Jeremy Isenberg

Checkout this article about our sushi that we make in-house for our retail shops. We are using technology in a way that allows us to have the highest quality seafood and rice available for our sushi. My big business bet is that people will eat more sushi when it is: quality, transparent, and free of carbon dioxide gas. What do you think?

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Not quite West Coast or New England–style, the reemerging label is confusing at best … For a long time, two regionally termed IPA subcategories have dominated U.S. beer cans: “West Coast” signaled clear and bracingly bitter with a piney, citrusy, resinous hop profile, and “New England” meant juicy, hazy and sweeter with tropical hops. Suddenly, however, a label that’s maintained alower profile since craft beer’s early days is showing up on more tap lists … muddying that understanding: “American IPA.” What even is this style? The name suggests some overarching combination of the two coastal substyles, a less-than-helpful and vague umbrella term, or, potentially, its own new thing. The answer, it seems, is all of the above. From the late 1970s into the 1990s, brewers started making IPAs based on their knowledge of English IPAs, but with an American twist. Thus “American IPA” made sense. But two things happened to erode that simple definition. For one, American craft beer took off, and American-brewed IPAs overtook English-style ones. For another, West Coast and New England substyles appeared, further delineating the category. “American IPA” all but disappeared as a label. Now, we’ve started to see the ‘American IPA’ return as a ‘style.” Yet did it ever really leave? While it’s agreed that an American IPA should not be hazy or as sweet as a New England IPA, an American IPA can still capture certain NEIPA notes with tropical fruit characteristics. “It can embody the West Coast’s visual clarity while incorporating the hop profile typical of the East Coast,” says Daniel Sickmen, head brewer at Virginia’s Lost Barrel Brewing, where an American IPA is a menu staple. The “American IPA” label leaves the door open for people to explore some range in terms of bitterness, sweetness, malt character and hop character, and learn what they like. For that reason, American IPA might at this point be more of a vibe than a style. It’s an IPA living in the middle of the tropical-sweet and piney-bitter extremes, open to brewer interpretation as well as to consumer discovery. It’s big, it’s bold, it’s intense. And you know it when you taste it. “The best IPAs are ones we drink with friends.” — Stephen Carter King Read the entire article at: Punch Drink .com Cheers🍻! #ConsumerBehavior #EmergingTrends #BrandAwareness #BusinessIntelligence #Beer #CraftBeer #IPA #AmericanIPA #Microbreweries #Pubs #Taprooms #Brewpubs ✦✦✦ Stephen Carter King Chief of Growth and Marketing and Strategy • Beer Market Analyst • Beerconomy & Co. CEO • Thought Catalyst • Sherpa • Advisor & Speaker sharing beer market trends, insights, forecasts and scoop via The Beerconomist

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Our latest review of the Aladino Connecticut Robusto is now LIVE 🙏 This cigar had some of the best construction I’ve seen on a cigar for a long time and a beautiful flavour profile from start to finish 💯 Link: https://lnkd.in/ese5KAiH #CigarLovers #CigarCulture #CigarEnthusiast #CigarLife #CigarCommunity #CigarAficionado #CigarExperience #CigarObsession #CigarPairing #CigarSmoker #ContentCreator #ContentMarketing #DigitalContent #CreativeContent #ContentStrategy #ContentCreation #ContentManagement #ContentWriting #ContentCuration #ContentDistribution

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Pennsylvania's new Senate Bill 688, effective September 15, 2024, modernizes alcohol sales by allowing a broader range of retailers to sell ready-to-drink (RTD) cocktails. With this change, businesses like grocery stores and restaurants can now sell canned cocktails made with spirits. But compliance is key—SB 688 mandates age verification through ID scanners for customers under 35, offering legal protection for retailers using the technology properly. Minor Decliner’s ID scanners are the perfect solution to this new requirement. Our mobile and countertop solutions ensure fast, accurate age checks, reduce human error and help you stay compliant. Learn more: https://lnkd.in/efxUG8_r #IDScanners #SB688 #RTD #AgeVerification #Compliance

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Tequila!   Many large players such as White Claw, and The Boston Beer Company (maker of Truly) are expanding their offerings and releasing tequila-flavored ready-to-drink (RTD) cocktails as consumers are increasingly turning to tequila offerings in the beverage alcohol sector.   I had the opportunity to share my insights and thoughts on this surging trend with The Food Institute. In the article, I emphasized how innovations in ready-to-drink (RTD) formats, including tequila-based seltzers and margaritas, are meeting consumer demand for novel flavors. Additionally, I pointed out that tequila production has remained stable despite global supply chain disruptions and highlighted the increasing consumer preference for high-quality artisanal spirits.   Read the full article here: https://lnkd.in/gB9f-3Ci   #Tequila #BeverageIndustry #MarketTrends #ConsumerInsights #RTDCocktails

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While market dynamics for all grocers are more challenging than ever, consumers are likely to benefit from the improved value, variety, and service offerings as businesses strive to adapt and thrive in a hyper-competitive Connecticut food frontier. 🤠 🛒 🍷 #ShopSmartCT #MarketMakeover #GroceryGameChanger

