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/73671
Following the introductions of Malibu Black and Malibu Red last year and earlier this year, Pernod Ricard followed with the brand's latest: Malibu Sunshine, combining the brand's coconut flavor with a hint of lemon-lime citrus. Captain Morgan Parrot Bay both stalled, down 0.2% and 1.8%, respectively; two other top ten brands in retreat were Castillo (down 7.4%) and Ronrico (down 0.5%), reflecting a recent de-emphasis on value brands. Spiced rums have been the talk of the cat- egory for the last few years, and more activi- ty came from that sector recently, with Bacardi adding OakHeart last September and this past spring Diageo rolling out Captain Morgan Black Spiced Rum, a higher-proof, more molasses-flavored style. Other spiced brands showed great strength last year and were essentially responsible for any volume increase overall, with Admiral Nelson up 3.9% to 725,000 cases and Sailor Jerry up 11.9% to 667,000. Other fast-growing rum brands include Jack's Flavored Rums (recently sold by White Rock Distilleries to Beam, along with Pinnacle Vodka), with the brand increasing sales by more than 30% last year to sales of 300,000 cases. Don Q Rums, from Serralles USA, have also seen impressive sales, growing by more than 15% in 2011, to sales of 219,000 cases. Don Q's line includes its mid-priced Cristal, Gold and Anejo expressions, flavored versions of Lime, Coconut and Mojito, and the ultra-pre- mium-priced Grand Anejo. Don Q has also just released Caliche, a superpremi- um white rum aged up to four years, resulting in a smooth, velvety character with flavors of citrus and vanilla. At the same time, the brand has added to its fla- vor lineup, with the new Don Q Pasion, With competition intensifying in the spiced seg- rums as well, with high-end brands up 14.9% to 2.7 mil- lion cases last year, according to numbers from the Distilled Spirit Council of the United States. These aged (and more pricey) expressions are finally starting to break through with consumers who are taking their increasing interest in brown spirits like bourbon and rye with them as they learn to appreciate rum. The Future Beckons "W Serralles USA has just released Caliche, a super- premium white rum aged up to four years, as well as Don Q Pasion, a pas- sionfruit flavored rum. e are still very excited about the direction of the rum market and its potential for growth," said Diageo's Tom Herbst, director of marketing, rums. "It remains a highly acces- sible category from a consumer perspective." "The rum market is changing, especially in terms of the recent rejuvenation of brown spirits as a whole," said Greg Levine, brand manager for Appleton Estate rums for Kobrand. "Consumers are always looking, but now they are starting to look at aged rum in a different way." Retailers are more rou- tinely offering an expanded range of aged premium rums today, he says, and are looking to brands for educational support to help them sell what are often considered special occasion rums. The fact that rum consumers – tra- ditionally content in the white rum end of the market – now are adopting dif- ferent types of rums for different occa- sions is a cause for optimism. "Consumers are looking around now to expand their taste, looking for quality," said Nabil Wanna, Cruzan brand manager. "They are shopping at different price points and educating themselves about rum – that's good for the cat- egory and good for us." ment, it's still dominated by the 6-million case Captain Morgan. Spiced iterations like Kraken have garnered attention for a combination of packaging, graphics and its intensely dark color. Serralles USA re-branded and re-packaged their BlackBeard Spiced Rum, targeting post-college consumers and the trade with a "Own The Beard, Be The Legend" campaign. Meanwhile, brand reps speak confidently about the great things expected from premium and superpremium Pyrat is one of those rums at the high end, and Phil Gervasi, executive vice president of sales, North America, for supplier Patrón Spirits, says even in challenging economic times, people are still willing to spend an extra dollar or two for a high-quality cocktail when they go out. "And so consumers continue to dis- cover new and interesting brands on-premise, that they then seek out when shopping off- premise," he said. On the heels of the Cruzan 9 Spiced Rum introduction, Cruzan Strawberry debuted last year, adding to the impressive Cruzan portfolio. 16 • Beverage Dynamics • www.beveragedynamics.com • July/August 2012