SEPTEMBER 2020 Maryland l Washington, DC 10 26 04 30 36 FEATURES BACK TO WORK DEPARTMENTS 24 BRAND PROFILE: 10 26 02 HONE YOUR Damrak’s Dynamic Gin Duo DRINKS INDUSTRY PUB PAGE HIRING SKILLS INNOVATORS TO COVID-19: Some Numbers Largely dependent 34 WATCH (You Can Use) on American bars and PROPRIETOR PROFILE: Ten rising stars charting restaurants, Mexico’s craft Antietam Spirits ... creative new paths—and 04 distillers face a fractured A Family Legacy Continues pushing for inclusivity—in pipeline BRAND PROFILE: the world of wine, spirits, Medalla Premium Light, and beer It took 40 Years, 36 30 But It's Here CANS: WHAT'S NEW? RETAIL PURCHASING IN A NEW ERA The game has changed. 20 40 Your approach to NEW PRODUCTS MADE IN MARYLAND purchasing, storing, and & PROMOTIONS News & Happenings selling needs to change, too. From Maryland's Breweries, Retailers share their tips Distilleries and Wineries VOLUME82NUMBER09 September 2020 BEVERAGE JOURNAL 1 PUB Maryland l Washington, DC PAGE Published Monthly by The Beverage Journal, Inc. COVID-19: SOME NUMBERS (USPS# PE 783300) (YOU CAN USE) Over 80 Years of Continuous Publication Changes in state-level COVID-19 re- strictions, as well as consumer behaviors, and the federal governments, BEVERAGE JOURNAL, INC. have led to crests and troughs in cus- President / Publisher Stephen Patten Since the middle of March 2020, [email protected] tomer traffic across all industries. Each in- restaurant traffic across the entire United 410.796.5455 dustry has been impacted differently, and States hit a low of 24.2% of its 2019 lev- Board of Directors Lee W. Murray some are further along in their economic els. In the last few months there has been Thomas W. Murray recovery than others. Unfortunately, the an increase of nearly 18% with restaurant Information Technology Peter Williams on-premise side of the beverage alcohol traffic at 40.7%. (According to research Director [email protected] industry has seen the deepest dip in busi- and marketing company Zenreach.) EDITORIAL ness and has been the slowest to realize I realize I’m extrapolating national Senior Editor Kristen Bieler any significant bounce-back. [email protected] numbers and relating to Maryland with Let’s take a look at some numbers … the following observation, but I don’t Managing Editor W. R. Tish [email protected] just in the State of Maryland: think it’s a stretch. If the restaurant industry is only achieving 40.7% of the Contributing Editors Alia Akkam, Arielle Albert, In early 2020 there were over 4,000 Keven Danow, Edward Durgin active on-premise beer-wine-liquor (BWL) traffic realized at the same time one year David Lincoln Ross, Ed McCarthy, Jack Robertiello establishments, not including private ago, then the earlier cited statistics for clubs with beverage alcohol licenses nor Maryland one year from now could be: ART & DESIGN restaurants without any type of beverage Creative Director Larry Lee 40.7% of 4,000 would be a loss of [email protected] alcohol license. (According to the Comp- 2,372 on-premise establishments. Senior Designer Jeff Tsui troller of Maryland.) [email protected] 40.7% of 207,400 is 123,000 people In 2019 the restaurant industry of TECHNOLOGY & WEB no longer employed by the restaurant Maryland employed 207,400 people … eCommerce Director Ian Griffith that is over 7% of employment in the industry of Maryland. [email protected] eCommerce Managers Karli Del Rossi, Evan Berube entire state. (According to the National 40.7% of $13.3 billion is only $5.4 bil- Online Web Programming Vali Balescu Restaurant Association and the Restau- lion in sales at Maryland’s restaurants. rant Association of Maryland.) PRINT & PRODUCTION The sales tax collected on these sales Print Services Manager Lee Stringham In 2018 there were approximately [email protected] would be only $325 million, a loss of 410.519.7034 $13.3 billion in sales at Maryland’s restau- almost $500 million in just sales tax col- rants. (According to the National Res- lected here in Maryland. This doesn’t ADVERTISING & MARKETING taurant Association and the Restaurant MD & DC Advertising Sales Stephen Patten Association of Maryland.) The sales tax account for the billions in lost taxes [email protected] at all the levels of taxation (income … 410.796.5455 alone collected on these sales was $800 property, etc.). National Advertising Sales Jody Slone-Spitalnik million. [email protected] 212.571.3232 How does the restaurant industry We are all working to protect our busi- impact the Maryland economy? Approxi- nesses, our jobs, and our families as best mately every dollar spent at a Maryland we can during this crisis. I’m hoping you restaurant goes on to contribute $1.63 to will share these frightening statistics with the state economy. your elected and non-elected officials in POSTMASTER: Send address changes