Stocks of Bourbon from Buffalo Trace Distillery are not enough to meet soaring global demand

The Kentucky distillery, owned by drinks group Sazerac, announced today that consumers will soon find it difficult locating its brands on shelves as demand continues to outweigh supply.

It claimed the shortage would likely effect its most popular products, Buffalo Trace and Eagle Rare.

“This announcement is not meant as some sort of scare tactic to get people hoarding bourbon,” said Kris Comstock, Bourbon marketing director at Beam Inc. “We always want to be upfront with our fans. What this means is that there simply may be times when some of our brands are missing from store shelves.”

The announcement comes just months after Beam Inc attempted to reduce the abv of its Maker’s Mark Bourbon from 45% to 42% in an effort to make its diminishing stock go further.

However a public outcry from fans forced the company to back down from its decision, although Maker’s Mark would suffer from supply shortages.

“We won’t take drastic measures to mitigate the shortages, such as raising prices excessively, lowering the proof or reducing the age of our whiskies. We’ve made a commitment to quality that we’re not willing to compromise.”

Comstock added that the shortage would likely be temporary, as new barrels are coming of age, but may well last a few years.

“We just ask our fans to remember, aging good bourbon takes time, and we’re doing our best to keep up,” he said.

To help manage its stocks, Buffalo Trace is appointing a sales and inventory manager to oversee the balance of stock.

Buffalo Trace ages its Bourbon for eight to 10 years, although some older blends are aged for up to 23 years.

Sales of American straight whiskey grew by 5.2% in the US in 2012, according to a new report from Technomic.

Sebastien Guesdon presents the Endless Love cocktail featuring Roast Gin

Roast Gin is a London Dry Gin produced at Thames Distillers in London and blended with Perthshire water in Scotland.

The restaurant lists the gins botanicals as including juniper first and foremost, coriander, angelica root and savoury.

While Roast Gin is available to buy by the bottle – at £20 for 500ml – it is also available in a menu of specially created cocktails designed by bar manager Sebastien Guesdon. The Earl Grey Martini, Singapore Sling, and Endless Love will be available at the restaurant during its After Work Summer Cocktail Club until September.

Roast is the latest bar-restaurant to create its own house branded spirit.  In December last year Worship Street Whistling Shop partnered with Master of Malt to create the unique Cream Gin, while Jake Burger of Portobello Star created the Portobello Road Gin.

While a common concept in the States, the trend for the on-trade to partner with a distillery to create their own spirits is only just starting to take off in the UK.

The US, a land of opportunity as far as spirits are concerned

The list, compiled by Technomic for its Spirits Trends in Adult Beverage (TAB) report, shows that not only are flavoured spirits gaining favour amongst US consumers, producers themselves are releasing more expressions than ever before.

In fact the US spirits market as a whole is growing so rapidly – by 3.2% in 2012 – that the industry has now hit over 200 million case sales a year, and is positioned for continued growth in 2013.

“Despite the moderate pace of the economic recovery, the spirits industry continued to grow in volume and dollars,” said Eric Schmidt, director of research at Technomic, who added that the growth was so strong that spirits outpaced that of wine and beer.

Premium spirits, in particular vodka, also feature dominantly on this list. Vodka after all is the nation’s largest-selling spirit, increasing its overall volume in 2012 by 5.8% to now account for a third of all spirits sold in the US.

The fastest-growing spirit brands in the US in 2012 reflect the growing importance of flavoured products and premiumisation in the marketplace, with five vodkas of various price points, two whiskey-based liqueurs, a cream rum liqueur, spiced rum and premium blue agave Tequila.

Find out what the top 10 fastest-growing spirits in the US in 2012 were, ranked by percentage increase, by clicking through the pages below.

Best Bars in Miami

Miami’s a young town as far as mixology is concerned, not that youth equals naiveté. This seaside metropolis has everything going for it in terms of libations, serious bar talent, access to America’s best citrus, and a love of pushing limits.

The Florida Room – a Latin-styled speakeasy opened in 2008 in the Delano Hotel on South Beach, with a fantastic drinks programme manned by John Lermayer. Though it closed a few years ago, Miami’s cocktail scene has blossomed ever since.

Today Lermayer has teamed up with Joshua Wagner at the Regent Cocktail Club, Miami’s first and only classic cocktail bar. “The idea was to pay homage to the great hotel bars of London,” he explains.

