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Rye whiskey sales soar 17.6% in US
By Michael J RitchieWhiskey continues to lead spirits value sales growth in the key US market, with rye expressions showing the biggest gains, a new Nielsen CGA report shows.
Whiskey as a category showed value growth of 4% for the year to 28 January 2017, versus total spirits sector growth of 3.2%.
Star performers in the category posting the biggest gains were rye (+17.6%), Irish (+14.3%), single malt (+6.1%), Japanese (+6%), and Bourbon (+5.6%).
“The whiskey category’s versatility means it stays relevant for virtually all occasions and certainly for those looking for a treat or to try ‘something new’,” said Scott Elliott, Nielsen CGA senior vice president.
“This versatility is emphasised by the reveal that of the seven serve options for whiskey (shot, neat, over ice, with a bottle mixer, with a draft mixer, with a premium mixer and in a cocktail), whiskey is the only spirits category to have a double figure percentage in more than four of them, with Irish and Scotch hitting that level in six.”
According to Elliott, whiskey now contributes just under US$50,000 of sales per year for the average bar, a close second behind vodka. “But we still believe whiskey has more value to contribute through better pricing strategies which reflect the richness of brands in the mid to upper tiers of the category,” he continued.
Over the 52-week period spirits out-performed wine and beer in both the on- and off-trade, but tailed off a little in the last quarter in both channels.
Growth was led by Tequila, Cognac and Irish Whiskey, while rum and liqueurs continued to struggle.
Canadian whiskey led off-trade sales where flavoured vodkas and whiskies also performed well, however unflavoured variants did much better in the on-trade.
Speaking of on-trade sales, Elliott said: “I believe that 2017 will be the year when the game changes for the best suppliers out there … and gets tougher for the rest.”
The off-trade looks to remain challenging for 2017, the analyst said.
“E-commerce in beverage alcohol manifested in different forms, while still relatively small in comparison to many other categories, will continue to expand,” said Danny Brager, Nielsen’s Beverage Alcohol senior vice president. “Off Premise retailers will need to deal with a growing segment of consumers who may wish to ‘buy’, but who may not need or see the need to visit the store to do so.”
Irish whiskey value sales in the US on-trade saw a 27.6% uptick in the run-up to St Patrick’s Day, Nielsen CGA said last month.