September 19, 2010 / by J Smoke Wallin / Make A Comment / Filed under Brand Management, Distributors, News, Pelican Brands
I’m pleased to share the following announcement. Napa Smith beer is on fire in our march to a national roll-out. We love this brand and believe it has a very strong future.
FOR RELEASE Monday 20 September 2010
Media contact:
Megan Hochstetler
001-317-574-6407
Pelican Brands Announces Acquisition Of Napa Smith Brewery
Napa, CA & Carmel, IN USA – September 17, 2010 – Pelican Brands is pleased to announce it has entered into an exclusive purchase agreement to acquire the Napa Smith Brewery & Winery. The purchase includes seven acres of land and 50,000 sq.ft. of production, warehousing and office space. Earlier this year, Napa Smith appointed Pelican Brands as its exclusive sales representatives in the United States.
J. Smoke Wallin, Chairman & CEO of Pelican Brands said, “The craft beer business is the fastest growing category of beverages in America. Much of the new demand is being met by small local brewers. It is our belief that while a few will become regional brands, a very select few will become national brands. Napa Smith has all the right brand attributes – amazing beer from one of the most respected names in the craft brewing industry, distinctive packaging, and Napa terroir – to become one of those few select national brands.” Wallin continued, “This acquisition is a perfect strategic fit for Pelican Brands in building a global sales and brand platform of both owned and agency brands. The Pelican team looks forward to building Napa Smith into an iconic craft beer brand with President Steve Morgan and Master Brewer Don Barkley.”
Steve Morgan, President of Napa Smith stated, “This is an exciting day for the Napa Smith business and for the community. In the past ninety days, Napa Smith through Pelican’s platform has expanded into eight new states. Before the end of the year, we will add additional states making Napa Smith available from the Pacific all the way to the Atlantic. Napa Smith will be available nationwide by mid 2011. Pelican Brands will provide the growth capital needed for further expansion. Napa’s winemakers made the Napa Valley into a global name and destination. We are proud to continue this tradition by bringing beer – brewed with the same level of quality and attention to detail – to discerning consumers everywhere.”
Don Barkley, Master Brewer said, “I’m doing what I love to do – brewing great beer. Smoke and the whole Pelican team are my kind of people. They appreciate the importance of brewing beer right. At the same time, they bring scale and resources that will help Napa Smith reach many more thirsty consumers, something I’m passionate about!”
About Napa Smith Brewery
Napa Smith Brewery is located at the southern gateway to Napa Valley, just south of the town of Napa. Napa Valley is internationally known as a destination for those individuals who seek the best that life has to offer. Napa Smith is proud to contribute to the Napa tradition of hard work, craftsmanship, and artistry with the introduction of its unique family of beers. It creates its beers using proprietary recipes developed by Master Brewer Don Barkley – a veteran of 30+ years in the craft brewing industry. Much of the Napa’s growth has been fueled by its Signature Series of beers. Offered in 4-packs, 22 oz bottles, and draught, Organic IPA and Lost Dog Red Ale have attracted national interest from both distributors and chains. Napa Smith Amber Ale, Napa Smith Pale Ale, and Napa Smith Lost Dog Red Ale are all recipients of gold medals at the California State Fair. www.napasmithbrewery.com
About Pelican Brands
Pelican Brands was formed to nurture and build brands in the global beverage alcohol space. Our portfolio includes incredible hand crafted wines, spirits and beer including Thailand’s #1 export, Singha Beer. Pelican Brands’ team and partners have extensive experience in the global beverage and consumer packaged goods industries. www.pelican-brands.com Pelican Brands is headquartered in Carmel, IN, and offices in the United Kingdom with a sales team covering the U.S. market.
August 3, 2010 / by J Smoke Wallin / Make A Comment / Filed under Brand Management, Distributors, New Products - Brands, News, Pelican Brands
The Beeradvocate published this fine update the other day about Craft beer sales being up 12% in dollars and outpacing last year’s impressive growth. Also showing the 10 year growth in numbers of breweries. 
This is perfectly consistent with what we are seeing on Napa Smith Beer as we are rolling out the 4 packs of Organic IPA and Lost Dog Red Ale along with the traditional lines. We got authorized in all the Bay area Whole Foods and just got authorized in Safeway as well. We are currently launching Indiana, Kentucky, Georgia, Alabama, Tennessee, Texas and Florida to name a few markets. Should have Napa Smith in 50 states by this time next year as well as select European and Asian markets. Very exciting stuff.
Here is a shot of the new four packs…
Organic IPA 4-pack
Lost Dog 4-Pk
I was hanging with Don Barkley who is one of the most respected and earliest craft brewers in the US having done New Albian in the 1970s and then going on to co-found Mendocino Brewing and Red Tale Ale (which btw, is not what it used to be if you ask me). He is great to drink beer with and has more great stories around beer than a week of sitting drinking beers could allow. Anyway, discussing the amazing growth in the business and the numbers of new brewers, I mentioned our latest beer brand, Flat 12 Beirwerks founded in Indianapolis this year and launching this Fall… its a cool project and the guys behind it are successful entrepreneurs in other industries with a ton of enthusiasm and drive. 
I think they have a great shot based on the early buzz around the brand and the liquid itself. Pelican will manage their brand launch and grow it when appropriate to surrounding markets.
