Last Orders for Hemp Drinks?

Wotcha!

We are now less than a month away from the hemp ban coming into effect. If you aren’t aware of what this is or how it might affect you, take a moment to watch this.

The domino effect of this ludicrous bill will have wide-ranging consequences, from beverage companies having to close their doors and employees losing their jobs to stores losing a significant percentage of their revenue as these drinks have grown in popularity.

If you’re wondering why this happened or are looking for someone to blame, look no further than Big Alcohol and its lobbyists.

Regulation is one thing. An outright ban is ludicrous.

Stock up while you can and make your voice heard here.

Enjoy some great drinks this week!

Myles

P.S. On a completely different note don’t forget this coming Tuesday and Wednesday, you can take part in the ANA Virtual Summit and get the low down on the 2026 State of the Adult Non-Alcoholic Beverage Industry Report. See details below.

In last week’s issue (MODSUB156), The Adult Non-Alcoholic Cider Guide is Here! this link got the most attention.

In this week’s edition:

NAN
New NA Drink News

BEER
Athletic Brewing - Winter Wonder

FUNCTIONAL
Hiyo - Apple Cinnamon Social Tonic

Read time: 5 minutes 40 seconds

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NORTH AMERICA

COCKTAILS: Branching out from their highly impressive spirit releases, Almave debut their first RTDs with a Classic Margarita and a Paloma. (Link)

BEER: Always been a big fan of Christmas ales, so I'm stoked to see the return of Winter Wonder from Athletic Brewing. So stoked, in fact, that I wrote all about it below! (Link)

WINE: There's a lot to celebrate down in Texas these days, so add the brand-new sparkling white from Good Alibi to the list of things to put in your glass when raising a toast! (Link)

WINE: Not new, but worth mentioning: Elton John and David Furnish's Zero Blanc de Blancs is now available for purchase in the U.S. (Link)

KOMBUCHA: I don't normally include kombuchas in these round-ups, but this one sounded intriguing. Momo Kombucha and Orbit Beers have got together again to create Organic Hops Kombucha, following a successful limited run back in 2023. (Link)

COCKTAILS: Up in Canada, Wild Folk introduce their latest flavor: London Dry Mule. (Link)

COCKTAILS: Always exciting to see something new come out of the St. Agrestis camp, so head over to their website to check out the new Phony Spritz. (Link)

WORLDWIDE

BEER: Down in Australia, it's peach season, and Hiatus Beer have just released their new Peach Lager. (Link)

BEER

ModSub thoughts: Back in the before times, one shift that signalled the coming holidays was regional breweries releasing their dark, festive winter beers, or as I’ve always called them, Christmas ales. For me, they conjure up memories of dark, late afternoons spent in crowded pubs with steamed-up windows, enjoying crackling fires and cheery conversations, followed by a guaranteed headache the next morning. There’s little I miss about drinking alcohol these days, but the annual arrival of those winter beers in stores and bars here in Portland does make me a little nostalgic for earlier times.

So I was rather chuffed, as I was wandering through Whole Foods the other day, to find a stack of Athletic Brewing’s Winter Wonder stacked up at the end of one of the aisles. Well, I’ll be sure to have one of those, I thought.

Festive winter ales are few and far between in the non-alc beer world. There’s a plethora of top-notch brown and dark ales out there, but few that I’m aware of that mirror the winter ales you see in the regular beer universe. In fact, I’ve asked around, and this might be the only one. But hey, one is better than none, and thankfully, Athletic has an excellent Christmas ale in Winter Wonder.

You can expect two things on the pour: a fine head and a gorgeous deep copper-brown color that almost glows in your glass. Orange, cinnamon and cardamom greet you from the off and run through to the finish, meeting a healthy dose of hops along the way. The flavors continue to dance together, even as you raise your glass for another sip. Supposedly, there’s apple in there too, but my taste buds are rebelling against the idea of finding it for some reason. 

The brewery has captured the flavor of the holidays perfectly with Winter Wonder. By all accounts, last year’s batch sold out quickly. So if this sounds appealing, you might want to track some down this weekend. Maybe, just maybe, this will prompt a few other breweries to invest in non-alcoholic Christmas ales. I’m looking at you, Deschutes!

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Attend the ANA Virtual Summit and Get the 2026 State of the Adult Non-Alcoholic Beverage Industry Report

November 17-18, 2026 | 12-3 PM Eastern | Free and global on LinkedIn Live

Our friends at the Adult Non-Alcoholic Beverage Association (ANBA) are releasing their first-ever State of the Adult Non-Alcoholic Beverage Industry Report at a 2-day ANA Virtual Summit on November 17-18, and you're invited to attend.

Registration is free and includes first access to the Industry Report, sent at the end of Day 1, plus panel sessions full of data deep dives, expert discussions, and insights shaping what's next in the adult non-alcoholic (ANA) category.

Register for free at anba.org/virtual-summit

FUNCTIONAL

ModSub thoughts: You may think I’ve had it up to my eyeballs with apples, given that I've spent the last few months preoccupied with writing about non-alcoholic ciders and putting together the cider guide. But this drink from Hiyo came out a few weeks back, and I’ve been itching to try it. I promise, though, if you’re ‘appled out’ at this point, this is the last apple drink recommendation of the year.

Hiyo’s drinks slot comfortably into the functional category, with six core drinks concocted from a blend of ashwagandha, L-theanine, lion’s mane, lemon balm, passionflower and ginger, with 1.7 grams of the mix finding its way into each can. The result is what the beverage company calls “the float”, a combination of stress relief, calmness and a little pep in your step.

The effects of these functional drinks are purely subjective and vary from person to person, but frankly, having made my way through half a can so far, I do feel so much calmer than I did 30 minutes ago. That, or my house is finally quiet, and I'm feeling relaxed because I'm actually getting some writing done.

Apple Cinnamon is a limited-edition release from the California company, and so perhaps not the first place you'd think to dive into already well-established Hiyo’s product line. But they kinda had me at Apple Cinnamon, so why not?

The flavours are just what you hope they would be: the sweet earthiness of apple cider, the warm, woody spice of cinnamon, the combination momentarily allowing for a brief floral interlude before the apple returns for the finale. The bubbles are celebratory, the pour a deep golden brown, and the lift to your mood is yours if you're lucky.

My guess is that the hordes of Hiyo fans out there, of which there seem to be many, will voice their disapproval when Apple Cinnamon disappears with the changing season, given its limited run. They wouldn't be wrong. Apple Cinnamon is a keeper.

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