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: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/303900
42 Beverage Dynamics • May/June 2014 www.beveragedynamics.com Tequila's Rising Star 13% to 2.033 million cases in 2013, according to Beverage Infor- mation Group's Handbook Advance. Other tequilas in Beam's portfolio include Sauza Hornitos and Tres Generaciones and El Tesoro de Don Felipe. Tequila category sales volumes were up 5.2% in 2013, according to Beverage Information Group's Handbook Ad- vance. For its part, tequila supplier revenues rose an impres- sive 7.9%, accounting for $148 million in new supplier dollars, according to the Distilled Spirits Council of the United States (DISCUS). That sales increase was largely driven by the pre- mium (up 9.2%) and superpremium (10.2%) segments. In- deed, many of the new product introductions have been in the superpremium arena, generating much of the publicity ink and consumer interest in tequila. "The biggest trend is premiumization," says Stickler at Brown- Forman. "People are looking for premium quality, craftsmanship, demanding more from tequila. We are seeing the fastest growth in the super- and ultra-premium segments, a transformation of the category toward the high end." The Brown-Forman portfolio in- cludes the Herradura and Don Eduardo brands, as well as El Jima- dor, one of the leading labels, showing 4.4% growth to 331,000 cases in 2013, according to Beverage Information Group statistics. "We do well with tequila, and it's showing steady growth," says Rick Ostrand, spirits buyer for Stateline Liquors in Elkton, MD. The store carries a solid but not extensive selection, says Ostrand. "There's been lots of interest, especially in the high- er-quality range." New brands are entering the market all the time. Suerte Tequila recently extended distribution of small-batch, single-estate, double-distilled expressions to the Rocky Mountain Region, California, New York Metro area, New Jersey, Wyoming and Connecticut. Boulder, CO-based entrepreneurs Laurence Spiewak and Lance Sokol co-founded Suerte Tequila in 2012. "On average each year 30 to 40 new tequila brands are intro- duced, with over 1,200 in the U.S. market already. Most of that innovation is in the superpremium segment, which is growing the fastest," says Rene Valdez senior brand manager for Tequila Cazadores. The Bacardi USA brand is among the top 10 suppli- ers, at some 293,000 cases in 2013, according to Beverage Infor- mation Group. The top 10 tequila brands accounted for some 11 million 9-liter cases in 2013, according to Beverage Information Group statistics, up 4.4% for the year. Accounting for nearly a quarter of that volume was category leader Jose Cuervo at 3.03 million cases. For over two decades, Diageo North America had handled Cuervo's distribution and was negotiating to buy the brand. However, last July, the Beck- mann family, owners of Jose Cuervo, moved distribution to sister company, New Jersey-based Proximo Spirits. Reportedly, Prox- imo plans a major investment to build the brand. Currently, the importer's portfolio includes Maestro Dobel, Gran Centenario and Zarco tequilas as well as 1800 Tequila, which grew 11.6% in 2013 to 1.032 million cases. Now, 1800 has just released an ultra-premium extra-aged anejo tequila fi nished in cognac bar- rels called Milenio. This limited-edition expression is matured for fi ve years, spending four months being fi nished in cognac barrels. This is the second edition of Milenio, the fi rst having been released in 2000. It is 80 proof and has a suggested retail price of $125. For its part, Diageo acquired two ultra-upscale tequila brands: Peligroso is a 100% blue Weber agave tequila from the highlands of Jalisco, Mexico, which was founded by two avid surfers; it is The 100% agave tequila, El Jimador, recently debuted a more upscale bottle. Late last year Patron launched Gran Patron Piedra, a high-end, extra anejo tequila, which uses the tradi- tional Tahona production process. Casamigos Tequila was launched last year in the celebrity glow of George Clooney. This April, the brand teamed up with Sidney Frank Importing, as the exclusive im- porter and distributor of Casamigos in the U.S. and the Caribbean. Tequila Herradura has insti- tuted a program of annual releases of different wood fi nishes, called Coleccion de la Casa Reserva, which began in 2012 with a Port Cask Finish.