While Gabe Orta, another ex-Florida Room stalwart, and bartender Elad Zvi, opened the Broken Shaker in The Freehand hotel last year.  Though largely based around South Beach, the Miami cocktail scene is international in scope and flavour.

The Setai boasts Asian fusion-styled drinks and the skills of Phillip Khanderhish, while Laura Cullen has amassed a serious spirits collection at Clarke’s Irish Pub.

Yet the bar on everyone’s lips is Blackbird Ordinary with Fraser Hamilton’s boozy slushies and dehydrated spirits. This trend in bars is “something to do with how Miami used to be in the ‘30s and ‘40s, when hotel bars were the thing to do here”, explains Orta.

Yet the style of bartending stems from the abundance of juice. What you taste in Miami is fresh. Unbelievably so.

The power of citrus

That Florida produces almost two-thirds of America’s citrus fruit is one of Miami’s biggest charms for mixologists. While there’s never an excuse to make a Daiquiri with bottled lime juice, here it’s practically a capital offence.

“In Miami, we have direct access to the freshest, most interesting tropical fruits in the country,” explains Aubrey Russel of the Corner Bar. “Any programme not taking advantage of that is not using what their region has to offer.”

And we’re not just talking lemons and limes. At his bar, Russel uses mamey sapot, a Central American fruit that lends a bit of sweet potato and pumpkin to the mix.

“We analyse the menu every quarter and try to switch out three to four drinks from each section,” says Russel, “but we also feature a new cocktail of the week, every week, which is either a totally new creation or a spin on an old classic.”

At The Setai, citrus crops up in Phillip Khanderhish’s homemade shrubs, sodas, sours and fizzes including his most popular cocktail – the Rhubarb Stringer.

The Miami bar scene is abuzz with new drinks, new cocktail programmes and new venues. According to Orta, Swine, PB Steakhouse and Khong are the new openings to watch in 2013.

“Even though downtown and Wynwood are the most up-andcoming neighbourhoods and, in my opinion, are the future of Miami’s drinking scene, South Beach is still the best place to find cocktails for the moment,” he says.

Which are Miami’s best bars? Find out on the next page…

Skyy Vodka Moscato hip hop

Campari America claims the days of jeroboams of Cognac and Champagne consumed in nightclubs by celebrity hip hop artists are coming to an end, as the “Moscato Movement” takes over.

Moscato sales in the US have rocketed by 33% in 2012, and now account for 6% of all wine sales in US retail chains, driven largely by the glorification of the grape variety in pop culture.

To take advantage of the “Moscato Movement”, Campari has launched a campaign focusing on the music genre to support the release of its Skyy Infusions Moscato Grape flavoured vodka, launched in the US in March.

The Skyy Infusions ‘Be Part of the Art’ campaign has launched this week in the US with a TV commercial featuring a collaboration between hip-hop artist Theophilus London, music video director Anthony Mandler, and artist Kadir Nelson.

The commercial, which is posted below, features a number of Nelson’s paintings that come to life as music from London’s ‘I Stand Alone’ track plays, inspiring onlookers to begin an impromptu dance party with Skyy Moscato cocktails in full flow.

It will run on major US TV channels including Bravo, ESPN, E! Network amongst others.

“The ‘Be Part of the Art’ campaign embodies the hip hop culture’s evolution as it moves away from the Cognac and Champagne fuelled days of excess towards a broader, all-encompassing influence on the trendsetters of today and tomorrow – what some are calling the Moscato Movement,” said Umberto Luchini, head of marketing at Skyy brand owner Campari America.

“Skyy Infusions Moscato Grape’s new marketing platform encompasses every aspect of the ‘Moscato Movement’, including art, music, design, fashion, and a delectable cocktail experience.”

Running alongside the commercial will be an interactive social media campaign inviting consumers to submit a Moscato Mosaic Masterpiece, which will hang in a giant store-front in New York City.

The campaign will also run across out-of-home and digital site takeovers throughout 2013.

anCnoc Peter Arkle

The striking and distinctive packaging from the New York-based Scottish artist takes its inspiration from the walls of anCnoc’s Knockdhu Distillery’s dunnage warehouses.

Peter Arkle, said: “I have loved working with anCnoc and I’m very proud of our latest limited edition. The distillery at Knock is such a great place and I had a fantastic time visiting there.”

Strictly limited to only 1,000 cases, the liquid has anCnoc’s signature honey and lemon notes and has a spicy taste with notes of citrus, sherry and dark chocolate.

