from the legendary Northampton Brewery – got Todd Sullivan as its head brewer.

Sullivan, who started homebrewing in college at age 18, said he got his start from “the cool kids down the hallway” who had a homebrew set-up and were making beer. While his initial focus in college was commercial art and industrial design, he later decided to expand his horizons and attend the Siebel Institute for Brewing Technology. After seizing the opportunity to refine his skills at a number of Massachusetts breweries, Sullivan was later recruited by Progression owner Drew Starkweather.

In a recent Q&A, we asked Sullivan about his brewing methodology, his preferred beer, and what patrons can anticipate when they come to Progression, among other topics.

Q: Do you have a primary philosophy that guides your brewing process?

Sullivan’s answer to that was short and sweet: Keep it simple. His arsenal of ingredients for making his IPAs only includes about four different malts. He appreciates delving into the subtle differences of malts and hops and assessing how they react when combined. He has witnessed other brewers utilize countless malts in a single brew. He has the ability to readily select malts and modify their quantities, switch out ingredients or adjust the temperatures in order to perfect his brews.

I also approach each beer I design as trying to be the best one on the planet. I will study who is making the best and the highest-rated style, and I will implement my style to make an even better one. I am always after the top dogs.

Q. You are known for your New England-style IPAs. How hard is it to make a bunch of different varieties of a style without repeating yourself? How do you come up with new ideas for new NEIPAs?

In my opinion New England IPA’s are about just a few simple things. Utilizing the perfect hop to achieve the tropical flavors you desire. I love that a hop can have tastes and smells of pineapple, guava, passionfruit, citrus, pineapple within them. It amazes me. Water chemistry is important. Malt is the basic part. I enjoy the right balance of wheat and oats to get a silky mouthfeel without being overly slick.

But the bottom line is keep it simple. Making them different and recognizable in my opinion is not hard. These IPAs are all about the hops. The hops I use taste and smell very differently. Different temperatures and fermentation times will get me vastly different results. More hops, less hops. More oats – it is all about mixing in vastly different amounts of hops to achieve my goals.

Q. What’s your favorite style and why?

My favorite style that we make is our Kolsch. Simple but just perfectly lagered, and it is given the right amount of tank time and cold conditioning to achieve a balance of perfection. I love using pilsner malt to get that crisper bite, and a simple small hop addition gets me where I want to be with this beer. I am a huge fan of lager. Tank space is at a minimum at Progression since we mostly make IPAs. I would love to squeeze a lager tank in there someday.

Q. What’s your biggest challenge as a brewer that you face on an ongoing basis?

Changes. I am part of this group called “angry old brewers” on the internet. They speak of making beers with Oreos and Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups or Swedish fish. I just can’t do it. I am a purist. I am old, and I have been doing this for 26 years professionally. I was so hesitant to make a seltzer when we first made it. I felt like I was selling my soul. I will totally mix it up with a pastry stout or a fruited sour, but some of these changes I just can’t accept.

Q. What’s your favorite thing about being a brewer?

I definitely think making beer is still my favorite part. The part of actually brewing the beer and seeing it to completion. I have a great brewery and a small staff and I am alone a lot. Just me and my creation. It is a beautiful thing, brewing right here in downtown Northampton super early in the morning by myself.

Q. What would be your suggestion for a great summer beer to someone who is visiting Progression for the first time?

New Magic Wand. There was a time a couple summers ago that I actually got tired of beer and started drinking tequila and margaritas. I made a great sour, and we had always mixed in fruit. One day I said, “You know what I am going to do? I am going to try to make a margarita sour.” That’s 100% what I would suggest to anyone visiting Progression in the summer. And of course there’s always NOHO, my Kolsch. You cannot go wrong with that beer in the summer.

Progression Brewing Company is located at 9 Pearl St. in Northampton. For more information, go online to progressionbrewing.com or call 413-341-3517.

If you purchase a product or register for an account through a link on our site, we may receive compensation. By using this site, you consent to our User Agreement and agree that your clicks, interactions, and personal information may be collected, recorded, and/or stored by us and social media and other third-party partners in accordance with our Privacy Policy.

Bottles of Modelo Especial beer, the top-selling beer in the United States.

As per the sales data from Nielsen IQ for the four week period ending on April 20, 2024, imported beer sales surpassed domestic premium beer sales for the first ever time.

