Great White Hopes New Light Spirits Pack A Powerful Sales Punch
By Michael Harrelson
White spirits rule revenue in the retail channel globally,
and have for some time, with premium and super-premium vodkas at the
top, followed by rum and gin on down the volume line.
It’s a fact that’s unlikely to change any time soon, either on- or
off-premise — unless of course half or more of the drinking palates of
the world are suddenly transformed overnight.
What could very well be in doubt in the seemingly never-ending success
story of white spirits, however, is which manner of white, traditional
or light, will hold the palate and the patronage of the consuming
public.
Having won the battle with brown spirits handily (for now at least),
the new battleground in the new millennium for the white spirits
category may very well be within the category itself, where the tens of
millions of case sales already being achieved is only likely to grow
exponentially for at least the next decade as the Echo Boomer
generation kicks up its heels in its prime club-going years.
New Light Contenders
As the saying goes, heavy is the head that wears the crown. Even when
you’re king of the hill like Bacardi, whose portfolio not only includes
the namesake and No. 1-selling (Bacardi rum) spirit in the world, but
the white-hot Grey Goose vodka brand as well, there is no guarantee
that another white wonder won’t come along and knock you off your
pedestal.
Bar Stars and Mega-Bucks
All the more reason for Bacardi to hedge its bets to the point of
giving itself a bit of friendly competition with its recently launched
Island Breeze line of low calorie and low-carb flavored light rums.
Introduced last April in three flavors — Key Lime, Coconut and Wild
Berry — Island Breeze lives up to its spin as “not just another
product, but a new category of spirits” in at least two important
respects. As opposed to the approximately 100 calories found in a
1.5-ounce shot of normal rum, Island Breeze contains only 48 calories.
The difference is even more pronounced over other flavored rums, with
Island Breeze having 70 percent fewer calories per 1.5-ounce serving.
This blend of Bacardi rums, natural fruit juices and sucralose in place
of the added sugar found in other rum spirits also is “light” by virtue
of its 18 percent alcohol content. With regular rums typically bottled
at 40 percent ABV, the lower alcohol content and fewer calories in
Island Breeze position it to compete on-premise with the full range of
spirits, including light beer, diet soda and even wine.
Another novel spirit lighting up the on-premise channel faster than the
Marlboro man is neither vodka nor rum but rather a liqueur introduced
early this year as a joint venture between the Starbucks and Jim Beam
Brands.
Named the “Best New Product of 2005” by MarketWatch, Starbucks Coffee
Liqueur is proving to be a match made in spirits sales heaven given
that 50 percent of Starbucks’ millions of patrons nationwide already
consume coffee liqueurs, a figure representing more than nine times the
national average among the spirits-consuming public.
It’s the kind of new light spirit and instant brand icon that
bartenders such as Erica Lancellotti at The W Hotel in Manhattan, N.Y.,
enjoy getting behind and promoting for the added cache that it brings
to her upscale bar.
“Customers are asking for it by name (in their coffee cocktails),”
Lancellotti says. “It is basically like a beautiful espresso, except
with a kick. It is not so heavy, so customers can have a few of them.”
Spirit of Discovery
Almost by their very nature, new light spirits are at the forefront of
discovery behind the bar in the new golden age of the cocktail where
the premium always is on the fresh and the trendy in the way of
libations to please the palates of fickle patrons.
The recent launch of Smirnoff Black Cherry Vodka by global spirits
giant Diageo has led to a mini renaissance in cocktail sales of sorts
at New York City’s Metro 53, a popular bar and restaurant located in
Midtown Manhattan.
The Cherry Love On the Rocks cocktail featured on the drinks menu there
for the past four months may not roll off the tongue as glibly as does
the idolized Cosmo yet, but give it time, Bartender Denise McKenna says.
“It is going really well here. The customers really seem to enjoy the drink,” she adds.
Unlike the almost mythic sexual elixir that the Cosmo represented in
its heyday, the cult popularity of Metro 53’s Cherry Love On the Rocks,
made with Smirnoff Black Cherry and Coca-Cola, comes down to something
much more basic in terms of its appeal.
“The flavor are just different flavors,” McKenna says. “It is not boring, regular vodka.”
Another new light spirit popping up like Paris Hilton in club
scenes around the country is Malibu Passion Fruit Rum, a new edition to
the Malibu flavor line creating quite a buzz in Boston in cocktails
such as Malibu Passion Tea, made with one part Malibu Passion Fruit
Rum, two parts ice tea and one part lemon-lime soda.
To Tony Caz, co-owner of Beantown’s The Rattlesnake Bar & Grill,
Malibu Passion Fruit rum represents endless summer in a glass for
patrons and especially for his female guests. “We had Malibu Passion
Fruit Rum on special for a while here over the summer, “Caz says. “It
went great. We sold a lot of it. It is very smooth. We have a roof deck
here, and when we have the umbrellas up, it makes for a festive drink.”
NCB
Cruzan Control
New light spirits are practically synonymous with Cruzan’s Rums at Farlow’s on the Water restaurant and bar in Englewood, Fla.
“At the restaurant, we have at least 100 drink recipes that include
Cruzan Rum. We love having the versatility that the Cruzan Rum flavors
give us,” says Bartender Patrick Kilcoyne. “A few of our favorites
include the Cruzan Colada Martini, Cruzan Raspberry Breeze, Mangotini
and the Cruzan Confusion. Naturally, many of our customers know and ask
for the Cruzan Rum Voodoo Bucket.”
“It is not only in the bar that we use Cruzan Rums at Farlow’s on the
Water. Chef Carlo and Chef John use the rums in many of their delicious
dishes,” says Owner Keith Farlow. “Thanks to Cruzan Rum, Farlow’s on
the Water won the Best of Englewood Readers Choice Award for Best
Exotic Drinks. We look forward to our continued partnership,” Farlow
says.
White spirits rule revenue in the retail channel globally,
and have for some time, with premium and super-premium vodkas at the
top, followed by rum and gin on down the volume line.
