Whisk(e)y, including all points of origin, is the largest category within Impact’s spirits Hot Brand list this year, propelled by U.S. consumers’ ongoing affinity for brown spirits and penchant for super-premium bottlings, especially in the American whiskey segment.

Sazerac’s Fireball continues its reign as the largest whisky Hot Brand and second-largest spirits Hot Brand overall. The cinnamon whisky cracked 7 million cases in 2022, up 5%. Behind Fireball is super-premium label Woodford Reserve at 1.28 million cases. Brown-Forman recently promoted Elizabeth McCall to be Woodford Reserve’s master distiller, stepping into the role previously held by Chris Morris, now master distiller emeritus. Woodford Reserve portfoliomate Old Forester also earned a Hot Brand nod, rising 13.1% to 427,000 cases.

Beam Suntory’s largest whiskey Hot Brand is Basil Hayden. The brand was up 11.5% and crested 500,000 cases for the first time, rising to 530,000. The super-premium whiskey has added more than 200,000 cases since 2019. Last fall Basil Hayden released a limited-edition Red Wine Cask Finish expression retailing at $60.

Four Roses’ namesake whiskey and Heaven Hill’s Elijah Craig likewise earned honors. Four Roses grew 10.5% to 415,000 cases, while Elijah Craig hit 402,000 cases, up nearly 34%. Heaven Hill has looked to further raise Elijah Craig’s profile by leveraging visibility with the professional golf audience. The brand was recently named the official Bourbon of the Ryder Cup, and prior to that struck a partnership with the PGA of America.

Also representing American whiskey is Bacardi-owned Angel’s Envy, which neared 300,000 cases last year, up from 115,000 cases in 2019. Ole Smoky, from Tennessee, is among the Hot Brand whiskies above the 1-million-case mark. Private equity group Apax Funds acquired a controlling stake in Ole Smoky from Centerview Capital for an undisclosed sum earlier this year.

Dewar’s is the only Scotch whisky to attain Hot Brand status, leveraging a robust innovation pipeline including novel cask finishes and a revamped stable of aged offerings in recent years. Most recently, Dewar’s revamped its 12-year-old, garnering the no.-4 spot on Whisky Advocate’s Top 20 list last year.

Among Canada’s Hot Brand winners is Crown Royal Peach, one of the most successful flavored offshoots from the Diageo brand. Since 2019, Crown Royal Peach has almost doubled in size. Proximo Spirits’ Pendleton is another Canadian whisky to earn a Hot Brand award. Last year, the whisky was up 10.9% to 499,000 cases, continuing its steady ascent. Pernod Ricard’s Jameson Orange also represents the import segment, soaring to 215,000 cases in its 2022 debut.

Impact’s “Hot Brand” Whiskies Above 400,000 Cases (thousands of 9-liter cases)
Brand	Company	2021	2022	Percent Change*
Fireball	Sazerac Co	6,775	7,150	5.0%
Woodford Reserve	Brown-Forman	1,119	1,278	14.2%
Ole Smoky	Ole Smoky Distillery	1,009	1,232	22.1%
Dewar’s	Bacardi	897	1,073	19.5%
Crown Royal Peach	Diageo	705	800	13.5%
Basil Hayden	Beam Suntory	475	530	11.5%
Pendleton	Proximo Spirits	450	499	10.9%
Old Forester	Brown-Forman	378	427	13.1%
Four Roses	Four Roses Distillery	375	415	10.5%
Elijah Craig	Heaven Hill Brands	301	402	33.6%
Total		12,484	13,806	10.6%
*Based on unrounded data. Source: IMPACT DATABANK © 2023