Spirits are the only category growing (up 4.6%), while wine and beer contract heading into Memorial Day. Uncle Nearest whiskey is in receivership after a $20 million loan from Jay-Z's Marcy Penn was ruled fraudulent, with the company valued far below the $300 million founders claimed. RNDC, a major national distributor, is selling off operations and laying off 320 people.
Chapters
Welcome to the DrinkUp Podcast Daily Industry Brief, where we break down what's happening in the beverage business, uh, and what it actually means for brands, distributors, and operators. Let's start with the scoreboard because it's not as pretty as January. Circana's latest weekly scans show that explosive start to 2026 has already cooled off. Off-premise bev-alc dollars were down 0.6% year over year and 0.3% week over week heading into Memorial Day. And volume was off 2.4%. Spirits are basically carrying the whole thing, up 4.6% in dollars and 7.3% in volume. Wine is shrinking, beer is negative, and the only real pockets of life in beer are imports, super-premium, non-alcohol, and some cider. So if your summer plan is more light beer, more cheap wine, and a prayer, that's not a plan. That's nostalgia. The consumer is telling you exactly where they want to spend: spirits, RTD spirits, NA, and a few premium beer franchises that are still winning the shelf. This is the year you stop pretending everything's a growth story and start building sets and menus around the handful of things that actually are. Now, Uncle Nearest. This one reads like a case study in what not to do with other people's money. A federal judge just kept the company in receivership and dragged Fawn Weaver's holding company Grant Sydney under the same umbrella. After finding that a $20 million loan from Jay-Z's Marcy Penn was moved over there to keep it away from the secured lender, conduct the order calls fraudulent. The receiver has hired counsel to respond to a federal investigation, and the court's valuation of Uncle Nearest lands way south of the $300 million-plus story the founders have been telling. If you're sitting on Uncle Nearest inventory or hanging a cocktail list on that brand, you don't need to panic, but you do need a plan B. Keep selling it if your guests love it, but don't build any critical summer program that assumes this is a stable, well-funded company with a clear future. Ownership, strategy, and maybe even supply are all on the table now. So make sure there's another premium American whiskey ready to slide into that feature slot if this turns into a quick sale. And then there's RNDC, still cutting the map up. New warn notices just hit for 320 layoffs across Washington and South Dakota as they move toward this near-national sell-off. 4 facilities closing in Washington, South Dakota expected to be sold, and other markets already earmarked for Columbia Reyes and Friends. Translation: trucks, reps, and incentives are all in motion. If you're a supplier, assume one messy quarter in the those states. Get very clear, very fast on who owns your brands, which reps actually carry them, and what your top 10 priorities are between now and Labor Day. If you're a retailer or operator, don't wait for the we're transitioning email. Reconfirm pricing, displays, and features now while someone still cares if you're happy. The big theme today is simple. The story people wanted to tell about 2026— big growth, clean brands, and stable routes to market— doesn't match the data. Spirits are doing the heavy lifting. One of the hottest whiskey brands in America is under court control, and one of the biggest distributors in the country is selling itself off in sections. Your job is not to complain about that. Your job is to adjust to it faster than the person across town.
