Heineken Buys a Stake in Lagunitas; Sonoma Harvest Wine Auction Breaks Record

Plus, something that will help you discretely booze in public.

— Dutch brewing giant Heineken International is claiming a stake in the American craft beer market, buying 50 percent of California's Lagunitas Brewing Company. Lagunitas, which will remain an independent entity, is one of the hottest craft breweries in the U.S., and it saw its barrell volume rise by 50 percent in 2014. Founder and executive chairman Tony Magee will continue to run the American brewery.

— The Sonoma Harvest Wine Auction, the third-largest wine auction behind Napa Valley and Naples, just brought in a ton of money for charity. The auction raised a record-breaking $4.5 million, topping last year's total of $4 million. Most of the charities supported by the auction are aimed at children, including Fund the Future, which benefits literacy in Sonoma County. That organization raised $1.9 million, up from $1.7 million last year.

— Do you have the constant need to drink in public, but are you tired of breaking open-container laws? The Lolo Lid, a project currently crowdsourcing funds on Kickstarter, might be the perfect product for you. It looks like a typical to-go coffee cup lid and can lock onto a beer can that's placed inside a regular paper cup. In addition to the stealth quality, the lid apparently keeps beer colder than a foam koozie does. With 15 days left in the campaign, the Lolo Lid Kickstarter has already exceeded its $15,000 goal, proving once again that America is nothing if not a nation of boozers.

from Eater - All http://ift.tt/1K7fMku
via IFTTT