To mark this unique partnership, 10 fans will have the opportunity to win a personally illustrated bottle of anCnoc on June 17^th, by tweeting #youranCnoc with a picture of how they enjoy their whisky. The entries will be chosen by Peter and hand-drawn before being transposed onto a tube of anCnoc.

Gillian Gibson, brand manager for anCnoc, said: “anCnoc has long had a close relationship with visual art and we are delighted to not only be continuing with this fantastic series with Peter which we are sure will become instant collectors’ items like its predecessors, but that we can also offer truly personalised art with a mighty fine dram with our #youranCnoc campaign.”

One of the 10 winners will be flown to New York to meet Peter and be presented with their personalised bottle.

Arkle added: “I’m really excited for people to get the chance to be inspired themselves and have their own personal anCnoc moment immortalised onto their very own bottle. It’s such a fun opportunity.”

Iconic British spirits brand Pimm’s is launching in Greece, its first European market outside the EU

Iconic British brand Pimm’s is launching in 3,000 bars and cafés across the country – the first European market outside the UK to welcome the spirit drink.

The Diageo-owned brand intends to tap into a growing trend amongst Western Europeans for an early evening drink, and plans to roll out the product to several more markets later this year.

To mark the event, a ‘Pimm’s O’Clock’ double decker bus, known as the ‘Friendship Bus’, arrived in Athens after a 336-hour journey from Britain.

Over the next two months the bus will tour the country to ‘bring friends together’. From Athens to Thessaloniki, consumers will be able to jump on board to take part in ‘the ultimate Friendship Test’, while listening to classic British hits and enjoying Pimm’s.

Passengers will be entered into a competition to win a trip to London with their two best friends, and the winner will be announced on International Friendship day, on 30 July.

The winners of the 2013 Spirited Awards will be revealed at Tales of the Cocktail

Recognising those that “represent the cocktail industry in exciting new spotlights”, the Spirited Awards will take place on 20 July during the annual Tales of the Cocktail festival (17-21 July) in New Orleans.

Ten finalists across 18 categories have been selected by American and International judging committees comprised of industry experts, although only the top four from each group, announced on 7 June, will be invited to the grand final at the Hyatt Regency New Orleans.

“Clearly the nominees for the 2013 Spirited Awards represent the best of the best in our industry,” said Paul Tuennerman, co-founder of Tales of the Cocktail. “Regardless of who the winner is, being recognized by one’s peers, above all, is simply put, an honor in its own right.”

The winner of each category will receive a Riedel Crystal trophy.

The nominees for the Tales of the Cocktail 2013 Spirited Awards are:

American Bartender of the Year

• Charles Joly of The Aviary, Chicago, Illinois
• Eric Alperin of The Varnis, Los Angeles, California
• Erick Castro of Polite Provisions, San Diego, California
• Ivy Mix of Clover Club, Brooklyn, New York
• Jack McGarry of The Dead Rabbit, New York, New York
• John Lermayer of Regent Cocktail Club, Miami, Florida
• Leo Robitschek of The NoMad Hotel, New York, New York
• Naren Young of Saxon + Parole and The Daily, New York, New York
• Sean Kenyon of Williams & Graham, Denver, Colorado
• Steve Schneider of Employees Only, New York, New York

Best American Brand Ambassador

• Amanda Boccato, Lillet
• Diego Loret de Mola, Barsol Pisco
• Elayne Duff, Diageo Portfolio
• Gardner Dunn, Yamazaki
• Gaston Martinez, Milagro Tequila
• Jackie Patterson, Solerno Blood Orange Liqueur
• Jamie Gordon, Absolut Vodka
• Neyah White, Yamazaki
• Nick van Tiel, Beefeater Gin and Plymouth Gin
• Todd Richman, Sidney Frank Portfolio

Best American Cocktail Bar

• Anvil, Houston, Texas
• Booker and Dax, New York, New York
• canon: whiskey and bitters emporium, Seattle, Washington
• Clover Club, Brooklyn, New York
• Cure, New Orleans, Louisiana
• Prizefighter Emeryville, California
• The Barrelhouse Flat, Chicago, Illinois
• The Broken Shaker, Miami, Florida
• The Hawthorne, Boston, Massachusetts
• William & Graham, Denver, Colorado

