christmas
Bars well-placed to maximise merriment
Consumers are open to try new drams at Christmas – and pubs are the perfect place to indulge their passions, distillers say
HE bar trade is better-placed to benefit from whisky at Christmas than the off-trade – even though supermarkets can appeal to consumers by selling top brands at rock-bottom prices.
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A view widely held in the whisky trade is that many consumers see Christmas as an opportunity to treat themselves and perhaps try drams they’ve never sampled before. And, since it’s cheaper to experiment with the odd measure than to buy a bottle in the shops, it’s a trend distillers say plays straight into the hands of the on-trade. Among those subscribing to this view are East Kilbride’s Burn Stewart Distillers, the firm behind Scottish Leader, Black Bottle and Bunnahabhain, and distributor Maxxium UK, whose portfolio includes The Famous Grouse, The Macallan, Highland Park and Teacher’s. Craig Campbell, Burn Stewart’s new head of UK sales, said last week that some big whisky discounts were already in evidence in supermarkets by
the end of October, with leading spirits brands on sale for £9 a bottle and £12 a litre.
However, he reckons bars need not worry about taking on the supermarkets on price, but by offering “good value for money” across a broad range of top blends and malts over the festive period. Burn Stewart itself has prepared for Christmas by moving to a non-chill filtering process for its malt range (Bunnahabhain, Ledaig and Tobermory) – a move designed to allow the more subtle flavours to shine through and evoke the way malts tasted many years ago. New packaging has also come on stream for Scottish Leader, its price- competitive blend, while Bunnahabhain recently sponsored the restaurant category in the 2010 SLTN Awards to help raise the profile of the Islay malt. “With the usual spirit brands being hammered in the off-trade, it is good to be able to offer meaningful alternatives and product choice in the on-trade,” Campbell said.
Grouse back on box
THE Famous Grouse is this month making its customary pre-Christmas TV appearance. And this year the campaign will include an ad for The Black Grouse, the blend based on Islay malts, as well as the core Finest variant.
The ads cap a busy festive programme prepared for Grouse by Maxxium UK, which is marketing the dram in a new limited edition gift carton (featuring artwork by wildlife artist Rodger McPhail) and in a new, 250ml pre-mixed can with cola. In addition, the brand is aiming to celebrate Scotland’s best pubs with The Famous 100. Operators and pub-goers
around the UK are this month being asked to name their
26 - SLTN - November 11, 2010 Ian Macleod commissioned artist Dave Brogan to capture the scenic Glengoyne distillery for a gift tin.
Others in the whisky trade agree that it’s a time of opportunity for the on-trade.
A Grouse is not just for Christmas – even though it’s back for festive TV.
favourite pub and what makes it famous.
The best 100 will be unveiled in a special supplement in The Daily Telegraph. Nominations can be made at
www.telegraph.
co.uk/famous grouse.
At distributor Maxxium UK, the brand manager of Teacher’s blended Scotch, Janette Peat, is urging licensees to make the most of “high margin drinks like spirits” in the run up to Christmas. To make the most of Teacher’s in particular, she said, bartenders should focus on recommending two signature serves: Teacher’s with ginger ale garnished with a wedge of orange, or with lime cordial and cola or soda. But while Peat said there are some consumers who prefer to turn to well-known brands when they’re out and about at Christmas, her Maxxium colleague Bob Dalrymple, senior brand manager for Laphroaig, reckons there are others who like to trade up, particularly malt whisky fans. “We recommend stocking a range of whiskies from all over Scotland, including Speyside, the Highlands and Islay, during the festive season to ensure all tastes are catered for,” he said. “Consumers enjoy treating their friends and family to luxury items during the festive season, so it’s a great time of year to encourage them to trade up to more expensive products which boost profit opportunities for licensees and increase customer satisfaction.
“The on-trade offers consumers the chance to taste luxury drinks like Laphroaig 18 year old without the need to invest in a whole bottle. “Licensees should encourage consumers who have an appreciation of quality drinks to trade up.” Yet for all Christmas offers the chance for the on-trade to sell more expensive
drams, much of distillers’ focus at this time of year is on selling whisky as gifts in the off-trade.
This year has again seen whisky firms bring a host of gift packs and tins to the market, offering something for everyone from the occasional malt drinker to the genuine enthusiast. Ian Macleod Distillers, for one, has just launched the first in a new range of collectible tins for Glengoyne Highland single malt.
Consumers enjoy treating their friends and family to luxury items during the festive season.
The limited edition Art of Glengoyne tin, which contains a bottle of the 10 year old single malt, features a watercolour of the picturesque distillery near Killearn by Edinburgh artist and illustrator Dave Brogan.
Some 400 6x70cl cases of the gift pack have been made available for sale in the UK, with the bulk expected to be sold online at
www.glengoyne.com or in whisky stores, priced £29.99 each. At the higher end of the price scale, Chivas Brothers has teamed up again with French fashion designer Christian Lacroix for a limited edition Chivas 18 year old. Some 3000 bottles of the limited edition whisky have been made available for the international market, including travel retail outlets, where it’s expected to sell for US $495 a bottle. • See our next two issues for more festive whisky news.
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