Latest drinks industry comment

Why Irish whiskey must learn to manage its time - Comment 19 Jun 2018

Neil Ridley

Is the renaissance of Irish whiskey about to hit its first major bump along the emerald pathway? Neil Ridley looks at what can be learnt as the segment's popularity continues to rise.

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Will Diageo's American Anthem make vodka great again? - Comment 1 Jun 2018

Richard Woodard

Monday this week was Memorial Day in the US, a federal holiday in honour of those killed while serving in the country's armed forces. Thanks to a recent product launch from Diageo, consumers were also encouraged to raise a patriotic glass of vodka in their memory. But, can American Anthem make vodka great again? Richard Woodard is sceptical.

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Why Deposit Return Schemes are the ultimate option for soft drinks - Comment 24 May 2018

Richard Corbett

Our soft drinks commentator returns! This month, Richard Corbett considers the Deposit Return Scheme concept and flags why the soft drinks industry should welcome it with open arms.

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Why a growing craft brewer isn't always a takeover target – Comment 17 May 2018

Stephen Beaumont

Last month, the US trade organisation for craft brewers, the Brewers Association, released a most interesting list. just-drinks' resident beer commentator, Stephen Beaumont takes a closer look at the chart of the fastest-growing US craft brewers in 2017.

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What can the wine industry learn from Concha y Toro? - Comment 15 May 2018

Chris Losh

When the aristocratic Don Melchor de Casa Concha wanted to keep thirsty winery workers from drinking his best wine, he made up a story that the devil lived in the wine cellar where the barrels were kept. It was a high-risk strategy.

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Plaudits to Anheuser-Busch InBev but will electric haulage be a box-office flop? - Comment 4 May 2018

Andy Morton

It is a quirk of Hollywood that two movies on the same subject will sometimes appear at the same time.

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Falling out with flavour - when is a gin not a gin? - Comment 3 May 2018

Richard Woodard

As more companies launch so-called 'flavoured gins', Richard Woodard considers the rules around gin production and the impact of the flavour trend on the gin category.

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How to avoid a legal row over your brand name - Comment 24 Apr 2018

Neil Ridley

What's in a brand name? A lot more than we would expect, according to spirits commentator Neil Ridley. And, he speaks from experience.

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How the sugar tax has transformed the soft drinks category - Comment 12 Apr 2018

Richard Corbett

Last week, the UK introduced its version of the sugar tax. But, as soft drinks commentator Richard Corbett explains, the fall-out from the move was becoming manifest long before its implementation.

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Maintaining consumer trust in the social media age - Comment 10 Apr 2018

Richard Woodard

Consumers are suffering a "crisis of trust" when it comes to corporate entities, according to recent research. Spirits commentator Richard Woodard looks at how Diageo is faring with consumers, at a time when social media makes it all too easy to offend them.

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Accolade Wines and Conviviality - The best and the worst of wine? - Comment 9 Apr 2018

Chris Losh

A supernova of activity, relatively speaking, in the wine industry last week has sent our wine commentator, Chris Losh, into a literary tailspin. Accolade Wines and Conviviality are to blame.

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What can the beer industry learn from Molson Coors? - Comment 5 Apr 2018

Stephen Beaumont

Without question one of the more interesting drinks companies to watch over the past few years has been Molson Coors. From the 14% drop in sales posted in 2015 to the boost provided by the acquisition of the 58% of MillerCoors it didn't already own in 2016, from the surprisingly-high cost savings of US$200m in 2017, to the loss in share price value of 21% during the same year, the past half-decade has been nothing short of a rollercoaster for the world's third-largest brewer by value and fifth-largest by volume.

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Conviviality - Boy, that escalated quickly - Comment 29 Mar 2018

Olly Wehring

The remarkable speed of Conviviality's tumble from grace has surprised even the most seasoned drinks industry executive here in the UK. How could a company go from posting an 85% leap in full-year sales in May last year, to announcing the pending appointment of administrators in late-March. That's less than a year.

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What can the spirits and wine industries learn from Moet Hennessy? - Comment 26 Mar 2018

Richard Woodard

Following on from just-drinks' analysis of Moët Hennessy's performance over the last five years, spirits commentator Richard Woodard considers the takeaways for the wider spirits and wine industries.

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What can the beer industry learn from Carlsberg? - Comment 22 Mar 2018

Stephen Beaumont

If the principle lesson learned from just-drinks' analysis of Heineken's performance in the last five years is "don't panic", the overarching theme of Carlsberg's last half-decade of struggles might be the even more clichéd "don't put all your eggs in one basket". Said basket being, in this case, Russia.

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How sustainability could change the authenticity message for big beer - Comment 21 Mar 2018

Lucy Britner

Heritage, provenance and authenticity have become industry buzzwords: Marketing experts have us believe that they are the attributes consumers desire - and the attributes a brand should fudge at its peril. 

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What's the best way to market spirits brands to female consumers? - Comment 20 Mar 2018

Neil Ridley

Is gender becoming an all-consuming issue in whisky? just-drinks' brown spirits commentator, Neil Ridley, certainly hopes not.

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What does the future of out-of-home advertising look like? - Comment 20 Mar 2018

Andy Morton

On a recent night in London, behind King's Cross railway station, an ordinary-looking van has an extraordinary-looking pole sticking out of its roof. The 20-metre mobile mast is, say its creators, the future of outdoor billboard advertising; a new, disruptive technology in a field that - LED video screens notwithstanding - hasn't strayed too far beyond basic precepts of paper plastered to wood. Known as the Echo, the mast was created by Lightvert, a UK start-up that wants to take advertising to places it hasn't been before.

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How soft drinks can milk (or not) the vegan trend - Comment 15 Mar 2018

Richard Corbett

just-drinks' soft drinks commentator, Richard Corbett, returns this month with some advice on how companies can capitalise on the growing popularity of veganism among consumers.

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Where should we look for wine's future gains? - Comment 13 Mar 2018

Richard Siddle

Our regular wine commentator, Chris Losh, is trapped under something heavy this month. Stepping into the void, however, is Richard Siddle, equally well-versed in all things wine. And, Richard has a thing or two to warn the traditional wine trade about.