On Jan. 1, the city of Philadelphia instituted a new tax on sweetened beverages. Any drink containing a sugar-based sweetener or artificial sweetener is now subject to a 1.5 cent-per-ounce sugar tax.

The warm days of summer tend to motivate consumers to reach for light, refreshing beverages — whether it be non-alcohol or alcohol. The readers of Beverage Industry also found favor for this beverage profile in the Readers’ Choice: New Product of the Month poll for July.

Long Beach, Calif.-based 'Merican Mule Inc, the manufacturer of Moscow Mule in a can, announced the launch of its product’s distribution across Los Angeles and Orange County, Calif.

Continuing to celebrate “the best for the best,” Tequila Avión, New York, has created a limited-edition, commemorative bottle of the brand's ultimate tequila offering, Avión Reserva 44 Extra Añejo. 

Preston, Wash.-based Talking Rain Beverage Co., the maker of Sparkling Ice flavored sparkling waters, announced a strategic alliance with Tata Global Beverages, Kolkata, India. The agreement will enhance the brand reach of Himalayan Natural Mineral Water under the Talking Rain Beverage Co. umbrella, leveraging the Sparkling Ice distribution network to launch the mineral water in the United States, the company says. 

This summer, Mike’s Hard Lemonade, Chicago, is delivering happiness and humor with a little help from rapper and comedian Lil Dicky and Drizly, the technology company behind the first eCommerce alcohol app. 

CÎROC ultra-premium vodka, a brand of Norwalk, Conn.-based Diageo North America Inc., is celebrating the arrival of its newest luxury addition to the global collection of CÎROC flavors: CÎROC French Vanilla.

Denver-based Molson Coors Brewing Co. and Hornell Brewing Co. Inc., Woodbury, N.Y., an affiliate of AriZona Beverages, announced a partnership agreement whereby Molson Coors will market and distribute a new flavored malt beverage (FMB) brand, Arnold Palmer Spiked Half & Half, in the United States through its U.S. division, MillerCoors.

Constellation Brands Inc., Victor, N.Y., reported its first quarter fiscal 2018 results.

Chicago-based MillerCoors, a division of Molson Coors Brewing Co., announced that it used 15 billion fewer gallons of water across its value chain in 2016. The reduction can be attributed to changes in farming techniques, which include innovative new tools and irrigation initiatives that use less water while still producing high-quality barley, along with increased brewery efficiencies.