to These numbers tell the story of an in- government (hint-hint, the Governor’s of- THE BEVERAGE JOURNAL, INC. P.O. Box 159, Hampstead, MD 21074-0159 dustry that is a driving force in Maryland’s fice). If those imposing these restrictions can see the economic catastrophe they The Maryland Beverage Journal, the Washington, DC Beverage Journal and the economy. An industry that provides jobs Delaware Beverage Journal are registered trademarks of Beverage Journal, Inc. and builds careers for thousands upon are causing on a statewide level, maybe All rights reserved. thousands of people and delivers billions a greater urgency to reopen will be real- Periodicals postage paid at Baltimore, MD and additional n mailing offices. Subscription rates: MD edition; 1 year $45.00 plus tax, 2 years in taxes (when including all the levels of ized. $75.00 plus tax, 3 years $100.00 plus tax, FedEx Ground delivery $85.00 plus tax per year per edition, single copies $10.00 plus tax. DC edition; 1 year $36.00 STEPHEN PATTEN taxation; i.e., sales taxes...income taxes… plus tax, 2 years $60.00 plus tax, 3 years $83.00 plus tax, FedEx Ground delivery PUBLISHER property taxes, etc.) to the local, state $85.00 plus tax per year per edition, single copies $5.00 plus tax. The opinions expressed by guest columnists are their own and not necessarily [email protected] those of The Beverage Journal, Inc. The Beverage Journal, Inc. is an affirmative action/equal opportunity corporation. Copyright 2020 the Beverage Journal, Inc. No part of this magazine may be reproduced without the written consent of the publisher. Not responsible for unsolicited material or advertising claims. 2 BEVERAGE JOURNAL September 2020 www.BeverageJournalInc.com BeverageJournalInc.com Does your cooler need a Does your cooler Face Lift? suffer from: Х Bad shelving? Х Leaky doors? Х Foggy glass? Х Lighting on the fritz? Call Today for a FREE cooler health check! Mention “BEVERAGE JOURNAL” for an extra $50 OFF a future service. *$50 discount on purchase of Service within 30 days of a free health check. Like us at facebook.com/CAREYSALESANDSERVICES Serving the Local Beverage Industry since 1933 3141 Frederick Ave. Baltimore, MD 410-945-7878 or 800-848-7748 • careysales.com BRAND PROFILE MEDALLA LIGHT PUERTO RICO’S TOP-SELLING BEER IS NOW IN MARYLAND AND WASHINGTON, DC ervecera de Puerto Rico, which has “Medalla Light is a beer that is near and dear to our hearts, crafted Medalla Light for 40 years, both because we love its freshness and flavor and because it is the embodiment of our identity as Puerto Ricans,” said Elda officially announced their partnership Devarie, Owner/President of EMD Sales. “The demand for the with EMD Sales, Inc. for beer beer in our region is overwhelming.” C Cervecera de Puerto Rico recently increased the brewery’s distribution in the Mid-Atlantic region. overall capacity to 90,000 barrels per year. The expansion is part Medalla Light is brewed on the tropical island of Puerto of the beer giant’s 2020 plan. Rico by Cervecera de Puerto Rico … one of the leading barley- With 77 calories and 4.2 ABV per 10oz, the popular light based companies in Latin America and the Caribbean. Medalla beer will be hitting the shelves in 12 and 24 pack cans and with Light’s reputation for its premium quality and crisp, refreshing 98 calories and 4.2 ABV per 12oz, will be available in 6 and 24- taste has quickly become the beer of choice for those seeking pack bottles. a chance to celebrate. Medalla Light has won multiple awards Other offerings in Cervecera’s portfolio include Magna Pre- and has earned worldwide recognition at the Monde Selection mium Lager, Silver Key Light Beer, Del Oeste Artisan Beers and in Brussels, the North American Beer Awards and the Australian Malta India, a popular non-alcoholic malt-based soft drink in the International Beer Awards. Caribbean. n 4 BEVERAGE JOURNAL September 2020 www.BeverageJournalInc.com ULTIMATE BEVERAGE CHALLENGE 2020 ULTIMATE SPIRITS CHALLENGE ince 2010, Ultimate Spirits Challenge’s CHAIRMAN’S “But think of it this way: When accepting the responsibility TROPHY has become the most coveted award of excellence of selecting a handful of the finest spirits currently in the world, in distilled spirits history. But, what attributes, what virtues why should the road to ultimate glory be anything but hard and constitute a great whiskey, brandy, vodka, mezcal, liqueur, baijiu, demanding? Unlike every other spirits competition operating in 2020, Srum, gin, vodka, tequila shochu, or ready-to-drink cocktail? Moreover, USC Chairman Trophy winners have to earn their way to the top by how do USC’s expert judges analytically recognize these attributes? prevailing through multiple stages. They are not given accolades just Judging Chairman and Co-Founder of Ultimate Spirits for entering.