News Briefs for May 21, 2015
May 21, 2015•Stoli Group USA has restructured its sales team with a series of promotions from within. Current vice president of the East, Steve Ballard, has been promoted to senior vice president of sales, filling the role Tom Schlachtenhaufen is leaving to pursue other opportunities. Stoli has also named four regional sales vice presidents—Rich Martell will be regional vice president for the Northeast region, Alex Steppacher for the Southeast region, Robert Slicker for the Midwest region, John Karem for the Western region and Dan Saurer has been appointed vice president of national accounts. New York-based Stoli Group USA is a subsidiary of SPI Group.
•American whiskey liqueur Sweet Revenge, a 77-proof shot-geared offering that is part of the Independence Spirits Company portfolio, is entering several new markets this year. The pink-colored liqueur opened Indiana—its 34th U.S. market—last month, distributed by RNDC. Meanwhile, Sweet Revenge, which retails from $17-$20 a 750-ml., was introduced in New Mexico and Mississippi earlier this year, and will enter Virginia on July 1. The brand’s largest current markets are Pennsylvania (its production base), Texas and California. Independence Spirits is a sister company to Maurice Cooper and Company, which sold its Domaine de Canton ginger liqueur label to Heaven Hill Brands last summer.
•Sazerac Co.’s Buffalo Trace Distillery has released a new pair of French oak-aged Bourbons under its Experimental Collection series. The two 10-year-old whiskies include Buffalo Trace’s 100% French Oak Barrel Aged Bourbon, which was matured entirely in French oak, and French Oak Barrel Head Aged Bourbon, which was aged using both French oak heads and American white oak staves. Rolling out this month, both 45%-abv Bourbons are packaged in 375-ml. bottles and will be available for a limited time, priced at around $46.35 each.
•Beverage alcohol delivery provider Drizly is expanding in the Chicago market through new partnerships with several local retailers. Schaefer’s Wines, Foods & Spirits; Rayans Beers, Wine & Spirits; South Loop Market; Kimbark Beverage Shoppe and Hops & Grapes have signed on with the technology company, whose delivery service now covers more than 76 square miles of the market—representing a 300% increase in its Chicago footprint. LDA consumers in Andersonville, Edgewater, Evanston, Glenview, Hyde Park, Kenilworth, Kenwood, Lincoln Square, North Center, Pilsen, Ravenswood, Rogers Park, Skokie, Wilmette and Winnetka can now use Drizly’s smartphone app or website to access retailer inventories for delivery in less than an hour. Drizly first launched in Chicago in May 2014 and is present in other cities such as Austin, Baltimore, Boston, New York City, Los Angeles and Denver, among others.
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Subscribe to Shanken News Daily’s Email Newsletter, delivered to your inbox each morning.Tagged : Buffalo Trace Distillery, Domaine de Canton, Drizly, Foods & Spirits, Heaven Hill Brands, Hops & Grapes, Independence Spirits Company, Kimbark Beverage Shoppe, Maurice Cooper and Company, Rayans Beers, RNDC, Sazerac Co., Schaefer's Wines, South Loop Market, SPI Group, Stoli Group USA, Sweet Revenge, Wines & Spirits