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A great and very timely piece from Pete Wells at The New York Times (https://lnkd.in/egS8_h6j) about the dangers of the #foodserviceindustry becoming increasingly faceless and lacking the emotional connections consumers increasingly need now. Mike Kostyo and I have been talking about this for the past year, and I've been advocating for more emotionally-based #innovation for longer than that. As an industry, we've focused on #technology and trends as the end-all-be-all of solutions but these things have helped to commoditize the industry. Trends aren't ownable, they aren't defensible and they aren't emotionally engaging for consumers. And as every operator jumps on a "hot" trend, it becomes exponentially less interesting and less impactful. #Foodservice is losing traffic to #retail. Based on recent stats, #restaurants are now losing revenue despite significant price increases over the past month. We talk about consumer price sensitivity, but I argue this isn't solely a price issue. #Consumers are spending more money to go to fine dining restaurants and to stay at luxury resorts. Consumers are pay money for big ticket items and traveling to see Taylor Swift. Consumers will spend money if there's a good value, and our industry is suffering increasingly from a value deficit...and that deficit is being driven by a lack of #hospitality. Yes, we've got significant labor issues but we can't blame this entire issue on recent labor shortages. The industry has been heading down this path for a while, but it's trip has accelerated. If our industry is going to thrive and remain relevant, hospitality - not trends, not technology, not speed-of-service, not cheap prices - is the answer. #menumattersllc #trends2024 #consumerbehavior #consumerinsights #foodandbeverageindustry

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Kefir-- a fermented dairy beverage-- is rising in popularity. I weigh in on this good-for-you drink in this article via Layla Khoury-Hanold via Food Network where it takes about: --What is kefir? --How is kefir made? --What does kefir taste like? --Health benefits --The difference between kefir and yogurt --And of course, HOW to pronounce it!

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How many of you, at least on occasion, shy away from intimidating things? Admit it. We’ve all been there. I’ve been there. It’s simply human nature to prioritize things that come easy to us. To do otherwise, to push yourself outside your comfort zone, takes determination, focus, often with a goal in mind, and perhaps even some serious grit. Cathy Huyghe (CEO at Enolytics) wrote a truthful, transparent piece about how wine and data both fall into this “intimidation camp”. They’re scary to many because they’re unknowns. They’re going to take time and effort to get to a general baseline understanding, and only then can you really mature in your comprehension to where it starts bringing you value and joy. As a winemaker turned technologist, I am already an outlier. The importance of data-driven winery operations was always painfully obvious to me. In the early years of InnoVint, I was perplexed by how many modern wineries were resistant to even have a conversation with me about technology. “Why would someone leave winemaking to start a software company?” I was an anomaly. They were shocked by the career decision. The sentiment was that wine producers “don’t speak data.” Why would they need to? Today, those that are winning in wine absolutely do, and honestly, it’s an easier language to learn than ever before. During the last 10 years running InnoVint I’ve seen progress, albeit not as much as I’d like to see for the sake of our industry. There's so much good wine these days, so how do you stand out and continue to grow? You need to put data to work for you - to drive business efficiencies, to target and woo consumers in ways that have shown repeatable success, to accurately understand your financial health, and so much more. Don’t shy away. Lean in. Cathy agrees by saying “I am concerned what will happen if we as an industry continue to procrastinate around applying the most up-to-date technologies to our business challenges.” You simply can’t afford to be left behind. Put forth the time and effort to get over the first big learning hump. I promise the view from the top is quite nice, and you’ll really enjoy the pick up of pace cruising down the other side passing others by. https://lnkd.in/g_6rS8rS

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Interesting take on the battle for consumers during months like Sober October and Dry January from Stephanie Cain 👇 Her commentary below with link in comments 🍻🥂🍹 The wine industry has launched an assault on #SoberOctober and non-alcoholic beverages as if the sole existence of the booze-less category is to put a hit against wine. With its new campaign, Come Over October, wine folks are declaring you should grab a glass instead of going sober, because wine brings people together. Instead, #wine should really be looking at their core messaging because that's why wine is declining. At the #ComeOverOctober kick-off party, I had a conversation with a salesperson of a wine distributor. He attempted to be ok with the evolution of wine by explaining that ready-to-drink, single-serve wine brand, BeatBox, marketed to the 21 to 25-year-old set, was crushing the market. He was all for it. While the brand has wacky flavors like blueberry lemonade wine, he felt that every wine consumer “starts somewhere.” It was promising to him because he said they would “continue their wine journey” and start “drinking real wine.” So many problems here but here is the big one: They don’t often continue the wine journey. News flash, wine people! Consumers don’t have time. We don’t desire it. We want to build connections, not spend the evening only discussing what we want to drink. We have jobs and travel and bills to pay and kids and dogs and aging parents and hell, we just want to buy a house. We have no job security. We have been hit with recession after recession. Right now, inflation is making our groceries cost some 40% more. You really think we are jumping at the time-consuming task of learning about wine? Get real. We’ll grab a #Martini. And start ranting. Which is exactly what I'm doing in today's The Mad Ones 👇 Link in comments. #health #wellness #marketing #alcohol #alcoholfree

