Welcome Note

Welcome back Gardeners!

I have been rolling out a series of brand reviews over on the subreddit I moderate with Chris Fontes. So subscribe over on Reddit and follow along there!

The Free Spirits Podcast with David Gonzalez and myself is going strong and Episode 7 dropped last week with Gordon Whelpley, Founder, Float House.

In upcoming episodes David and I sit down with - Ben Larson from Vertosa, Joanne Caceres from Dentons, Benjamin Kennedy from Fable, and Julie Rhodes from Kick Fizz. So subscribe to the podcast to make sure you don’t miss any of these amazing conversations!

If you could take the time to drop a review of the podcast or even just share it with a friend or two, it really does help us grow and continue to bring you this show.

You can find us on Youtube, Apple, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts!

I hope you enjoy this week’s newsletter

And as always, my email is open!

-Lars

Any comments or questions? Leave comment on this post or shoot me an email. Would love to hear from you!

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News Round Up

• Rhode Island Bills To Restrict Hemp THC Drinks Ignore Science And Current Regulations (Op‑Ed) - A Rhode Island op‑ed argues that upcoming legislation targeting hemp‑derived THC drinks is misguided—ignoring established science, current regulatory frameworks, and the investments farmers have made in compliant, community‑focused production. 

• The Rise of Hemp‑Derived THC Beverages - A Dentons legal analysis highlights the rapid growth of hemp‑derived THC drinks post‑Farm Bill, the shifting legal landscape across states, and the regulatory challenges—especially around FDA oversight and evolving state laws. 

• The Best THC Drinks of 2025—According to the High Spirits Awards -Forbes lists top-performing THC beverages recognized at the High Spirits Awards, celebrating creativity in formats such as seltzers, beers, coffees, wines, and sodas—showcasing the diversity emerging in the category. 

• Craft Beer Brewers Ponder THC Drinks: Friend or Foe? - Craft brewers are evaluating whether to enter the THC beverage space, weighing new market opportunities against regulatory uncertainty—expressing hope that federal rules will evolve to accommodate this trend. 

• Exclusive: Cannabis Beverage Sector Needs Consumer Education, Data; Has Upside Ahead - Benzinga reports that leaders from Boston Beer, Loversboy, and venture firms say THC beverages show long‑term growth potential, but emphasize the need for better consumer education, robust data, and improved distribution metrics. 

• Reefer Madness Returns to Texas with Dan Patrick’s THC Ban - The Texas Observer covers Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick’s aggressive push for a total THC ban—portraying it as a cultural backlash that could undermine an increasingly normalized and economically significant hemp‑derived THC market. 

• Alabama’s New THC Law Creates Confusion, ‘Chaos’ and Could Kill an Industry, Businesses Say - Alabama’s legislation capping THC, banning smokable hemp, and limiting online sales is generating confusion and threatening local hemp businesses, who contend it’s poorly drafted and may dismantle an emerging industry. 

• High Hopes: Can Insurance Keep Pace with the THC Drinks Boom?- Insurance Times analyzes how insurers are responding to the rapid rise in THC drink products, focusing on risks around product liability, regulatory uncertainty, and emerging risk profiles within the category. 

• Jack Daniel’s Maker Reveals Surprising Reason Americans Drinking Less Whiskey - Fox Business reports executives at Brown‑Forman attribute declining whiskey sales partly to the rise of cannabis products, alongside weight‑loss drugs and shifting consumer preferences among younger generations. 

• Brez Platforms with Non‑Infused Innovation Hard to Build with THC

  BevNET explores how THC-focused beverage platforms differ from traditional non-infused innovations, stressing the complexities of dosing, regulatory compliance, and the technical challenges of formulating stable THC drinks. 

• Major Alcohol Industry Group Pushes Congress to Dial Back Proposed Hemp‑Product Ban - Marijuana Moment reveals that a prominent alcohol trade association is urging Congress to reconsider a looming federal ban on hemp‑derived THC products, citing concerns over public safety and a desire for a regulated framework.

• THC Beverage Brands Navigate Unknown Waters

  Beverage Industry Magazine profiles brands maneuvering through the emerging THC beverage landscape, identifying supply chain challenges, compliance limits, and strategic market entry patterns.

