Beverage Dynamics is the largest national business magazine devoted exclusively to the needs of off-premise beverage alcohol retailers, from single liquor stores to big box chains, through coverage of the latest trends in wine, beer and spirits.
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required to fulfill projected demand. It was a good thing, too: 450,000 cases of Yellow Tail Moscato were sold in that first year. The company is projecting up to 650,000 cases for 2012 and close to 1 million for 2013. Like other brands that have focused on millennials and new wine drinkers, Yellow Tail went broad in its marketing, targeting consumers beyond its core base. Yet, Steffanci believes that too much emphasis has been placed on defining a moscato demographic, which has been characterized as young, female, and low-income. Instead, he says, it is moscato's ability to appeal to so many difference ages, ethnicities, socioeconomic and geographic segments that is responsible for its success. W.J. Deutsch & Sons, importer of Yellow Tail, sees its moscato reaching sales of 650,000 cases in 2012, and is projecting sales of near to 1 million cases for 2013. "It's hard to pigeonhole," Steffanci says. "You see moscato mentioned in rap songs, and that's made the grape variety intriguing with younger people. But at the same time, it's the wine of choice for soccer moms. I think this variety has something for everyone." Old and New t has been a long and improbable trajectory for the grape. As one of the world's oldest known varieties, moscato was taken all over Europe by the Romans, and brought to Australia as early as the 1800s.There are now more than 200 types of moscato cultivated around the world, including both red and white varietals. It often comes in the form of an off-dry, gently effervescent, low-alcohol table wine and is also widely used for dessert and fortified wines. The first moscato grapes probably came to U.S. shores with the arrival of Italian immigrants as long as a century ago. In the last five or so years, rappers like I Trinchero Family Estates' flagship Sutter Home brand features a variety of moscato expressions. Drake, Kanye West and Lil' Kim started referencing the frizzante wine in their song lyrics. Most experts agree that popular culture references to moscato have surely impacted the category. But rap lyrics can't be the only factor in the grape's surging popularity. Yes, it's sweet, fizzy, light and moderately priced, all of which surely appeal to young, new drinkers. And perhaps, like Roy Cecchetti of the Cecchetti Wine Company, which produces Redtree Moscato, surmises: "the word itself – moscato – it's fun to say." But one thing is certain: the varietal's exponential growth has been driven almost entirely by consumer demand. And that is an anomaly. Drink trends are more often a result of marketers pushing a given product or segment. Rarely do brands have to scramble to catch up to such organically exploding demand. "To be honest, as a marketer, I was surprised at how quickly it became mainstream," says Wendy Nyberg, senior director of marketing at Sutter Home, the highvolume division of Trinchero Family Estates. "And now, we're at no. 3 in white wine varietals, with moscato surpassing sauvignon blanc sales nationally." According to Nyberg, social media has been a big driver of moscato sales. Sutter Home is active with Facebook and Twitter campaigns and has created a series of YouTube videos to educate consumers on specific varietals in a fun, dynamic way. "Just look at our Facebook page. Consumers are talking to each other, driving the demand," she points out. "And when you look at the consumers who are engaging about moscato, it tends to be younger people because they are the ones using social media." The Trinchero family has made moscato since it was 32 • Beverage Dynamics • www.beveragedynamics.com • January/February 2013