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21 StateWays ■ www.stateways.com ■ January/February 2016 I rish whiskey enjoyed another strong year — one more in a string of annual double-digit growth. The category has bulked up, now eclipsing single malt Scotch in volume, if not sales. Irish whiskey is en- tering a new phase. Companies large and small are investing in liquid stocks and building new distilleries. No longer is the market monopolized by a single brand and a handful of distilleries. Producers are experimenting with new variants, fi nishes and expressions, enlarging the range of styles and choices. High-end products are meant to change consumption patterns, turning shooters into sippers. This evolution is refl ected in the messaging from the brands, with a shift in emphasis to the liquid in the bottle rather than romantic tales. POT OF GOLD One thing that's still true about Irish whiskey is its gal- loping growth, which has caught the notice of consumers, retailers and global drinks companies. "Hands down, Irish is the biggest whiskey category in terms of growth," says Ted Farrell, president of Haskell's Inc., a wine and spirits retailer based in Minneapolis. "Cus- tomers are interested in trying all the new Irish whiskeys that keep on cropping up." "The Irish whiskey category is still on fi re, and Tulla- more D.E.W. is outperforming the category," says Lisa Pfenning, Category Mar- keting Director. Parent William Grant & Sons in- vested more than $15 mil- lion building a distillery in the town of Tullamore, which opened in late 2014. "We wanted to get into that thriving category," says John Hudson, VP, Director of Innovation for Brown-Forman. Irish whiskey, he says, has been growing double digits over the past fi ve years and now accounts for 10% of the overall whiskey share in the U.S. The Kentucky-based company is building its fi rst distillery outside the U.S. A great deal of fanfare surrounded the ground-break- ing last September on the estate of Slane Castle in Boyne Valley, Ireland. Brown-Forman is pouring $50 million into the construction, involving a restoration of an 18th century stables complex. Slated for completion late this year, the facility will boast a potential output of more than 600,000 cases, as well as a visitor experience center. The fi rst bottles of Slane should appear on shelves by spring 2017, Hudson says. The whiskey will undergo a triple-casking process—in used cooperage stock, Sherry casks and new oak barrels. Stats bear out the confi dence in the Irish arena. Revenues rose 10.7% in 2014 to $550 million, according to the Dis- tilled Spirits Council (DISCUS). Volumes were pegged at 2.8 million 9L cases, which is now bigger in volume (though not sales) than the single malt Scotch category. CHANGING GUARD Before now, the impetus for growth came largely from category leader Jameson. The Pernod Ricard brand alone accounted for more than 2 million cases in 2014, according to The Beverage Information Group. Now, that dominance is being challenged by brands old and new. "Irish whiskey has seen huge growth, but most of that has been from Jameson," notes Broc Smith, owner of Sarasota Liquor Locker in Sarasota, FL. "Jameson is still popular - a big piece of that market - but now every- body wants a piece of that growth." "There's been a large multinational that has done a great job rebranding and recruiting consumers into Irish whiskey," comments Stephen Teeling, Market- ing Director for Teeling Whiskey Company. "They may have been recruited by that market leader, but now their palates are de- veloping and they are look- ing for variations to try." "Beyond Jameson, we are seeing different ex- pressions coming out of Proof in the Bottle Irish whiskey enters a new phase. BY THOMAS HENRY STRENK