Market Watch October 2023

Recent figures from the Scotch Whisky Association showed an export slowdown to the U.S. for the first half of the year, which raised some concerns. After sharp growth in 2022, shipments to the U.S. market declined in the first half of 2023, down 5% by value to £437 million ($557 million) and falling 15% by volume to 59 million 700-ml. bottles.While the performance elicited a lot of discussion, the reality is that we don’t yet know what it all means. That’s because echoes from the twin problems of Covid-19 and the tariffs are still reverberating. The issues surrounding shipments and inventories are still not giving us a true read, but tell only part of the story. If you’re searching for the big picture, the key trend to watch is premiumization,…

Campari CEO To Retire, New CEO Is Named…. Longtime Campari Group CEO Bob Kunze-Concewitz will retire in April 2024. Current Campari Asia Pacific managing director Matteo Fantacchiotti has assumed the role of deputy CEO and will succeed Kunze-Concewitz in April. During Kunze-Concewitz’s 16-year tenure, Campari has expanded markedly. Since 2015, the company has added 6.5 million cases to its global total. It ranks sixth among all spirits companies worldwide with a 2022 volume of 33.5 million 9-liter cases, up 10% from the previous year. Global revenue reached nearly $3 billion on a 16% increase last year. That growth has been fueled by gains from Aperol and Campari, along with a series of acquisitions, including Grand Marnier, Appleton Estate, and Wild Turkey, for an overall investment of €3 billion ($3.2 billion)…

D.C.: Starr Adds New Mexican Concept In Nation’s Capital Philadelphia-based restaurateur Stephen Starr added to his portfolio in Washington, D.C., in September with the debut of El Presidente at Signal House in the Union Market district. The avant-garde concept aims to transport guests to Mexico City in an eclectic atmosphere that show-cases the flavors and culture of Mexico. The bar room evokes a Mexican social club and its focal point is a custom-made, ocean-inspired diorama above the bar. Mexican spirits play heavily in the drinks program, in cocktails like The Great Cornholio, made with Abasolo Mexican Corn whisky, Ojo de Tigre mezcal, Nixta Corn liqueur, and corn milk, and the Tranquilo, Papi, a blend of Cazadores Blanco Tequila, Chareau Aloe liqueur, and cucumber and lemon juices (cocktails are $12-$42). El…

Bushmills 15-Year-Old & 21-Year-Old Bushmills has announced the launch of two single malt Irish whiskies. The first is a 15-year-old single malt ($90 a 750-ml.) aged in a combination of ex-Bourbon and second-fill American oak casks, and bottled at 46% abv. The second is a 21-year-old single malt ($265) aged in Bourbon barrels and Oloroso Sherry butts for 18 years before finishing in first-fill Marsala wine casks for three years, also bottled at 46% abv. Both releases are part of the brand’s World Wood series created exclusively for travel retail, and they’re available now. For more information, visit Bushmills.com. Hardin’s Creek Kentucky Series: Boston Hardin’s Creek Boston, the latest whiskey from Beam Suntory and the James B. Beam Distilling Co., is rolling out now. Boston ($170 a 750-ml.) is a…

There’s no question that the 25% tariffs imposed on single malt Scotch in 2019 affected the category greatly. Add to that the Covid-19 pandemic, inflation, and supply issues, and 2020 sales took a substantial hit. But once the tariffs were lifted in 2021 and the pandemic ended, single malt Scotch rebounded, jumping 9% to 1.9 million 9-liter cases in 2021, according to Impact Databank. It appeared the category was well on its way to crossing the 2 million-case mark for the first time ever in 2022. Unfortunately, it didn’t quite pan out that way. Single malt Scotch sales in the U.S. slipped 5% in 2022 to 1.8 million cases, according to Impact Databank. However, single malt continues to account for more than a quarter of total Scotch whisky volume in…

Blended Scotch case depletions may surpass those of single malt in the U.S., but where single malt has steadily grown over the last decade, it’s been quite the opposite for blends. Blended Scotch depletions in the U.S. totaled 5.85 million cases last year—down morethan2millioncasessince2000. David Marberger, owner of Bay Ridge Wine & Spirits in Annapolis, Maryland, has certainly noticed the decline. “We recently swapped our Scotch section, including blends and single malts, which had been 60 linear feet, and our Tequila section, which had been 45 linear feet—with the growth that we’re experiencing in Tequila and the downward trajectory of Scotch, it only made sense that we dedicate the greater amount of shelf space to the category that’s doing more business,” he says. “That’s the best example of how the…