• Nowadays Joins Palm Tree Crew as First‑of‑Its‑Kind Beverage Sponsor Launches 12‑Month Residency at Palm Tree Club Miami - THC beverage brand Nowadays partnered with Palm Tree Crew to become the first-of-its-kind beverage sponsor at the Palm Tree Club in Miami for a 12‑month residency, signaling lifestyle integration and mainstream brokering of hemp drinks. 

📰 Got news? Submit it here! 📰

Any other questions or inquiries you can respond to this email or DM me on Twitter 

Prohibition vs. Regulation: Why the Alcohol Playbook Might Be the Best Move Hemp Has

One of the biggest voices calling for regulation in hemp beverages right now is the alcohol industry.

In a recent op-ed, a major alcohol wholesaler laid it out plainly: intoxicating products deserve rules. Age gating. Potency caps. Clear labeling. “This is not new,” the author argued. “It’s not controversial. It’s responsible.”

No Rules vs. Total Ban

As federal and state legislators consider language that could shut down the entire hemp beverage category, the industry is stuck in a dangerous debate. One side sees regulation as a slippery slope to prohibition. The other sees regulation as the only thing standing between legitimacy and collapse. Or they are fine with bans as long as they get their own carve outs specific to them and their special interests.

Big Alcohol Isn’t Coming to Kill Hemp. It’s Offering a Playbook.

Some in the alcohol world are pushing bans. But others, notably from the wholesaler side, are offering a more constructive path: borrow the best of the alcohol regulatory model. Not because it’s perfect, but because it’s already proven.

The three-tier system is built for scale and safety. It separates producers, distributors, and retailers; adds layers of accountability; and ensures age gating and tax compliance. If adapted thoughtfully, it could be the backbone of a national THC beverage framework. It’s a good way to begin to lay the foundation, but fix many of the issues the 3-tier system has, such as some monopolies and lack of DTC in most cases, among other issues.

Meanwhile, the current patchwork is untenable:

• No unified testing standards

• Age-gating inconsistencies

• Zero oversight on marketing, packaging, or retail channel

This is not to say many companies are not already doing things the right way, but there are plenty of bad actors who are doing anything to make a buck, causing instability. And the longer it lasts, the harder it becomes to bring structure without sweeping crackdowns.

Investment Is Here: But Structure Has to Follow

Despite the noise, some beverage brands are attracting fresh capital. And that adds a new wrinkle to the regulation debate.

• Cali Sober just announced a $1 million round backed by Arsenal Partners and FlightPlan Ventures, a new consumer-focused fund. Their bet? That THC mocktails will win over sober-curious Gen Z and Millennial drinkers looking for functional, 5mg and 10mg options.

• Nowadays inked a 12-month residency with Palm Tree Crew in Miami, a sign that lifestyle positioning and pop culture integration are taking center stage as brands scale.

These moves are bullish. But they also raise the stakes.

If capital is flowing, regulators will follow. Without clear rules, a misstep, one underage incident, one misleading label, one bad actor, can create political pressure that takes the entire market down with it. And the bigger the brands get, the more exposed the category becomes.

The Real Battle: Inside the Industry

Ironically, some of the loudest resistance to structured regulation isn’t coming from politicians. It’s coming from operators in the space.

Fragmentation is everywhere:

• Hemp vs. cannabis licensees

• Beverage vs. edible factions vs. Inhaleable

• DTC purists vs. distributor-backed brands

Everyone’s fighting for their carve-out. Few are willing to agree on shared terms. And the result? A disjointed industry that can’t present a united front, exactly what regulators and legacy industries are counting on.

So What Could Work?

Borrow what works from the alcohol model. Build what doesn’t exist yet for cannabinoids.

• Regulate potency, not plant source

• Permit direct-to-consumer for low-dose SKUs with safeguards

• Establish universal testing standards

• Ensure age restrictions, marketing limits, and tax clarity

• Keep interstate commerce in play

No one’s asking to copy-paste the three-tier system. But we need something legible. Something scalable. Something investors, consumers, and regulators can understand.

Because here’s the truth: the category is growing up. It’s attracting capital. It’s entering mainstream venues. And that means the window to set the rules from within is closing fast.

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Boisson CEO Arie Gurevitch on Building the Future of Non-Alcoholic Beverages | Creator Spotlight