The sales lead of import beer over domestic premium beers was in terms of monetary value, the volume of domestic premium beer sold was greater; since import beer usually have a higher selling price compared to domestic premium beer. The sales data was gathered through bar code scans and primarily represents off-premise beer consumption sales (sold from stores), as opposed to on-premise beer sales in bars and restaurants.

Despite imports only overtaking domestic beer sales in the “domestic premium” category, this category includes well-known brands such as Bud Light, Coors Light and Budweiser. However, it does not encompass domestic super premium brands, like Michelob Ultra and Landshark, or domestic below premium brands, such as Miller High Life, Keystone Light, and Busch.

Mexican brand Modelo Especial became the top-selling beer in the United States, surpassing Bud Light for the first time in May 2023. That import beer sales overtook those of domestic premium beer in April 2024 is evidence of the continuing trend of the American beer drinker reaching for import beers generally and Mexican brands specifically; Mexican beers made up about 82% of the import beer market based on sales dollars as of December 2023.

“This is just the latest evidence that Mexican imports are a mainstream part of the beer landscape now,” said Kate Bernot, lead reporter for Sightlines, a beverage alcohol insights newsletter, in a video interview. “Corona used to represent a special beach vacation, but today, Modelo is just a beer people drink on a regular basis.” Bernot notes that more non-Hispanic households now purchase Modelo than Hispanic households.

The category of Mexican beer imports has grown to the point that it now covers many beer styles and segmentation, just like the broader beer industry. Modelo and Corona are purchased by mainstream drinkers while brands like Dos Equis, Victoria and Bohemia target a more Hispanic audience. Modelo itself has popular lines of flavored Cheladas and Aguas Frescas. “Along with a variety of flavors, these brands are also targeting varied segments of the American public, indicating that Mexican imports are no monolith and are in fact a stand-alone category with internal variation,” said Bernot.

Even in craft beer, many small American breweries have latched on to the trend. Durango, Colorado’s Ska Brewing released a beer called Mexican Logger as long ago as 1999, but in recent years many craft breweries have released beers in the style of Mexican lager. “Americans just know what that is now,” says Bernot. “It shows that Mexican lager is mainstream beer.”

One Community. Many Voices. Create a free account to share your thoughts.

Our community is about connecting people through open and thoughtful conversations. We want our readers to share their views and exchange ideas and facts in a safe space.

In order to do so, please follow the posting rules in our site’s Terms of Service. We’ve summarized some of those key rules below. Simply put, keep it civil.

Your post will be rejected if we notice that it seems to contain:

User accounts will be blocked if we notice or believe that users are engaged in:

So, how can you be a power user?

Thanks for reading our community guidelines. Please read the full list of posting rules found in our site’s Terms of Service.

Bottles of Modelo Especial beer, the top-selling beer in the United States.

According to Nielsen IQ sales data for the four weeks ending April 20, 2024, import beer sales overtook domestic premium beer sales for the first time ever.

Import beer sales outpaced domestic premium beer sales based on dollars, though more volume of domestic premium beer was sold; import beer is typically sold at a higher price than domestic premium beer. The sales data is based on bar code scans, so it represents primarily sales of beer for off-premise consumption (purchased from stores), rather than on-premise sales of beer in bars and restaurants.

Although imports only overtook domestic beer sales in the category of “domestic premium,” that category includes brands such as Bud Light, Coors Light and Budweiser, but does not include domestic super premium, such as Michelob Ultra and Landshark, or domestic below premium, such as Miller High Life, Keystone Light and Busch.

Mexican brand Modelo Especial became the top-selling beer in the United States, surpassing Bud Light for the first time in May 2023. That import beer sales overtook those of domestic premium beer in April 2024 is evidence of the continuing trend of the American beer drinker reaching for import beers generally and Mexican brands specifically; Mexican beers made up about 82% of the import beer market based on sales dollars as of December 2023.

“This is just the latest evidence that Mexican imports are a mainstream part of the beer landscape now,” said Kate Bernot, lead reporter for Sightlines, a beverage alcohol insights newsletter, in a video interview. “Corona used to represent a special beach vacation, but today, Modelo is just a beer people drink on a regular basis.” Bernot notes that more non-Hispanic households now purchase Modelo than Hispanic households.

