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.
Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/485350
60 Beverage Dynamics • March/April 2015 www.beveragedynamics.com Flavored Vodka of entry is the fl avor rather than the brand. The fl avor consumer has a party or other occasion in mind while brows- ing the retail shelves." Sobieski has 11 fl avors but, Guillant says, 90 percent of its sales comes from base vodka. NO DIVORCE Not everyone sees an irreconcilable rift in the vodka category, however. "Consumers make different choices for different occasions rather than choosing one segment or another," says Brad Essig, vice president of the vodka category at Diageo, whose portfolio includes fl avor leader Smirn- off. "The same consumer may select a premium-priced straight vodka for a Martini at home one night and a con- fectionary-fl avored vodka as a shot at a bar the next night." "We don't see fl avored and unfl avored as having two different consumers or being two different cat- egories with two different dynamics," agrees Jason Dolenga, senior director of vodkas at Beam Suntory, whose port- folio includes fl avor pioneer Pinnacle Vodka. "We've done a lot of work re- cently to nail down where the opportu- nity is for vodka. Our target consumer is clearly females aged 30 to 39. We have found that this consumer enjoys unfl a- vored vodka as well as fl avored, maybe on different occasions, but there is vari- ety-seeking behavior," he adds. When Beam Suntory took over the Pinnacle brand, it was known as an inno- vator in fl avored vodkas and its business was largely biased towards fl avors. Still, the brand had a large unfl avored busi- ness. "Categorywise, unfl avored is about 80% of the market," Dolenga says. "The opportunity lies mainly in growing that unfl avored business at Pinnacle." Nonetheless, both Smirnoff and Pinnacle have been busy releas- ing new fl avors recently, as have Burnett's, UV Vodka and many other contenders. WHERE'S "IT" AT? The quest for the next great fl avor has preoccupied innovators for nearly a decade. Flavors have come in and out of vogue as the subcategory has evolved, and favorites vary according to region. Earliest entrants were simple citrus or fruit fl avors. Then came the confectionary phase with success stories like whipped and cake. Following those two hits came a plethora of fl avor releases, some rather far-out, like pickle, glazed donut and sriracha, to name just a few. "Sometimes I get the feeling that vodka manufacturers are just tossing out fl avors to see what sticks," says Edward Mulvihill, director of sales & marketing at Peco's Liquors in Wilmington, DE. A few fl avors do stick around awhile. "Cake and Whipped fl avors are still popular at our store," says Jarett Young, a clerk at Davis Li- quor Outlet in Wichita, KS. "There was that big blip with Cake and Whipped," says Dachis at Merwin Liquors, "we still stock those." Now it seems fl avors have circled back to fruit again. Of the lead- ing 20 brand fl avors only two are not fruit. (Pinnacle's Whipped, the number-two fl avor, and Sazerac's Firefl y Sweet Tea, according to NABCA data). New Amsterdam's Peach leads with Ciroc Peach in third place, followed by Absolut Citron, New Amsterdam Berry and Smirnoff Raspberry. So, what are the new "it" fl avors? Fruit fl avors mostly. "Fruit fl avors and combinations thereof are on trend," says Tracey Clapp, Vodka Marketing Director at Sazerac Company, which pro- duces Wave and Epic Vodkas. "Consumers' love for exploration and fl avor continues." "Pineapple is huge," says Leighton at Bayway. "Peach and coco- nut are selling well right now. Those are fl avors that all go well in classic cocktails." "Pineapple and peach are big sellers," echoes Mulvihill at Peco's. Leading Brands of Flavored Vodkas New Amsterdam Peach E & J Gallo Pinnacle Whipped Beam Inc. Ciroc Peach Diageo Absolut Citron Pernod Ricard New Amsterdam Berry E & J Gallo Smirnoff Raspberry Diageo Ciroc Red Berry Diageo UV Blue Raspberry Phillips Distilling Three Olives Cherry Proximo Spirits Smirnoff Vanilla Diageo Burnett's Cherry Heaven Hill Distilleries Burnett's Citrus Heaven Hill Distilleries Ciroc Coconut Diageo Smirnoff Citrus Diageo Absolut Mandrin Pernod Ricard Smirnoff Orange Diageo Stoli Razberi William Grant & Sons Firefl y Sweet Tea Sazerac Three Olives Grape Proximo Spirits Pinnacle Kiwi Strawberry Beam Inc. (*) Based on NABCA data. Epic Citrus, Kiwi Strawberry and Whipped Cream