BUDGET 2024
1p off a draught pint but other dispense formats will see duty rise
The Government’s “commitment to support smaller brewers” came in the form of a 1.75% reduction in beer/cider duty for draught products in the Budget.
Cider
Siren and Red Fin seal deal and vow to help pubs
Pubs are set to benefit after Siren Craft Brew and Red Fin Cider announced they have joined forces in a bid to collaborate without either having a fiscal interest in the other.
DRINKS MASTERCLASS
Benefits of adding a mulled cider to winter menus
Kickstarting the latest series of The Morning Advertiser’s (MA) Drinks Masterclass, Sanford Orchards reveals the benefits of adding a mulled cider to your winter drinks menu.
Cider brand Red Fin targets craft market
Cider-maker Red Fin Cider is launching two medium dry variants that will bid to emulate the craft beer movement.
FEATURE - Cider
FEATURE: Why the garden is a great place for cider
Summer has finally arrived (meteorologically speaking at least), and with 63% of people visiting the pub more frequently during the summer months, that means it’s boom time for your business.
Analysis of drinks sales during first half of 2024
The Morning Advertiser has taken a look at how drinks sales have performed across different categories so far this year.
Drinks sales in growth after five weeks of decline
Drinks sales were up 13.3% year-on-year in the two weeks to Saturday 18 May as warmer weather and Early May Bank Holiday drew people to pub gardens.
Heineken defends decision to cut down apple orchard
Heineken has hit back at claims it committed an act of “needless environmental vandalism” by cutting down hundreds of acres of apple orchards.
NEW PRODUCTS
MCBC unveils two new Rekorderlig flavours
Molson Coors Beverage Company (MCBC) has introduced two new flavoured variants to its Rekorderlig cider range, Peach & Raspberry and Blackberry & Blackcurrant.
PROMOTIONAL CONTENT
Win a £10k makeover with Kopparberg
We know the cost-of-living crisis is still continuing to effect everyone across the sector.
NEW PRODUCTS ROUND-UP
Thatchers releases new cider exclusively for pubs
This month's round-up includes a new cider from Thatchers only available to pubs as well as new products from BrewDog Distilling Co, Global Brands, CMBC and more.
St Austell Brewery and Thatchers agree 10-year deal
Cask specialist and pub operator St Austell Brewery has penned a 10-year deal with Thatchers Cider to stock its ciders in its managed pub estate.
More than 250m litres of cider sold in pubs in 2023
Hospitality venues sold 255m litres of cider in 2023, the ninth annual Westons Cider Report 2024 has revealed.
FEATURE – Cider
FEATURE: Boom period expected for cider
The men’s football Euros and the Olympics, in Germany and Paris respectively, make the summer of 2024 potentially a boom period for pub cider sales.
January drinks sales finish 8% down on 2023
Britain’s pubs and bars closed a difficult January with a third successive week of negative year-on-year sales, data from CGA by NIQ has revealed.
Drinks sales in decline for second week in a row
Drinks sales across managed venues have dipped below last year’s levels for a second consecutive week.
Kingstone Press set for a return to the bar on draught
Kingstone Press cider is returning to draught dispense at pubs across the UK.
Range 'most important' to new generation cider drinkers
Three quarters of cider drinkers feel range is most important when choosing a hospitality venue to visit, especially during the winter months, according to the latest Heineken UK cider report.
BrewDog’s Hawkes taproom shuts for good
BrewDog has called last orders at its Hawkes taproom in Bermondsey, south London, citing economic pressures.
Thatchers unveils new fruity flavour
Thatchers Cider has extended its range of fruit ciders with the release of a new Apple and Blackcurrant variant.
Entries open for the 2024 International Brewing & Cider awards
Registration for the 2024 International Brewing & Cider awards is now open.
Thatchers reveal new seasonal cider
Somerset-based cidermaker Thatchers has unveiled a new seasonal flavour for the on-trade, available on draught with its Fusion Font range.
£150k of Stowford Press cider up for grabs
Westons Cider is giving 12 pubs the chance to bag a year’s worth of Stowford Press as part of a £150,000 investment in a bid to boost the hospitality sector.
Drinks sales up but real-terms growth 'hard won'
Drinks sales in managed venues were ahead of 2022 levels for the fifth week in a row in the seven days to Saturday 16 September though real-terms growth will continue to be “hard won”.
Drinks sales hit double digit YOY growth
Drinks sales in the on-trade hit double-digit growth year-on-year (YOY) in the seven days to Saturday 9 September.
New NACM chair calls for excise duty freeze
The National Association of Cider Makers (NACM) has elected director of family-owned and Somerset-based Sheppy’s Cider, David Sheppy, as its new chair.
