Market Watch, January 2020
32 MARKET WATCH MARKETWATCHMAG COM JANUARY FEBRUARY 2020American brandy is in the midst of a renaissance led by a growing interest in craft expressions While big names like E J Paul Masson Christian Brothers and Korbel still lead the category craft brands from across the country have been the main catalyst for the shift Americas oldest spirit is new again says Joe Heron co founder and co owner of Louisville Kentucky based Copper Kings Distillery American brandy has become its own category with a capital A and a capital B Heron notes that when Copper Kings launched in 2014 people never talked about American brandy Now its no longer seen as inferior but rather as a high quality spirit thats crafted with care and attention With so much interest surrounding the production of distilled spirits these days American brandy has much to offer includ ing aspects like fruit selection and cask finishing in particular In addition the popularity of whiskies is inspiring consumers to explore other categories Consumers are exploring brown spirits so its natural that theyre sliding from Bourbon to brandy says MaryCrae Guild brand manager for Christian Brothers One of the oldest U S brandy distilleries Christian Brothers depleted an estimated 117 million cases in 2018 according to Impact Databank Consumer interest in wine also helps when you take into account the similarities Guild explains Brandy is almost a blending of the wine and spirits world The Big PlayersLeading American brandy labels see most of their success in the off premise E J Paul Masson Christian Brothers and Korbel accounted for an estimated total of 89 of American brandy sales last year according to Impact Databank Other brands finding success at retail include Leroux Hiram Walker and Lairds The most popular American brandies at our store continue to be led by longstanding producers like E J Paul Masson and Christian Brothers says David Jabour president of Austin Texas based Twin Liquors At Wilburs Total Beverage in Fort American brandy one of the countrys oldest spirits categories is seeing a shift especially behind the bar BY JESSICA BEEBEIs BackBrandyBrandyBrandyA category thats long been dominated by big names like E J Paul Masson Christian Brothers and Korbel American brandy is in the midst of a renaissance Craft options are becoming increasingly popular with producers like Copper Kings bottle lineup left Jack of Hearts cocktail opposite page minority owned by Constellation Brands seeing interest from curious consumers
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