Vodka
with premium and craft brands creating excellent products with a lot of passion.” As with spirits generally, premium brands are leading growth in the UK on-trade. In fact, sales of mainstream vodka – which account for about 80% of the market – have been struggling. This is part of the trend for consumers to add more premium and craft spirits brands to their repertoire, according to the annual Market Report from William Grant & Sons UK which has taken on Russian Standard alongside its other vodkas Reyka from Iceland, Zubrowka from Poland and Green Mark from Russia. “A well-balanced backbar offering requires a premium option as more consumers continue to look for highquality brands, to enhance their on-trade experience,” points out Sam Bovill, Reyka’s senior brand manager at William Grant & Sons UK. While a wave of new gins has stolen the limelight, Sam notes that there has been an increase in the number of premium vodka brands across the on-trade with 25% of outlets now stocking at least one – an increase of 1,320 compared to last year. “JD Wetherspoon’s vodka festivals are a good example of how outlets are heroing the more niche and premium brands in the market with the aim of improving the on-trade experience by recognising consumers’ desire for something new, different and more interesting.” French vodka Grey Goose is currently growing by 17% year on year in the on-trade, boosted by innovation in new products as well as serves, led by global brand ambassador Joe McCanta. “The growth
of super-premium vodka as a category is testament to the fact that consumers around the world are continuing to trade up and indulge in more everyday luxuries,” explains Helen Francis, marketing manager for Grey Goose in Northern Europe. “Now more than ever, they care about where the spirits they enjoy come from, and increasingly preferred brands are those with real authenticity, craftsmanship and provenance.” Innovations this year included Grey Gooxe VX: Vodka Exceptionelle which is a hybrid blend of the vodka with drops of cognac – a luxury product for sipping neat, chilled, or on the rocks. In November, the brand also built on its popularity in top-end bars and clubs with the launch of Grey Goose Lumière in the UK. Illuminated from a light pad affixed to the base, the bottle features a mirrored lone goose and a transparent upper half that allows light to shine through the bottle, revealing the clarity of the spirit within. It is inspired by La Fête des Lumières, a festival of light that takes place in France each year. October saw the UK launch of a new super-premium French vodka, Golovkine, made exclusively from whole wheat grown in Beauce in northern France. It is
distilled five times in columns and then a final time in an old copper alembic still to create depth and roundness with a hint of smoke. Despite its French provenance, its founders are promoting it for sipping chilled and neat in the Russian style, supported by a bottle with thermochromic ink that turns elements of the label blue when it reaches zero degrees Celsius or below. “Golovkine is best served ice cold from the freezer into a chilled glass and savoured slowly,” explains co-founder Andrew Heald. “A Martini with Golovkine and a dash of vermouth is luxurious and one of the most satisfying ways to appreciate
Light up the night with vodka liqueurs
Diageo has launched new liqueurs as part of its Smirnoff vodka brand, linking into electronic dance music. The two new Smirnoff Electric liqueurs are Berry and Mandarin, available exclusively in the on-trade and aimed at the chilled shot occasion. At 29% ABV, they come in bottles featuring fluorescent colours that illuminate under black light. For the launch, Diageo has partnered musicians Kiesza and Djemba Djemba on their song “Give It To The Moment”. It links into the brand’s global platform, the #WhatWeBring movement, which celebrates diversity – different ages, races, genders, sexualities, cultures and styles – through electronic dance music. Apple and Guarana flavours are available in other countries but not in Britain. www.barmagazine.co.uk
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