The category of Mexican beer imports has grown to the point that it now covers many beer styles and segmentation, just like the broader beer industry. Modelo and Corona are purchased by mainstream drinkers while brands like Dos Equis, Victoria and Bohemia target a more Hispanic audience. Modelo itself has popular lines of flavored Cheladas and Aguas Frescas. “Along with a variety of flavors, these brands are also targeting varied segments of the American public, indicating that Mexican imports are no monolith and are in fact a stand-alone category with internal variation,” said Bernot.

Even in craft beer, many small American breweries have latched on to the trend. Durango, Colorado’s Ska Brewing released a beer called Mexican Logger as long ago as 1999, but in recent years many craft breweries have released beers in the style of Mexican lager. “Americans just know what that is now,” says Bernot. “It shows that Mexican lager is mainstream beer.”

One Community. Many Voices. Create a free account to share your thoughts.

Our community is about connecting people through open and thoughtful conversations. We want our readers to share their views and exchange ideas and facts in a safe space.

In order to do so, please follow the posting rules in our site’s Terms of Service. We’ve summarized some of those key rules below. Simply put, keep it civil.

Your post will be rejected if we notice that it seems to contain:

User accounts will be blocked if we notice or believe that users are engaged in:

So, how can you be a power user?

Thanks for reading our community guidelines. Please read the full list of posting rules found in our site’s Terms of Service.

STORY: Would you give this beer a try?

What about after discovering it’s made from wastewater?

Weissenburg, Germany

Meet the Reuse Brew – a uniquely engineered beer from Germany which is made from reclaimed wastewater.

Its brewers say the drink is perfectly safe… tastes good… and offers a sustainable solution to beer-making.

Uwe Huebner, Xylem Water Solutions

“I can reassure you. You won’t find anything from the sewage treatment plant. We have really done very intensive purification.”

The sewage water used for the beer goes through four purification steps.

That includes a mechanical, biological and chemical stage, in which solid waste is removed – and dissolved substances are turned into solids for removal too.

The last step involves ozonizing and filtering the water — which removes anthropogenic trace substances.

Those are substances derived from human activity — like using cosmetics and pesticides.

The water is treated even further after the purification stages…

…prior to its transformation into the Reuse Brew.

Representative of the American water tech corporation Xylem, Uwe Huebner, provides some insights.

“The purification process exceeds the standards established by drinking water regulations. It encompasses partial mineral extraction. Consequently, the water is intentionally hardened to a certain level in the brewery to enhance the beer’s quality.”

The Reuse Brew is a collaborative endeavor involving the Technical University of Munich, Xylem, and the German city of Weissenburg.

At this trade fair in Munich, tasters say they can’t tell the difference.

Nadine Krogull

“It’s delicious. You don’t realize that it’s wastewater. It’s really good, really good. It’s mild and tastes great.”

Sebastian Beck

“It should be said – it’s surprisingly good. Because you’re doing something for the environment, we’re reusing water and I don’t notice any difference to a normal beer. It’s really good.”

But the Reuse Brew isn’t available for purchase yet.

Its brewers say its purpose is to show the possibilities of modern water treatment – and how water can be used sustainably.

HUEBNER: “Yes, we are currently experiencing very frequent water shortages due to climate change. And we also see this in Germany where we have periods of drought, where we have periods – seasonal, regional – where we already have restrictions on consumption. And one way to counteract this is to reuse treated wastewater.”

Denver International Airport often has long lines, but it always has good beer. (Photo by Robert …[+] Alexander/Getty Images)

Vacations are great, but travel is terrible. Long lines. Heavy bags. Stress.

On the other hand, once you’re through security, you enter “vacation mode” and it is officially time for a beer.

Depending on your ultimate destination, you can’t always choose what airport you use, but if you have a choice, here are the four best airports in America where beer lovers can enjoy a pint (or two).

Nashville is often referred to as the “Music City” because of its vibrant music scene. Not only does it offer good music, but it’s also famed for its great food, bars, and fun activities. Speaking of places to visit, Nashville International Airport, known by its code BNA, stands out for its exceptional beer quality. Within the airport are five famous local breweries – Fat Bottom Brewing, Little Harpeth Brewing, TailGate Brewery, Tennessee Brew Works, and Yazoo Brewing Company.

