Market Watch, January 2020

JANUARY FEBRUARY 2020 MARKETWATCHMAG COM MARKET WATCH 37housemade kumquat liqueur and housemade chestnut bitters Star adds that American brandy can frequently replace other base spirits in cocktail recipes With grain based alcohol like vodka and whiskey the amount of flavor youre able to get is so small because grain isnt so complex she says But with brandy youre dealing with layers of fruit flavors Guidry agrees You can take any kind of classic cocktail and swap out the base spirit with brandy and then balance and complement those flavors by adding other ingredients that end up making a really good cocktail he says His Sugar Plum Sloe Dance 14 features a base of Christian Brothers Sacred Bond brandy mixed with Pür Spirits Black thorn sloe gin Giffard Cassis Noir de Bourgogne house made ginger syrup lime juice club soda and Bittermens Buckspice Ginger bitters While craft brandies are seeing more success on premise they do have some representation in beverage alcohol stores Alicia Viliard spirits specialist at Jewetts Liquor in Cañon City Colorado notes that craft brandies may not fly off the shelf but customers are increasingly seeking out offerings such as Chapman Apple brandy 50 a 750 ml Santa Fe Apple brandy 46 and Spirits of the Rockies Cantaloupe brandy 37 People are looking for something different and thats when well hand sell craft brandies educating them and giving them different options she says adding that she often recommends Copper Kings products to customers At most beverage alcohol retailers other craft spirits tend to perform better than brandies Chris Zaborowski owner of Westport Whiskey Wine in Louisville Kentucky says that American brandy is becoming more of a category but is still small compared to his whiskey business However local options can be enticing because of its Louisville location Westport sees customer interest in brandies from regional entities like Copper Kings and Starlight The situation is similar at Wilburs where Dinsmore says customers occasionally seek out bran dies from Colorado distilleries like Big Fat Pastor Spirits Runway For GrowthAmerican brandy has clearly grown as a category it depleted an estimated 81 million 9 liter cases in 2019 up 1 from the previous year according to Impact Databank but its still find ing its place in the market People are learning how to appre ciate its complexity so the category will have its day at some point says Finger Lakes McKenzie With interest in craft spirits continuing to rise new Amer ican brandy has runway for growth I think were going to see more exciting experimental and edgy brandies coming out and finding success says Wilburs Dinsmore This is the most adventurous food and beverage era in American history adds Heron Everybody wants to feel like theyre an individual rather than part of the herd and American brandy gives them that opportunity mwAMERICAN BRANDY LEADING BRANDS IN THE U S 1 millions of 9 liter case depletions Percent Change2Brand Distiller 2010 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019E 2018 2019EE J E J Distillers 383 351 380 384 381 383 05 Paul Masson Constellation Brands 131 182 200 195 198 203 25Christian Brothers Heaven Hill Brands 118 116 114 114 117 117 Korbel Brown Forman Beverages Worldwide 032 029 029 028 027 026 30Leroux3 Beam Suntory 015 014 013 013 013 013 24Hiram Walker3 Pernod Ricard USA 015 014 013 012 012 011 45 Total Leading Brands 692 706 749 747 747 752 07 Other Brands 031 057 057 054 054 056 40Total American Brandy4 723 763 806 801 801 809 10 Less than 005 1 Includes flavored brandy2 Based on unrounded data3 Flavored brandy only excludes cordials liqueurs 4 Addition of columns may not agree due to rounding Source IMPACT DATABANK 2020The traditional base of classic cocktails brandy is now appearing in more modern drinks like the Sugar Plum Sloe Dance pictured from Bull Butterfly