Cider sales down 20% amid wet weather
On-trade cider sales have continued to “struggle” against wet weather, showing declines of 20%.
NEW PRODUCTS ROUND-UP
Sheppy's introduces new low alcohol raspberry variant
This week's round-up features new products from Sheppy's, Cornish Orchards, Aspall Cyder, Rebellion, Flävar and Dartmoor Brewery.
Aspall Cyder announces new flavour
Molson Coors Beverage Company has expanded its Aspall Cyder portfolio with the launch of new flavour, Aspall Blush Cyder (4% ABV).
Feature - cider
FEATURE: Become the ‘go-to’ for a cider or two
There’s a tendency for a lot of pubs to treat cider as just another kind of beer, tacked onto the end of a row of taps pouring LADs – long alcoholic beverages.
Cider sales and warm weather boost trade
A surge in cider sales and warm weather pushed on-trade drinks transactions to show year-on-year growth for a fifth successive week.
Old Mout Pineapple & Raspberry launched on draught
Heineken UK has introduced Old Mout's Pineapple & Raspberry flavour on draught for the on-trade.
C&C: challenging conditions to remain, net revenue up 18.4%
Drinks business C&C Group said it expects macroeconomic conditions to continue affecting trade adversely – particularly in Great Britain – but also announced an 18.4% boost to net revenue in its results for the 12 months ended 28 February (FY23).
NEW PRODUCTS ROUND-UP
Westons launches new Rosie's Pig variant
This week's round-up features new products from Westons Cider, Camden Town Brewery, Brockmans Gin, Theakston Brewery, Salcombe Brewery, Whitebox Cocktails, Hepworth Brewery and Sheppy's Cider.
Promotional content
The secrets to driving sales at your site
With the warmer weather just weeks away and beer gardens in the UK are beginning to get busy, category controller at Kopparberg, Anne Claypole, gives her thoughts on the fruit cider market this summer.
Bearded Brewery Unshaven Maiden complaints upheld
Retailers have been asked to stop placing orders for the Bearded Brewery’s Unshaven Maiden cider after complaints against the products imagery were upheld.
PROMOTIONAL CONTENT
Meet the brand: Thatchers Cider - Serve up the right range and keep your customers coming back for more
There are untapped opportunities for pubs and bars to unlock by choosing the right cider range to suit your customers.
Premium and craft ciders lead on-trade trends
Premium and craft ciders offer operators a “great opportunity” for growth as the premiumisation trend becomes more “apparent”, new data has revealed.
What does the future hold for mead?
Britain’s largest producers of mead got together to discuss the rise of the drink and its place in the market at the London Barrel Project in Bermondsey last week.
NEW PRODUCTS ROUND-UP
Kopparberg announces limited-edition summer cider
This week's round-up features new products from Kopparberg, Schweppes, Peroni, Salcombe Distilling Co, Greene King, Three Drinkers and Bombay Sapphire.
Cider feature
FEATURE: Putting ciders in a class of their own
Is a re-categorisation of cider enough to change the division’s fortunes or does more work need to be done for it to thrive?
Cornish cidermaker faces backlash over ‘offensive’ branding
Cornwall-based microbrewery, the Bearded Brewery, in St Mawgan, faces having a second product branding banned by the Portman Group.
Feb rail strikes had 'lesser impact' on sector
Recent rail strikes had a “lesser impact” on drinks sales than previous ones as consumers become accustomed to “adjusting plans”, the latest Drinks Recovery Tracker from CGA by NielsenIQ has revealed.
Hunt is on for breakthrough cider makers
Cider producer Sandford Orchards has launched the 2023 Breakthrough Cider Maker Awards.
Drinks list 2023
Strongbow retains title of best-selling cider
The UK’s most popular cider is Strongbow once again, the latest data for The Morning Advertiser’s Drinks List 2023 has revealed.
opinion
Cider has a heritage we should shout about more
Molson Coors on-trade category controller Mark Bentley reflects on the history and provenance of cider and why pubs, bars and restaurants should make more of the category’s versatility.
Drinks List 2023
The Drinks List – top brands to stock in 2023
This year’s Drinks List has seen great strides forward in terms of volume and value sales versus last year because the on-trade has been operating on a much better basis than during the heavily restrictive phases of the pandemic.
Meet the man behind London's only meadery
In a production site, just under Peckham train station in south London, is Gosnells- the city's only meadery.
Inflation 'posing major challenge' to London's only meadery
The Morning Advertiser caught up with London’s only mead makers, Gosnells, on issues facing meaderies across the UK.