Best Bar Mentor

• Bridget Albert, Chicago, Illinois
• Charlotte Voisey, New York, New York
• Dushan Zaric, Los Angeles, California
• Francesco Lafranconi, Las Vegas, Nevada
• Jackson Cannon, Boston, Massachusetts
• Jason Crawley, Sydney, Australia
• Julie Reiner, Brooklyn, New York
• Julio Bermejo, San Francisco, California
• Sven Almenning, Sydney, Australia
• Wayne Collins, London, United Kingdom

Best Cocktail Writing – Author

• Dan Priseman
• Derek Brown
• Gary Regan
• Geoff Kleinman
• Ian Cameron
• Jenny Adams
• Naren Young
• Paul Clarke
• Philip Duff
• Robert Simonson

Best Cocktail Writing – Publication

• Australian Bartender Magazine
• Bar Magazine Digital
• BarChick
• Barlife UK
• DiffordsGuide.com
• Find. Eat. Drink.
• Imbibe Magazine
• Sauce Magazine
• ShakeStir.com
• The Cocktail Lovers Magazine

Best High Volume Cocktail Bar

• Clover Club, Brooklyn, New York
• Flatiron Lounge, New York, New York
• Harvard and Stone, Los Angeles, California
• Macao Trading Co., New York, New York
• Polite Provisions, San Diego, California
• Sable Kitchen and Bar, Chicago, Illinois
• Saxon + Parole Restaurant, New York, New York
• The Dead Rabbit, New York, New York
• The NoMad Hotel, New York, New York
• Vesper Bar, Las Vegas, Nevada

Best International Brand Ambassador

• Claire Smith, Belvedere Vodka
• Colin Asare, Appiah-Bacardi Portfolio
• David Cordoba, Bacardi Portfolio
• Dean Monkey Callan, Monkey Shoulder Whisky
• Giuseppe Gallo, Martini
• Ian Burrell, Rum Ambassador
• Jacob Briars, Bacardi Portfolio
• Max Warner, Chivas Regal
• Raj Nagra, Bombay Gins
• Stephen Myers, Illegal Mezcal

Best New Book (Cocktail/Bartending)

• 1806 Cocktails: World History as Seen Through the Bottom of a Glass by Nick Reed
• Craft Cocktails by Brian Van Flandern
• Diffordsguide Gin book by DiffordsGuide.com
• Drinks by Tony Conigliaro
• Edible Cocktails: Garden to Glass by Natalie Bovis
• Gin: A Global History by Lesley Jacobs Solmonson
• Sanctuaria, The Dive Bar of Cocktails by Matt Seiter
• The Tequila Ambassador by Tomas Estes
• To Have and Have Another: A Hemingway Cocktail Companion by Philip Greene
• Vodka Distilled by Tony Abou-Ganim

Best New Product

• Bartender’s Choice iPhone App
• Cana Brava Rum
• Dale DeGroff’s Pimento Aromatic Bitters
• Dorothy Parker Gin
• Filthy Black Cherry
• Fords Gin
• H by Hine VSOP
• Imbue Petal and Thorn
• Pierre Ferrand Dry Curacao
• Tequila Cabeza

Best Restaurant Bar

• Gwynnett St, Brooklyn, New York, USA
• Imperial by Chef Vitaly Paley, Portland, Oregon, USA
• Island Creek Oyster Bar, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
• Jasper’s Corner Tap & Kitchen, San Francisco, California, USA
• No. 9 Park, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
• Oak at fourteenth, Boulder, Colorado, USA
• Oven & Shaker, Portland, Oregon, USA
• Saxon + Parole Restaurant, New York, New York, USA
• The NoMad Hotel, New York, New York, USA
• The Roosevelt, Sydney, Australia

International Bartender of the Year

• Andrea Montague, Callooh Callay-London, United Kingdom
• Carina Soto Velasquez, Candelaria-Paris, France
• Hidetsugu Ueno, Bar High Five- Tokyo, Japan
• Jack McGarry, The Dead Rabbit-New York, New York, USA
• Jamie Bourdreau, cannon: whiskey and bitter-Seattle, Washington, USA
• Marian Beke, The Nightjar, London, United Kingdom
• Misty Kalkofen, Brick & Mortar-Boston, Massachusetts, USA
• Naren Young, Saxon + Parole, The Daily-New York, New York, USA
• Simone Caporale, Artesian Bar at the Langham-London, United Kingdom
• Zdenek Kastanek, 28 Hong Kong Street- Singapore