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Check out the latest buzz at Semper Foods with our very first blog post by the talented Laura Zinger! 🌟 Dive into the insights and updates straight from the heart of our team. Click here to read: #SemperFoods #BlogLaunch #TeamUpdates #IndustryInsights

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We discussed this on our latest episode of CPG Vibes, BIG BIG news from KeHE Distributors on 11/22, a new program dubbed 'AAP' (administrative allowance program). A flat 2 % off-invoice allowance for specific fees including New item intros, extra performance fees, MCBs, new item set up fees, and lumping fees. My quick thoughts: This is a step in the right direction for sure. UNFI implemented SSI which is a similar program to help brands budget for costs and fees associated with doing business with large national distributors. With all that said, these categories are pretty large and encompassing, so for all the other fees associated with Kehe that can chop down a brand's margin, will this program truly cover it? Likely not, but at least it covers some. What are your thoughts?

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Loyalty programs are so important. Think about Starbucks program or this new CAVA program. I’ve had loyalty programs before where I bank rewards and then they disappear or can’t use them. Who could an emerging brand use to help create the best loyalty programs?

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GOT SCORES? (Updated with link to PDF of full document): https://lnkd.in/enBx4WX6 Here's this year's post of all the information you need to enter wine and spirits into the competitions that matter in the U.S. market. The first question suppliers, importers, retailers will often ask is "Got Scores?" And there's only one answer to that question. Because if you say "No" the conversation can stop right there. So the procedure I recommend is for my clients to enter the competitions that make sense for your brands and hype the results that matter to the market (90+ scores, Gold/Double Gold etc.) and ignore the rest. The competitions listed here are the ones that are most recognized by the trade. And I've presented them with a key column identifying whether they accept not-currently-imported brands. Since many of my clients are just starting their U.S. market entry. That's because you'll need scores before you can even start conversations. If you can't access the link to the Excel sheet, connect with me on LinkedIn or email me a request at [email protected] and I'll send the file directly to you. Best to all for a successful O/N/D and fiscal 2025 Steve

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Is 1 cfu the right threshold? The economic impact to the industry will be substantial.

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Sharing a nice little article about Friends' Marketplace from the Shelby Report (a food and grocery industry magazine)!

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A powerful independent known for a balance of brands and private label. It will be interesting to see the government view on this acquisition as food inflation has been under significant scrutiny lately. While the focus is more on retail food cost, this will certainly get attention. #foodservice #independents #southeast.

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💫 Rising Seafood Distribution Star Stephanie Pazzaglia joins me tomorrow on Culinary Connections: Distribution Dialogues where we talk about sales, marketing and the journey distribution can provide. She helps lead business development at JJ McDonnell a premier seafood distribution company out of Maryland. Stephanie shares her background in the seafood industry and her passion for the seafood community. She discusses the importance of shellfish in our waters and how JJ McDonnell is committed to sustainability and nurturing the fisheries. Stephanie emphasizes the consultative sales approach of JJ McDonnell, where they focus on educating their sales team and customers about the sourcing and quality of their seafood. She also talks about the impact of technology on the seafood industry, including order apps and traceability platforms. Stephanie highlights the importance of marketing in the seafood industry and how it helps connect customers with the source of their seafood. The conversation explores the importance of collaboration between distributors, chefs, and brands in the food service industry. The conversation emphasizes the need for brands to invest in their distributor partners and be proactive in their involvement. The discussion also highlights the misconceptions surrounding farmed seafood and the importance of promoting and educating consumers about its benefits. We touch on the challenges of pricing and availability in the seafood industry, the need for realistic expectations, social responsibility aspect of the seafood industry and the importance of transparency and communication between procurement and sales teams. The conversation concludes with a focus on the future of the industry, including the need for more youth involvement and the challenges and opportunities presented by data and technology. Episode Drops tomorrow on Apple Podcast, we have a dozen great conversations you can listen to now while you drive, run, walk, work or however you take your podcasts! Thank you for taking time to join me Stephanie!

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When Craveworthy Brands acquired Untamed Brands a couple months ago, culinary and supply chain expert Becca McIntyre got thrown into a "melting pot." Last week, Bret Thorn was on Nation's Restaurant News' Extra Serving podcast with Becca talking how acquisitions impact her areas of the business (https://lnkd.in/erC95cea). And by the way, Craveworthy's #restaurants use Toast. If you have it stacked right, #technology is a major advantage in navigating the complexities of culinary and supply chain management. For #culinary teams, preparing the right amount saves #food costs, and streamlining prep schedules does the same for #labor & #operations. Accurate #forecasting optimizes these things, while maintaining quality. #Supply chain experts ensure that the right ingredients are available at the right time. In cases like this, ordering the right amount can be especially similar to prepping the right amount (again IF you have the right technology). ClearCOGS helps with all of this, by turning data into actionable insights. We bridge the gap between culinary creativity and supply chain efficiency. What strategic advantage is your cutting edge in this rapidly evolving industry?

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