Market Watch May 2021

Two major stories in this issue cover categories of significant importance—rum and Australian wine. Although they don’t really have much to do with each other, they’ve actually got more in common than you might think. Both can boast history and stories galore, major volume bases, and fabulous product equity. But to some extent, they’ve both also struggled to achieve the same trading up trends being enjoyed by rival categories. While it has been taking some time, signs of that upward push are, in fact, appearing. Australia’s export numbers by value are looking better and better, and rum has seen similar trends, along with volumes growth of 2.5% last year. The move toward premiumization is being led by rum’s top players, as well as a host of lesser-known labels that are…

Gallo Boost Spirits Portfolio…. E.&J. Gallo has made another play to bolster its rapidly expanding spirits portfolio, agreeing to acquire Impact “Hot Brand” RumChata for an undisclosed sum. Founded in 2009 by master blender Tom Maas, RumChata’s core offering is a 13.75% abv mix of dairy cream, rum, and a proprietary sweet spice blend, retailing at $22 a 750-ml. RumChata roared out of the gate, topping a halfmillion cases by 2015. In the ensuing years its progress flattened out some, but last year marked a renewed surge in which the brand jumped 16% to 550,000 cases, according to Impact Databank. The acquisition includes Agave Loco LLC, which owns the RumChata brand, and Midwest Custom Bottling LLC (MCB), which produces RumChata at its facility in Pewaukee, Wisconsin. The Tippy Cow and…

With a star-studded live auction featuring chef Guy Fieri, Barstool Sports founder Dave Portnoy, and others, Southern Glazer’s Wine & Spirits and Wine Spectator’s Conscious Collection Auction raised more than $1.6 million for restaurant and bar workers who have been impacted by the pandemic. After days of online bidding, Zachy’s gaveled open a livestream auction April 9, allowing bids on more than 100 exceptional lots of wines, spirits, and unique experiences. The auction raised a combined $1,477,600. That was added to a $100,000 donation from Wine Spectator and $25,000 from Aviation gin. The top lot was the chance for a winner and 11 friends to spend three nights at Il Palagio, Sting and Trudie Styler’s Tuscan winery, including a dinner with the couple and their winemaking consultant Riccardo Cotarella. The…

Denver: Cocktail Bar Takes Inspiration From Nature Located in a former flower shop in Denver’s Cherry Creek North neighborhood, the cocktail bar Forget Me Not opened in March with a lengthy drinks menu. The concept, from hospitality firm The Culinary Creative, has a seasonal focus and incorporates several house-made syrups and infusions made with flowers, wood, and bark into its specialty drinks. Beverage director Nicole Lebedevitch created a varied drinks menu with 12 signature cocktails ($14-$15). Standouts include the Nobody’s Angel, made with The Family Jones Earl Grey gin, Italicus Rosolio di Bergamotto liqueur, house-made lemon cordial, elderflower tonic, and egg white, and the Pioneer, blending Monkey Shoulder blended malt Scotch, Hine VSOP Cognac, Regans’ No. 6 Orange bitters, Wild Moon Birch liqueur, and Demerara syrup. The bar also offers…

Cîroc Summer Citrus Diageo has launched Cîroc Summer Citrus, the latest flavored offshoot for the grape-based vodka brand. The 35% abv spirit ($34 a 750-ml.) is infused with orange and other citrus flavors, and comes packaged in a multicolor bottle meant to evoke summer. Cîroc Summer Citrus is now available for a limited time nationwide. For more information, visit Ciroc.com. Woodford Reserve Master’s Collection Batch Proof Brown-Forman’s Woodford Reserve is releasing its annual high-proof expression for 2021. Woodford Reserve Batch Proof ($130 a 750-ml.), part of the distillery’s Master’s Collection, was bottled this year 64.15% abv. It comes in a new bottle, which features a long neck and rounded shoulders, and is available nationwide in limited amounts. For more information, visit Woodfordreserve.com. Bumbu Crème Sovereign Brands is introducing Bumbu Crème,…

Michael Neff was fresh out of the Navy and looking to start the next chapter of his life when bartending piqued his interest. He was living in Seattle at the time and a bartender he knew was kind enough to show him the ropes and also pointed him in the direction of a bar that was hiring. “The first time I walked behind that bar was the first time I had been behind any bar,” Neff says. “From that moment, though, it felt like the perfect place for me—it was clear that the best way to do the job was to show people the best time possible. That hooked me more than anything else, and keeps me in the business still, 22 years later.” Now with an impressive resume of…