News Briefs for February 21, 2014
February 21, 2014•Proximo Spirits’ super-premium Three Olives vodka has introduced a new coconut water-flavored offering name-checking Elvis Presley and his famous love affair with Hawaii. The English import’s Elvis Presley Coconut Water Flavored Vodka will roll out nationwide beginning in March in various sizes, with its 750-ml. priced at $21. The 30%-abv offering joins Three Olives’ 22 flavor extensions including Chocolate, Grape and Root Beer—all quadruple distilled from English Winter Wheat.
•Lucas Bols USA has extended its lineup with a new elderflower liqueur. Previously available in Europe, Bols Elderflower is now rolling out both on- and off-premise across the U.S., retailing at $17.99 a 750-ml. The 15%-abv entry is targeted primarily toward the cocktail occasion. Bols Elderflower joins Lucas Bols USA’s existing range of around 35 flavored liqueurs.
•William Grant & Sons will release a commemorative variant of Glenfiddich to honor the company’s late Life President Charles Gordon, who passed away December 21. For now, William Grant says the upcoming Glenfiddich marque will be “an extremely rare and ancient whisky,” about which further details will be released later in the year. The company says Gordon’s championing of the Glenfiddich brand in the global market “marked the beginning of the single malt category as we know it today.” Glenfiddich is still the world’s leading single malt, up 1.5% to 1.1 million cases in 2013, according to Impact Databank.
•Stoli Group USA is launching a new integrated marketing campaign linking its namesake vodka brand with the Bloody Mary cocktail. The centerpiece is a tour in a customized food-truck that will hit 12 U.S. cities and explore local takes on the Bloody Mary. Other activities include more than 300 Bloody Mary-themed bar events in key markets, as well as social media and in-store display components touting the tagline “Start with the Stoli Bloody Mary.”
•Provence rosé exports to the U.S. rose 40% to 3.6 million liters in the 12 months through last November, according to French customs, representing a near-doubling of the category since 2011. Provence’s uptick comes amid ongoing growth for imported rosé in the U.S. market. According to Nielsen, the $12-and-above imported rosé segment grew 39% by volume and 48% by value in the U.S. last year.
•Miller64 says it will become the first U.S. beer to adopt voluntary nutritional labeling guidelines issued by the U.S. Department of Treasury’s Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau. The non-mandatory nutritional labels disclose information such as serving size, servings per container, abv, calories, protein and fat per serving. Miller64 says it’s chosen to abide by the labeling guidelines to give consumers seeking a more balanced lifestyle more reason to opt for their product, which has 64 calories and 2.4 grams of carbohydrates per 12-ounce serving. Light beers are required to disclose only calories, carbohydrates, protein and fat, while other beer and alcohol products are not required to include nutritional information. MillerCoors will monitor consumers’ reaction to the information and may eventually adopt the labeling across more products.
Subscribe to Shanken News Daily’s Email Newsletter, delivered to your inbox each morning.Tagged : Bols Elderflower, Glenfiddich, Lucas Bols USA, Miller64, MillerCoors, Proximo Spirits, rosé, Stoli Group USA, Three Olives, U.S. Department of Treasury, vodka, William Grant & Sons
