Pyrat XO Reserve is one of the smaller, high-end sipping rums that are making inroads in the market.
higher-proof style, and
Admiral Nelson for con- sumers in their mid- to late-twenties and others in the forties looking for a high-quality rum at a reasonable price, accord- ing to Hannah Venhoff,
brand manager, Admiral's Nelson's Rum and Blackheart Premium Spiced Rum. For Admiral Nelson's, there will be an expansion of flavor offerings that build on spiced rum. "Initially, we have introduced Cherry Spiced flavor. But flavor offer- ings will not be to the extent that you see with other spirits categories. Rather, we expect flavors that align with the spice flavoring," she said.
ost brand reps agree, in the words of McCann at Malibu, "that the premium and super premium sectors will start to see more growth as con- sumers look for aged and boutique rums." For smaller brands like Pyrat, that means relying on word-of-mouth backed by targeted marketing initiatives in key markets and social media outreach. Even super-premium brands offered by major sup- pliers – Diageo's Zacapa, for instance – must drive dis- tribution and engage consumers in sampling opportuni-
Special Rums M (Thousands of 9-Liter Cases)
Brand Supplier Bacardi Bacardi USA Captain Morgan (excludes Parrot Bay) Diageo Malibu Castillo
Admiral Nelson Cruzan Rum Sailor Jerry
Captain Morgan's Parrot Bay Ronrico
Jack Flavored Rums Total Leading Brands Others
Total Rum Source: Handbook Advance 2012 Beverage Dynamics • www.beveragedynamics.com • July/August 2012 • 19
Pernod Ricard USA Bacardi USA
Heaven Hill Distilleries Beam Inc.
William Grant & Sons Diageo
Beam Inc. Beam Inc.
2010 9,400 5,500 1,636 940 698 648 575 570 424 230
20,621 25,540
2011 9,450 5,490 1,744 870 725 725 667 560 422 300
20,953
4,919 4,927 25,880
% Chg 0.5% -0.2% 6.6% -7.4% 3.9%
11.9% 16.0% -1.8% -0.5% 30.4% 1.6% 0.2% 1.3%
ties to show how rich and well-crafted they can be, said Herbst.
Appleton's Levine says the premium category is filled with opportunities to develop consumer interest and that once engaged, they want to discover and explore more. With four iterations - Appleton VX, Reserve, 12 and 21 Year Old rums operating in the pre- mium and above sub-category - educational materials, like a planned interactive kiosk display employing iPads and proprietary software, are key to spurring interest. "We've been saying it for years, but I think the rum category is going to change drastically and we're all going to benefit from that," he said, and as if to spur that along, Appleton just marked the 50th anniversary of Jamaican independence with the release of Appleton 50 Year Old rum, a product unusual in the rum world, with only 70 bottles priced at around $5,000 each making it to the U.S.
s
With a superpremium portfolio, Appleton Estate Jamaican Rums have always
appealed to the rum connoisseur; now the brand is releas- ing a special, very limited edition, ultra-high-end Appleton 50 Year Old to mark the 50th year of Jamaican
independence. LEADING BRANDS OF RUM
