Industry – Page 81 – Keep It Overproof!

Kopparberg releases canned pink gin and lemonade RTD

Posted in Spirits.

Swedish cider producer Kopparberg has moved into the ready-to-drink (RTD) market with the launch of a canned strawberry and lime-flavoured gin and lemonade. The launch of the new RTD comes just a month after the Swedish producer entered the spirits category with a strawberry and lime-flavoured gin. This was followed by a limited edition mixed fruit-flavoured gin, unveiled last week. Packaged in a 250ml can, Kopparberg Premium Gin & Lemonade has an abv of 5% and contains 125 calories per serve. The new offering is targeted at summer outdoor occasions and parties this year. The spirit-based...

Winchester Distillery hits crowdfunding goal

Posted in Spirits.

English gin and vodka maker Winchester Distillery has passed its £375,000 (US$483,000) crowdfunding target to expand its business. Hampshire-based Winchester Distillery launched a crowdfunding campaign on Crowdcube in April this year. Last month, the distillery raised more than £240,000 (US$307,861), smashing its first 30-day target by 200%. The crowdfunding campaign, which closes in 12 days, has raised £385,010 (US$487,640) from 478 investors to date. Winchester Distillery produces up to 1,000 bottles per week – almost full capacity for the site – and is seeking funding to realise its growth...

Top drinks marketing campaigns and news: May

Posted in Beer, Spirits, Wine.

London brewery Beavertown held an event last month to encourage more people to sign up as blood donors by giving away free pints of its Bloody ’Ell Blood Orange IPA. Beavertown gave away its fruity beer to the first 500 people who visited its taproom from 2pm on 25 May if they had signed up to be a blood donor. At the start of the year, the NHS Blood & Transplant Service issued an appeal for more male donors. According to figures published in January, twice as many women gave blood in England than men in 2018. The organisation said that 13,719 women who registered last January became...

Beer Stocks React to Mexican Tariff News

Posted in Beer, Industry.

Dear Client: Yesterday evening, several outlets reported comments from president Trump that he plans to levy a 5% tariff on imported goods from Mexico starting June 10. It’s punitive: The New York Times reported Trump’s intent to “gradually increase” the tax “until the flow of undocumented immigrants across the border stopped.” Apparently, unless that is curtailed, CNN added The White House’s intention to increase the tariff increment by 5% each month “until it reaches 25% in October.” Naturally, some beer stocks fell meaningfully after the news. As of press time, Corona and Modelo importer...

Grokking the Industry Unicorn

Posted in Beer, Industry.

Dear Client: Since Mike’s Hard Lemonade was founded on April Fool’s Day in 1999 by Anthony von Mandl, it has been an amazing growth machine. However, while it’s had its starts and stops over the last 20 years, Mike’s really started to grow in earnest seven years ago under the leadership of Phil Rosse, and posted 29% depletions and sales growth for 2018, double 2017’s +15% trend. And while every brand in their portfolio is growing, the standout is obviously White Claw, so we are focusing this piece on that breakout brand. White Claw is growing at a 300%+ run rate and accelerating, and holds...

Caskshare whisky investment scheme launches

Posted in Spirits.

Edinburgh-based whisky technology company Uisge Tech has launched Caskshare in a bid to “transform the way” whisky fans purchase single cask spirits. Uisge Tech, trading as Craft Whisky Club, has created the Caskshare platform, which allows consumers to reserve ‘shares’ from casks of their favourite whisky. Customers will be able to choose between a variety of wood types and ages as the whisky matures. Single cask bottles will then be sent to buyers once they have matured. The platform also allows customers to trade bottles between one another. Uisge Tech/Craft Whisky Club co-founder,...

Pernod Ricard to launch Boiler Room Festival

Posted in Spirits.

French drinks group Pernod Ricard is preparing to launch a series of music events across three continents, called the Boiler Room Festival. The Boiler Room Festival marks the first time Pernod Ricard has partnered with music platform Boiler Room, with concerts set to take place in London, Los Angeles and Johannesburg. For the London edition, the main festival destination will be the ‘Basecamp’ in Copeland Park, in Peckham. Four Pernod Ricard brands will work with Boiler Room to host a series of interactive, multimedia exhibitions that reveal stories behind each music ‘pillar’ at the show. The...

Bordeaux 2018: Super Second madness

Posted in Beer, Spirits, Wine.

After a headline release from Léoville Las Cases this morning, two more highly anticipated ‘super seconds’ were released in its wake but their prices have left some feeling rather deflated. Ducru Beaucaillou and Pichon Comtesse were the wines in question but while critical appraisal was extremely high in both cases and many were anticipating their release, the opening prices appear to have softened that enthusiasm somewhat. Ducru was out at €139 per bottle, up 16% on the 2017 release (and equal to the 2016) which means an ex-London case price of £1,728. James Suckling and Lisa Perrotti-Brown...

Droughts last year halted whisky production, Scotch producers admit

Posted in Beer, Spirits, Wine.

Some Scottish distilleries were forced to halt whisky production last years after the summer heatwave caused them to run out of water. According to a report in The Guardian, water levels in springs and river in Speyside fell so low during the summer that some whisky makers lost up to a month’s worth of production. Speyside distillery Glenfarclas told the newspaper it had effectively lost the whole month of September, as its private water source, a local natural spring, ran dry, and as result production fell by up to 300,000 litres. “We lost the whole of September,” Callum Fraser told the paper,...

Kopparberg to launch Mixed Fruit Premium Gin in UK

Posted in Beer, Spirits, Wine.

Swedish cider producer Kopparberg has extended its spirits range with the launch of Kopparberg Mixed Fruit Premium Gin. Earlier this month, Kopparberg made its first foray into spirits with the launch of a strawberry and lime-flavoured gin. Bottled at 37.5% abv, Kopparberg Mixed Fruit Premium Gin is made with juniper, lemon zest and coriander, along with the same raspberry and blackcurrant flavours as its popular cider flavour. Launched “just in time for summer” and ahead of World Gin Day on 8 June, Kopparberg Mixed Fruit Premium Gin will in available in UK supermarket Asda from 4 June for...

Category: Industry