Innholdsfortegnelse for November 2024 i Market Watch

In 2004, Michael Quinttus left the comfort and prestige of his senior vice president job at Kobrand Corp., setting out on his own to form a new wine importer and marketer called Vintus. With so many start-up importers out there and a market awash in wine, it sure looked like a tough climb. But right from the start, it became clear that Vintus was choosing its clients well, carefully building a portfolio of top-flight wines. Its earliest labels included Château Margaux, La Fleur-Pétrus, and Guigal, and it continued from there, with the addition of some prestige California labels along the way. It’s now been 20 years, and Vintus has made its mark on the world of fine wine. Read all about how they did it in our cover profile, which…

Duckhorn’s New Owner…. The Duckhorn Portfolio announced it has agreed to be acquired by Los Angeles-based private equity firm Butterfly for $1.95 billion. According to Impact Databank, Duckhorn is the 20th-largest wine marketer in the U.S. by volume, up 5.5% to 2.6 million cases last year. Its full-year sales, released at the end of last month, showed revenue of $405.5 million for 2024. Publicly listed Duckhorn will become a private company after the closing of the transaction, which is expected this winter. The deal included a customary 45-day “go-shop” period (expiring November 20) through which Duckhorn may solicit, consider and negotiate alternative acquisition proposals from third parties. In 2023, the company’s topseller, Decoy by Duckhorn, grew an estimated 2% to 1.45 million cases in the U.S., according to Impact Databank,…

Balvenie Single Barrel 12-Year-Old Single malt Scotch maker Balvenie, owned by William Grant & Sons, is bringing back its Single Barrel 12-year-old, matured fully in Bourbon barrels. This reprises a 2013 release of Single Barrel, which ended in 2022 due to stock constraints. Now the whisky ($80 a 750-ml.) has returned, with each barrel yielding only 300 bottles, all individually numbered. Bottled at 47.8% abv, Balvenie Single Barrel 12-year-old is available now on a limited basis. For more information, visit Thebalvenie.com. Orphan Barrel Woven Honor Single Malt Scotch Whisky Aged 18 Years Diageo has unveiled the latest release in its Orphan Barrel series. The new whisky, Woven Honor Single Malt Scotch Whisky Aged 18 Years ($185 a 750-ml.), hails from Speyside-based Linkwood Distillery and is aged 18 years in American…

The simple yet sophisticated Martini has never truly left the cocktail stage since its inception 100-plus years ago, notes Charles Joly, bar partner at Virgin Hotels New York. “Even before other craft cocktails saw a resurgence, you could find people sipping Martinis at steak houses across the country,” he says. “The return to a very classic Martini service came along with the modern cocktail renaissance in the 2000s. As more bartenders were digging into cocktail history and learning the roots of the great classics, the old way of doing things was revived, and this was also when high-quality vermouths and countless styles of bitters were becoming readily available.” He adds that the Martini has only gotten more popular. “Every bartender seems to have created their own ratios and added their…

In the beverage alcohol trade, the winter holidays are already upon us, and executives at all three tiers of the industry are banking heavily on another strong festive season to round out what has been, for many, a tumultuous year. Brands are releasing new expressions, new packaging, or in some cases, re-releasing holiday favorites in attempts to inspire some holiday magic. “Because we see more at-home entertaining and gifting around the holidays, holiday-centric products—be they LTOs (limited-time offers), packaging, a cocktail recipe, or otherwise—provide an effective way to stand out with shoppers seeking products for those occasions,” says Campari America managing director Melanie Batchelor. “The products themselves tend to stand out more, but often they’ll also receive better in-store placement as retailers are aware of the influx of shoppers looking…

With the holidays around the corner, many beer consumers are anticipating the return of their favorite winter brews, whether they’re seasonally themed or just classic, hardy beer styles. Indeed, some winter beers have become so popular that they shoot to the top of the sales chart during the holiday selling season. Tröegs Independent Brewing’s Mad Elf ale is one such brew. First produced in 2002, Mad Elf was the No. 2 beer in total dollar sales in Pennsylvania for the 13 week period ended January 1, 2024, according to Circana data, the brewer says. Distributed in nine eastern states and Washington, D.C., Mad Elf has become “an essential part of many people’s holiday traditions,” says David Graham, director of marketing at the Hershey, Pennsylvania-based brewery. “And it’s not just beer…

Gallo’s Apothic wine brand from California played a huge role in the expansion of the red blend category over the past decade, and it continues to rank among the top ten California table wine brands in the U.S. According to Impact Databank, Apothic reached a high-water mark of 4.1 million cases in pandemic-influenced 2020, before receding back to 3.8 million cases last year. Retailing from $11-$13 a 750-ml., the brand remains nearly a half-million cases larger than it was in 2019, and Gallo is now looking to reinvigorate Apothic’s growth with a packaging refresh and new campaign. Carmen Maria Navarro, Gallo’s senior director of brand management, says Apothic’s new look, which features a bold ‘A’ calling out the brand above the varietal, will stand out better on store shelves, allowing…

Banfi is a premium wine company, family-owned since 1919 and currently led by third-generation family proprietor and CEO Cristina Mariani-May. In 2020, Mariani-May led Banfi through a strategic overhaul, streamlining its portfolio and reaffirming its dedication to family ownership. The Banfi wine brand can be found on shelves and restaurant listings in more than 100 countries. MARKET WATCH contributing editor Carol Ward spoke with Mariani-May for an update on the company’s outlook. MARKET WATCH: Can you share an overview of your Italian portfolio of wines and how they’re performing in the U.S. market? MARIANI-MAY: The Italian portfolio is doing very well overall, particularly our Chianti range. We’re really excited about our Chiantis across the board—Reserva, Anatta, Classico, and Superiore—and as a category they’re doing exceptionally well. Our Italian white wines…

Nicole Giampino has known she wanted to be a bartender since she was 21, but when she asked her boss at the sports bar where she worked as a server about the possibility, he told her she’d never be good at it. Discouraged, she went back to college for a year—but when her mom got sick, she moved back home to Portland, Maine, and started bartending at nightclubs and dive bars. Thankfully, her mom recovered and encouraged her to explore options outside of her home state. “I moved to Arizona and started out at Hand Cut Chophouse—I went from prep bartender to manager in a year,” Giampino says. “Arizona was the place I learned what a craft cocktail was and I completely immersed myself in the industry.” Then, roughly five…

On-Premise News: USHG Reopening, Updating NYC View Restaurant This winter, Danny Meyer’s Union Square Hospitality Group (USHG) and the New York Marriott Marquis hotel are putting a new spin on the View Restaurant & Lounge, New York City’s only revolving restaurant. The original View opened in 1985 atop the Times Square hotel—a popular spot for tourists and large events, including Wine Spectator’s annual New York Wine Experience—where it offered guests 360-degree views of the Big Apple skyline before closing in 2020. Green River Announces New Tasting Room Green River Distilling Co., part of Bardstown Bourbon Co., has announced a new tasting room on Louisville, Kentucky’s Whiskey Row, set to open in mid-2025. The new location features a bar, retail shop, performance space, a semi-hidden speakeasy for special events, and a…