Deep Eddy Follows In Tito’s Footsteps As Texas Vodka Going National
January 23, 2014Introduced to its local Texas market in 2010, Austin-based Deep Eddy vodka is rapidly expanding into new states and, largely on the strength of its Ruby Red grapefruit flavor, reached nearly 200,000 cases in 2013. The company tells SND it doubled its distribution footprint to 32 states last year and expects to be available nationwide within the next year or so. Distributor sources say that where Deep Eddy—especially Ruby Red—has made landfall, it’s moving quickly off retail shelves.
Named after the popular swimming hole in the company’s hometown of Austin, Texas, Deep Eddy was founded by entrepreneurs Clayton Christopher and Chad Auler. Retailing at $18.99 a 750-ml., the 10-times-distilled offering is priced slightly below the $20-$25 average of fellow Austin-made vodka Tito’s, which has been one of the U.S. spirits market’s hottest brands in recent years.
Deep Eddy touts its use of local ingredients, such as Texas aquifier water and real honey and tea leaves for its Sweet Tea flavor. Next month, the brand will extend with a cranberry flavor made from New England cranberries and pure cane sugar.
While Texas remains the strongest market for Deep Eddy, California, which it entered both on- and off-premise last year, is now the fastest-growing. Overall, the Southwest region has been responsible for most of the brand’s growth. The company says it’s aiming for broad demographic appeal in its marketing, with its media presence currently including radio, print and out-of-home ads, as well as tastings at tailgates, festivals and other events.
While it has a ways to go to catch Tito’s—which sold 850,000 cases in 2012, according to Impact Databank, and appeared to again enjoy solid growth last year—Deep Eddy is off to a strong start, and appears set to test whether the national market is big enough for two upstart Texas vodkas to prosper side by side.
Subscribe to Shanken News Daily’s Email Newsletter, delivered to your inbox each morning.