World’s Best Cocktail Bar

• 28 Hong Kong Street, Singapore
• Black Pearl, Melbourne, Australia
• Callooh Callay, London, United Kingdom
• Candelaria, Paris, France
• Clover Club, New York, New York, USA
• Death and Co., New York, New York, USA
• Drink-Boston, Massachusetts, USA
• Milk and Honey, New York, New York, USA
• The Dead Rabbit, New York, New York, USA
• The Varnish, Los Angeles, California, USA

World’s Best Cocktail Menu

• 28 Hong Kong Street-Singapore
• 69 Colebrooke Row, London, United Kingdom
• American Bar at the Savoy, London, United Kingdom
• Black Pearl, Melbourne, Australia
• cannon: whiskey and bitters emporium-Seattle, Washington, USA
• Clover Club, Brooklyn, New York, USA
• Pouring Ribbons, New York, New York, USA
• The Dead Rabbit, New York, New York, USA
• The Hawthorne, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
• The Nightjar, London, United Kingdom

World’s Best Drink Selection

• cannon: whiskey and bitters emporium-Seattle, Washington, USA
• Cure, New Orleans, Louisiana, USA
• DaddyO, New York, New York, USA
• Eau de Vie, Melbourne, Australia, USA
• Mayahuel, New York, New York, USA
• Saxon + Parole Restaurant,New York, New York, USA
• Seven Grand, Los Angeles, California, USA
• The Dead Rabbit, New York, New York, USA
• The Hawthorne, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
• Whistling Shop, London, United Kingdom

World’s Best Hotel Bar

• Beaufort Bar at the Savoy, London, United Kingdom
• Black Angels Bar, Prague, Czech Republic
• Clyde Common, Portland, Oregon, USA
• Eastern Standard Kitchen and Drinks, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
• Regent Cocktail Club, Miami, Florida, USA
• Sable Kitchen and Bar, Chicago, Illinois, USA
• The NoMad Hotel, New York, New York, USA
• The Zetter Townhouse, London, United Kingdom
• Vesper Bar, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA
• Widder Bar, Zurich, Switzerland

World’s Best New Cocktail Bar

• Bar Le Coq, Paris, France
• Broken Shaker, Miami, Florida, USA
• Bulletin Place, Sydney, Australia
• Experimental Cocktail Club, New York, New York, USA
• Polite Provisions, San Diego, California, USA
• Pouring Ribbons, New York, New York, USA
• The Dead Rabbit, New York, New York, USA
• The NoMad Hotel, New York, New York, USA
• Trick Dog, San Francisco, California, USA

The finalists for the Bombay Sapphire World’s Most Imaginative Bartender 2013

A panel of industry experts awarded top honours to professional bartender Vanzi, who competed against 10 finalists to create a cocktail inspired by Tuscany, home of the juniper berries used in the brand’s gin.

His winning cocktail, The Pastorini (Perfect Lady), was a twist on the classic white lady, using a recipe of Bombay Sapphire gin, a homemade shrub of a jasmine green tea and a pink grapefruit peel infusion, with a juniper berry meringue.

“It is a very romantic region that combines the passion of Italian people, like the Pastorini’s, with history and style; the essence of these things helped me to create my winning cocktail,” Vanzi said. “It is truly an honour to be named the 2013 Bombay Sapphire World’s Most Imaginative Bartender.”

In addition to the prestigious accolade and competition’s coveted trophy, Matteo Vanzi will become the latest addition to the Bombay Sapphire Cocktail Hall of Fame, and has been invited to judge at next year’s competition. Furthermore, he will work with Virgin Atlantic to create their new signature cocktail, which will feature as part of the airline’s Clubhouse2 menu.

Raj Nagra, Bombay Sapphire’s Global Brand Ambassador, added: “By working with the most creative talent from behind the bar, the competition not only challenges these bartenders, but it also aims to support them on their journey to becoming the most imaginative bartenders in the world.”

Kentucky Bourbon Woodford Reserve has opened a bar at Fort Knox military base

The bar and lounge, which launched last week, is the first of its kind to open on a military base in US history.

Impressed by the number of soldiers passing through the army base on a regular basis, Brown-Forman took advantage of its existing relationship with Fort Knox to market its leading Bourbon brand.

The Woodford Reserve Room, which features a granite bar and old Bourbon barrels, will serve as a meeting and functions space at the military facility. The space may also be used as a base to promote safe drinking practices amongst US soldiers.

If successful, Brown-Forman may look to establishing similar lounges with other military bases around the US.

The drinks group has partnered with Fort Knox for the past five years through a series of live music events held for the US military.