Concourse B is where you will find Tennessee Brew Works and Little Harpeth Brewing, while Concourse C houses the Yazoo Brewing Company, Fat Bottom Brewing, and TailGate Brewery. But don’t worry about missing any of these breweries due to their locations. BNA is compact, which means you can check out all these taprooms using your legs without the need for a tram, bus or any other transportation method.

Moreover, the whole secure zone of the airport has a liquor permit. This allows passengers to carry their beers around while shopping or relaxing in the waiting area. According to state laws, alcohol consumption is allowed for passengers in a vehicle, but not for the driver. So, upon landing at BNA, you can purchase a beer can and enjoy it in your taxi ride or ride share heading to the town.

Portland is an excellent spot for beer lovers, aptly named as “Beervana”. The city proper is home to over 50 breweries, and over 70 if you’re willing to explore the larger area of Portland.

Portland International Airport, classified under the code PDX, is privileged to host two branches of Oregon’s most popular breweries – Deschutes Brewery, found on Concourse D, and Hopworks Urban Brewery, found on Concourse E. Despite being stationed on separate concourses, one can easily walk between them.

PDX prides itself on a unique pricing policy known as “street pricing”. Businesses operating within the airport are required to hold their prices equivalent to their typical non-airport locations. This ensures reasonably priced beer at PDX, well away from the $14 mark!

Denver is renowned for its thriving beer culture, given that it accommodates the consecutive annual Great American Beer Festival. Particularly notable for beer enthusiasts is Denver’s River North neighborhood (locally dubbed as RiNo), where you can spot a brewery nearly every block.

Whether you’re just landing, about to take off, or simply in transit, Denver International Airport (bearing the code DEN) offers plenty of opportunities to savor a good pint of beer. Even upon your arrival at DEN, before the subsequent security checks, you can stop by Tivoli Tap House in the hotel linked to the airport, where they offer beers brewed in-house. Moreover, Boulder Beer maintains an outlet within the airport terminal, but before the security check entrance.

Following security, you will find four Colorado breweries with taprooms in DEN: Breckenridge Brewery and Denver Chophouse in A Gates, New Belgium Brewing in B Gates and Great Divide Brewing near C Gates. Another noteworthy mention is Georgia’s SweetWater Brewing which also has an outlet in B Gates.

DEN stands as a prominent airport housing a hub for United Airlines and as the largest base for both Southwest Airlines and Frontier Airlines. Despite its size, it functions efficiently with a tram service that whisks passengers to and from any concourse faster than you can say, “Do you have any IPAs?”

Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport holds the title for being the busiest airport in the world, serving nearly 300,000 passengers daily. It’s massive but operates meticulously, an underground tram system moves passengers across the seven concourses, enabling easy access to the numerous restaurants, shops, and brewery outlets.

What makes ATL special is its local Atlanta brewery taproom, the SweetWater Last Cast Bar & Grill (Concourse B), but it does not end here. There’s an outlet for Athens, Georgia’s Terrapin Beer (mezzanine level of Concourse D), California’s Gordon Biersch Brewery (Concourse A), Boston’s Samuel Adams (Concourse B) and Denver’s Blue Moon Brewing, which has two locations: Concourse B and Concourse E.

One Community. Many Voices. Create a free account to share your thoughts.

Our community is about connecting people through open and thoughtful conversations. We want our readers to share their views and exchange ideas and facts in a safe space.

In order to do so, please follow the posting rules in our site’s Terms of Service. We’ve summarized some of those key rules below. Simply put, keep it civil.

Your post will be rejected if we notice that it seems to contain:

User accounts will be blocked if we notice or believe that users are engaged in:

So, how can you be a power user?

Thanks for reading our community guidelines. Please read the full list of posting rules found in our site’s Terms of Service.

The Illinois Craft Brewers Guild (ICBG) and the Chicago Beer Society are excited to announce the return of the popular summer craft beer festival in Wrigleyville.

The festival will be held at Gallagher Way, just outside of Wrigley Field. The Chicago Friday Night Flights event is set to return to the North Side of the city on Friday, June 7.

The organizers are inviting attendees to explore the city’s acclaimed craft beer scene in the heart of Wrigleyville. Featuring two tasting sessions and an array of craft beers from over 35 local breweries. In addition to the beer, the outdoor event will provide live music from a DJ and food available for purchase from local restaurants and food trucks. The tasting passes are currently for sale and can be purchased in advance for $30 or $35 at the gate.

