We blame the industry for this… It used to be that when we wrapped up our Weekend Picks on Friday, we could coast through the weekend. There was little need to check in for updates – things were pretty much done. But clearly all that’s changed. So here’s some of what’s happened in the world of craft beer while you were enjoying your weekend.

A First for Shmaltz (Clifton Park, NY) – For 16 years, Shmaltz Brewing Co. has been known for both their award-winning beers and for contract brewing exclusively. In a first for Jeremy Cowan and crew, Shmaltz will soon be opening their own New York state production brewery just 10 minutes north of Albany’s capital district. Their new 20,000 square foot home boasts a 50-barrel brewhouse with 20,000 barrels of annual capacity. Brewing production will begin in May 2013, and the official public grand opening bash will take place on Sunday, July 7.

Fort Collins Goes Stockholm (Fort Collins, CO) – As the Brooklyn Brewery has learned, there’s currently a huge market for American craft beer in Sweden, and the Fort Collins Brewery will now be stepping into the Nordic game as well. “Exporting was not part of our strategic vision,” says FCB’s Marketing Director, Charles Stanley, “but we were approached by Galatea Distributing’s U.S. liaison, which made us aware of the growing demand for U.S. craft beer in Sweden.” Fort Collin’s beers are expected to hit Swedish shelves in mid-June.

Boston Beer Misses Estimates (Boston, MA) – It was not the best week for the Boston Beer Company, whose shares plunged nearly 11% last Thursday after badly missing analyst estimates. CNN Money is reporting that “Boston Beer earned 51 cents per share in the first three months of 2013, down almost 9% from a year earlier and well below the 62 cents a share expected by analysts.”

German Beer Sales Plummet (Berlin, Germany) – In what can only be seen as yet another sign of an impending Apocalypse, German beer sales have declined to their lowest point in 20 years! Bloomberg is sighting all kinds of excuses for this cataclysmic fall. Everything from cold weather (wussies…) to beer being banned from the workplace (that’s no fun!) are being mentioned as possible explanations, but we at American Craft Beer.com suggest that they need look no further than the Reinheitsgebot, “the German Beer Purity Law of 1516,” for the answer. You made this bed – now sleep in it.

Moylan’s Global Collaboration (Novato, CA) – Moylan’s Brewery announces the release of an American version of the collaboration between the Northern Californian brewery, Norwegian brewery Nøgne Ø, and Australian brewery Hargreaves Hill. American Brewmaster Denise Jones, Nordic Brewmaster Kjetil Jikiun, Aussie Brewmaster Simon Walkhurst and Moylan’s Proprietor Brendan Moylan brought their skills together stateside for the creation and release of Our Dark Secret Double Black IPA.