Will update soon on new spirits brands and some other exciting news on the Pelican front…
Until next time, Kind Regards,
Smoke
May 5, 2010 / by J Smoke Wallin / Make A Comment / Filed under Brand Management, Distributors, News, Pelican Brands
Well its been a busy couple of weeks since I posted my thoughts on the growth in Craft Brewing. Since then, Tony Foglio and Keith Greggor of Griffin Group (Formerly Skyy and in the old days Diageo/UDV/Padding
ton) purchased the Anchor Brewery from Fritz Maytag. Wow! I’d like to say they read my post, and went shopping, but of course, they’d been working on this deal for some time. These are two of the smartest people I know in the beverage alcohol industry and this big commitment to the craft brewing and artisan distilling categories is yet another indication that the trends we are all seeing are gaining momentum and are here to stay. Congratulations guys! I know they will keep the integrity of the Anchor brand while giving it just the right touch to take it to new heights. Just like they did with Skyy Vodka.
Along these lines, I’m very excited by our new partnership with W. L. Lyons Brown III and Altamar Brands. Lyons is the oldest of the 5th generation Brown family which control Brown-Forman Corp (Jack Daniels, Southern Comfort, Finlandia). Lyons left Brown-Forman a while back to form his own Spirits company, Altamar, which was intensely focused on artisan ultra premium brands. (See “Southern Discomfort”, Forbes). His initial brand of Tequila was launched and subsequently sold for an incredible return on investment. Lyons then re-invested into three ultra premium, hand crafted brands – Right Gin, Kubler Absinthe, and Tequila Ocho. These three brands each have their own unique place in the market and most importantly, incredible liquid in the bottle. Lyons and I have been talking since mid 2009 about ways in which smaller, entrepreneurial companies and brands can be successful in a market dominated by the likes of Diageo, Fortune Brands, Bacardi, Pernod Ricard and Brown-Forman. The result is yesterday’s announcement of our strategic partnership between Altamar and Pelican Brands (below). This is a very exciting time in the industry. Those that can figure out how to manage their platform costs (read sales force, back of house infrastructure etc) and the complicated and difficult distribution landscape while nurturing hand crafted brands whether they be beers, spirits, wines or other niche categories will have tremendous success in the years to come. This is precisely what Pelican Brands has set out to do. I look forward to sharing more on our exciting journey.
For now, grab a Napa Smith Organic IPA, a Singha from exotic Thailand, a Swedish born Right Gin martini, a newly released vintage Tequila Ocho, a “Velvet” made with Kubler Absinthe or an Arta Tequila in a snifter and sit back and enjoy the ride.
Smoke
Press Release here your your convenience:
FOR RELEASE MAY 4 2010
Media contact:
Samira Seiller - Altamar Brands
630-215-6753/ Sam@Altamarbrands.com
Altamar Brands, LLC And Pelican Brands Form Wide Ranging Strategic Partnership To Develop, Market & Sell Premium Spirits Brands
Altamar Brands Is A Luxury Spirits Company founded By W.L. Lyons Brown, III
Pelican Brands Is The Fastest Growing Full Service Brand Platform In The Global Beverage Industry
Corona del Mar, California & Carmel, IN, USA – May 4, 2010 – Altamar Brands and Pelican Brands today announced a wide ranging strategic partnership created to develop, market and sell premium spirits brands.
W.L. Lyons Brown III, CEO of Altamar said, “We are thrilled to be partnering with Smoke and his team. We presently face a perfect storm of challenges in building luxury brands through a small company model in this economic environment and, after careful study; we are convinced that Pelican Brands is uniquely positioned to help us meet them.”
“We are honored and privileged to partner with Lyons and the Altamar team”, said J. Smoke Wallin, Chairman of Pelican Brands. He continued, “We created Pelican Brands on a foundation of innovation with an eye to achieving extraordinary results for exceptional brand partners and building meaningful scale in each product category in which we choose to compete. This strategic partnership with Altamar serves as a catalyst for our luxury spirits platform and continues the momentum Pelican has built since inception.”
This deal follows Pelican Brands’ previous announcements of its exclusive U.S. rights to the brand management of Singha beer Thailand’s no.1 export beer, Napa Smith, handcrafted beers from the Napa Valley and the exciting launch of Artá Hand Crafted Ultra Premium Tequila with a Conscience.
Don Hammond, President of Pelican Brands, said, “The care and attention to detail with which Altamar has nurtured Right Gin, Kubler Absinthe and Ocho Tequila sets the bar in the ultra premium spirits sector. Combining our strengths in distribution, national accounts and in-market execution will only serve to drive the business forward as the economy and importantly the premium on-premise sectors show signs of improvement.”
About Altamar Brands, LLC
Altamar Brands, LLC was founded by W. L. Lyons Brown, III in 2005 for the purpose of developing luxury spirits brands that change perception. The company is located in Corona Del Mar, California. Altamar imports and markets 3 brands, Kubler Absinthe from Switzerland, Right Gin from Sweden and Tequila Ocho from Arandas, Mexico. It is Altamar’s intention to develop a presence in all spirits categories with highly distinctive product stories that support a premium brand positioning. More detail on the company, the brands and all press is available at www.altamarbrands.com.
Follow-up Contact: Samira Seiller 630-215-6753/ Sam@Altamarbrands.com
About Pelican Brands
Pelican Brands nurtures and builds brands in the global beverage alcohol space. Our team and partners have extensive experience in the global beverage and consumer packaged goods industries. Pelican Brands is headquartered in Carmel, IN with offices in the United Kingdom and a sales team covering the U.S. and select international markets. Pelican’s growing portfolio of brands include super premium entrants in spirits, beer, wine and mixers.
For more information on Pelican Brands our website is www.pelican-brands.com.