“Chicago was recently named the No. 1 craft beer city in America,” Ray Stout, the executive director for the Illinois Craft Brewers Guild proudly announced. “Our city hosts numerous industry-leading and award-winning craft breweries, and the Chicago Friday Night Flights is an ideal venue to sample dozens of these renowned brews in one location.”

“We’re thrilled to help bring this event to Chicago for the eighth year, and to celebrate our breweries, our craft beer fans, and the impact of our industry on local communities across the city.”

AAA expects near record-breaking Memorial Day travel – see the best times to drive

Here’s a list of participating breweries so far, with new participants being added as Chicago Friday Night Flights draws closer:

Twisted Hippo

Sketchbook Brewing Company

Old Irving Brewing Co.

Revolution Brewing

Tighthead Brewing Company

Ravinia Brewing

Begyle Brewing

Forbidden Root

DryHop Brewers

Corridor

Crushed By Giants

Goose Island Beer Co.

Burning Bush Brewery

Pipeworks Brewing Co.

Illuminated Brew Works

Casa Humilde Cerveceria

Greenstar Brewery

Whiner Beer Co.

Cruz Blanca Brewery

Brewer’s Kitchen

Horse thief Hollow

Around The Bend Beer Company

Obscurity Brewing

Church Street Co.

Dutchbag Brew Co.

Haymarket Beer Company

All proceeds will benefit these nonprofit organizations, which play a critical role in supporting education and advocacy efforts on behalf of Illinois’ craft beer industry.

For more information on Friday Night Flights and to purchase tickets, click here.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WGN-TV.

Claim:

A photo being shared online in May 2024 shows a pub in Lincolnshire selling a beer named “Osama Bin Lager.”

Rating:

On May 19, 2024, an X user posted a photo allegedly showing a British pub selling a beer named “Osama Bin Lager.” The image contained a beer tap with a cartoon drawing of Al-Qaeda co-founder Osama bin Laden holding a full pint glass on it.

The caption read: “Lincolnshire pubs remain undefeated.”

Lincolnshire pubs remain undefeated pic.twitter.com/vHvXJc8JXL

— toby (@backingherdeal) May 19, 2024

Similar posts could be seen on Facebook, while on X some users were shocked at the beverage’s name, with one writing: “Rarely am I at a loss for words.”

The original X post had amassed more than 2.6 million views at the time of this writing.

Despite some users being left speechless at the branding, the lager was real and was on sale at a pub in Lincolnshire, a county in the East Midlands and Yorkshire and Humber regions of England, which is why we have rated this claim as “True.”

Although we could not determine the source of the photo, a spokesperson for the Coach and Horses pub in the village of Billinghay, Lincolnshire, told Snopes the beer was legitimate, on sale in their pub, and created by a brewery named Mitchell Brewing Co.

I can confirm this is one of a few of Mitchell Brewing Co’s beers we have. We are one of their self ran pubs so a lot of the stuff is theirs.

The spokesperson listed numerous themed beers with quirky names on sale at the Coach and Horses, such as: A Bit Of Ruff, Kim Jong Ale, Winston Churchpale, Putin’s Porter, Buzz Light Beer, and Berried In Cider.

Mitchell Brewing Co spotted the viral tweet and later posted a screenshot of the X post on its Facebook page. The caption read: “I think we owe Toby a few pints and some merch!”

The company also wrote on its X account: “Our Osama bin lager spotted in the wilds of twitter (the reason we had to join twitter!) This was actually our second brew in our dictator series, but the first lager, it was only meant to be temporary but over a year later is still going strong!”

Mitchell Brewing Co posted a separate advert for its “Osama Bin Lager” on Facebook.

Link

Other X users also posted images of the company’s eccentrically themed beers, such as the Kim Jong Ale and Putin’s Porter.

Snopes approached Mitchell Brewing Co for comment and will update this article if, or when, we receive a response. We also approached the X user who posted the original photo to establish whether or not they captured it and where it was taken.

Area firefighters standby as others work inside the Metal Container Corp. in Arnold during a three-alarm fire at the beer can manufacturer on Thursday, May 16, 2024.

ARNOLD — A fire that spread from a metal oven Thursday morning damaged a beer-can processing plant here.

No one was injured in the three-alarm fire.

The Metal Container Corp. is on Tenbrook Industrial Court.

