March’s top stories: Nestlé Waters opened facility in Thailand and Castle Brands to supply Goslings beers

Nestlé Waters opened new factory in Thailand

Nestlé Waters opened its new factory in Surat Thani, Thailand, which will serve as the second manufacturing and distribution hub for bottled water brand Nestlé Pure Life.

Located at the Punpin district in Surat Thani province, the new factory will distribute bottled water to consumers across the country

Nestlé Indochina chairwoman and chief executive officer (CEO) Audrey Liow said: “At Nestlé, we are committed to enhancing quality of life and contributing to a healthier future for Thai people."

Castle Brands to supply Goslings beers in Walmart stores in US

US-based developer and marketer of alcoholic beverages Castle Brands signed an agreement to supply Goslings Stormy Ginger Beer and Stormy Diet Ginger Beer to Walmart stores in the US.

The ginger beers will be rolled out to all Walmart stores.

Castle Brands' chief operating officer (CEO) John Glover said: "Supplying Walmart with both the Regular and Diet Goslings Stormy Ginger Beer adds to the brand's impressive growth and strengthens our position in the US market.

S&D Coffee & Tea introduced Toddy cold brew coffee concentrates

S&D Coffee & Tea launched Toddy cold brew coffee concentrates.

These are expected to simplify cold brew coffee for food service operations.

Making use of its proprietary Toddy commercial cold brewing process at scale, S&D offers cold brew coffee in easy-to-use concentrates, which alleviate the need for food service staff to spend hours measuring, steeping, and filtering coffee grounds to make cold brew in-house, which can take between six and 24 hours.

Divinia Water expanded production facility in Idaho, US

Divinia Water, a bottler of cellular and deuterium depleted water in North America, expanded its production facility in eastern Idaho.

The expanded facility will become operational in mid-April.

The extra room, additional equipment, new hires, and commercial-sized technology are expected to give Divinia an advantage of producing 100 times the current output.

True Drinks raised $3.6m to fund growth plan

Flavoured water manufacturer True Drinks Holdings raised $3.6m to fund its growth plan for this year.

True Drinks manufactures AquaBall, a naturally flavoured water for children that does not contain sugar, preservatives, calories, or artificial flavours.

True Drinks' chief financial officer (CFO) Dan Kerker said: "This financing enables True Drinks to execute our 2017 growth strategy with a focus on increasing distribution in the mainstream grocery and convenience store channels, heavily promoting the brand at retail to drive trial and brand awareness, and increasing our voice in the fight to end the trends of childhood obesity and juvenile diabetes."

Johnnie Walker launched Blenders' Batch experimental whisky programme in US

Diego brand Johnnie Walker introduced Blenders' Batch, a global experimental programme highlighting the art of blending.

These limited-edition experimental whiskies are developed by Dr. Jim Beveridge and his team of blenders. These experimentations focus on developing and understanding a vast variety of unconventional flavours to add depth and complexity to Scotch.

Beveridge said: "Experimentation is the key to innovation and has been at the heart of Johnnie Walker from the very beginning. Our founder John Walker's first experiments were with flavours inspired by teas and spices from the new world.

“Walker's first blends weren't bound by the traditional styles of particular whisky-producing regions in Scotland, but were experiments in flavour using casks from all over the country and later the world.

“What we're doing today is what we've done for nearly 200 years and we are thrilled to be opening our doors, allowing people to experience the vast array of flavour experiments happening every day."

Tesco launched new range of luxury wines

UK-based retailer Tesco launched a new range of 10 luxury wines focusing on classic French and Italian styles.

The range is comprised of Faugeres 2015, Lambrusco Reggiano Amabile DOC NV, Valpolicella Ripasso 2014, St Emilion Grand Cru 2011, Barbera d’Alba 2013, Margaux 2011, Mercurey Rouge ‘Selection Georges’ 2015, Gaillac Perle 2016, Minervois La Liviniere 2015, and Vire Clesse 2015.

Tesco's wine master James Davis said: “These fantastic new finest wines offer customers an opportunity to discover a range of top quality wines at exceptional prices."

Martell introduced Martell VS Single Distillery in US

House of Martell has launched Martell VS Single Distillery, a cognac from a sole distillation source. 

This offering adds an exclusive new profile to the Martell family of expressions. The new blend unites eaux-de-vie from a single distillery, drawing the same sensorial profile and flavour characteristics to give a richer expression of the Martell style.

Pernod Ricard's USA Martell marketing brand director Brian Smith said: "The House of Martell has always prioritised luxury to focus on the very quality of its blends, and as a result, the Martell expressions are characterised by outstanding depth and intricacy."

SodaStream introduced Fruit Drops water essence

Manufacturer and distributor of sparkling water makers SodaStream unveiled Fruit Drops, an unsweetened, naturally flavoured essence to add to water.

The company claimed its new product is naturally flavoured, preservative-free, and contains zero calories.

SodaStream's international chief executive officer (CEO) Daniel Birnbaum said: "SodaStream is on a mission to make water exciting for millions of consumers around the world.

"Fruit Drops is our first product initiative that invites consumers to enhance ordinary water, as well as fizzy water, simply by adding a twist of naturally flavoured fruit essence.

“Fruit Drops offer great taste, great value, and a great way for consumers to hydrate healthy."

Mountain Dew launched Mtn Dew Label Series

Mountain Dew has launched Mtn Dew Label Series, a line of premium sodas made from dew with crafted unique flavors and herbal and citrus bitters. 

This line includes the citrus-flavoured Mtn Dew White Label and the apple-kiwi flavoured Mtn Dew Green Label. The series was created following the success of Mtn Dew Black Label in 2016.

The brand stated it has introduced the series after Mtn Dew Black Label received positive response in the market.