Crews from the Rock Community Fire Protection District were dispatched to the factory around 6:20 a.m., and upon arrival, they observed black smoke billowing from the building’s rooftop.

They were joined by several mutual-aid companies, totaling approximately 10 fire departments.

According to Alyson Rotter, the public information officer for the Rock fire district, the fire had been brought under control by about 7:30 a.m..

Rotter stated that the building suffered minimal damage and that the employees were permitted to return and continue their work. Investigators believe the fire was accidental, likely starting within a metal oven, added Rotter.

On Thursday, May 16, 2024, employees at the Metal Container Corp in Arnold were forced to evacuate due to a three-alarm fire at the beer can manufacturing facility.

The Saline Valley Fire Protection District from Fenton were on the scene, handling the significant fire at the Metal Container Corp. This plant is known for its beer can production.

Firefighters across the nation have expressed increasing worries about their gear, which may be laced with the toxic industrial compound PFAS. There’s a growing belief that these substances might be contributing to elevated cancer rates amongst their ranks. A hot topic of discussion, PFAS, or per- and polyfluorinated substances, are referred to as ‘forever chemicals’ due to their resistance to breaking down over time. These hazardous compounds can be found in a multitude of products, including food packaging and clothing, and have been associated with numerous health issues, among them being different types of cancer. Specifically in the firefighting profession, the compound is applied to turnout gear, aiding in the repellence of water and other liquids during fire combat situations.

Stay updated with local news, delivered straight to your inbox.

Breaking news reporter

{{description}}

Email notifications are only sent once a day, and only if there are new matching items.

He pleaded guilty to reduced charges in the hazing of a Mizzou freshman who sustained massive brain damage after drinking a liter of vodka dur…

A teenage girl was arrested and charged Sunday with shooting and killing a woman one day at earlier at a busy MetroLink station just north of …

A woman was shot and killed Saturday afternoon at a crowded MetroLink station just north of Forest Park.

A six-year investigation using cooperating informants, GPS tracking, wiretaps and surveillance brought down Gregory Dixson. Jr.

“This is a child — let’s not forget that,” the girl’s lawyer said after the hearing. “That’s why we have juvenile court.”

E.&J. Gallo Winery has made its first foray into beer, a lager created in Montana.

The Modesto-based company announced Wednesday that it is investing in Montucky Cold Snacks. Financial terms were not disclosed.

Gallo became the world’s largest wine producer in the decades after its 1933 founding. It has since added several types of liquor, and now a beer.

Chad Zeitner and Jeremy Gregory launched Montucky in Bozeman, Montana, in 2012 and now have it brewed by another company in Wisconsin. They will stay on under the Gallo partnership.

In a news release, Gregory stated that both businesses maintain a casual approach to their beverage offerings and actively support nonprofits in their respective market areas.

“Our consumer loyalty mainly stems from our commitment to do good, be good, and have a fun atmosphere for both consumers and employees,” he said. “Since our establishment, we’ve tirelessly worked on upholding these values, and we think Gallo perfectly complements us in achieving this goal.”

Montucky lager boasts a 4.1% alcohol level and 102 calories per 12-ounce can, making it lighter than many other beer choices available in the market.

As of Wednesday, a six-pack could be purchased for $8.99 at the Modesto and Riverbank branches of Beverages & More. In addition, the beer can be found at O’Brien’s Market on Dale Road, Grocery Outlet in Ceres, the Churchkey and Bauhaus restaurants in downtown Modesto, and Bark Dog Park & Tap Room in McHenry Village.

Over the past five years, Montucky has grown from 130,000 to nearly 1 million cases annually. The name is a slang term for Montana.

Gallo employs about 7,000 people around the world. Its grapes come from the San Joaquin Valley, coastal California regions, Washington and New York states and several foreign countries.

Gallo got into liquor with brandy in 1975 and has since added gin, vodka, tequila, rum, whiskey and other spirits. Some of the wine and liquor are distributed by Gallo for other producers.

The beer venture comes amid a wave of “ready-to-drink” items from Gallo, such as a line of canned lemonade cocktails acquired last year.

“Today’s consumer is shopping brands, flavors and occasions across beer, wine, spirits and (ready to drink),” said Ernest J. Gallo, chief executive officer and grandson of the co-founder. “At Gallo, we focus on serving the consumer and expanding the boundaries of what is expected.”