The Tasting Panel magazine

November 2013

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LAUNCH PAD Spicing Things Up JÄGERMEISTER LAUNCHES ITS FIRST NEW U.S. PRODUCT IN ITS NEARLY 80 YEAR HISTORY by Rich Manning / photos by Leigh Castelli I Emilio's Beverage Warehouse store manager Joe DiCorpo and his father, owner Tony DiCorpo. Jägermeister Spice features complex notes of cinnamon and vanilla that intermingle with the famed liqueur's signature blend of 56 herbs, roots, blooms and fruits. n the spirits world, Jägermeister has been the ultimate example of sticking to one thing and doing it right. After all, the liqueur has had exactly one expression on the market for close to eight decades in the United States. And that lone expression and its iconic green bottle represent a rather remarkable success story: it is the 15th largest selling spirit in the states and the 7th largest in the world. Obviously, you don't get to such echelons without creating some tight bonds over the years, a trait that succinctly describes the relationship that Jägermeister's importer, Sidney Frank Importing Company, Inc., has with its off-premise partners. So when it was time for them to roll out Jägermeister Spice in October—the liqueur's first new U.S. product in almost 80 years and a limited-availability product destined for off-premise only—they instinctively knew they had a valued network they could rely on in getting the light, smooth libation into public consciousness. In Southern California, this meant turning to trusted buyers like Tony DiCorpo, owner of Emilio's Beverage Warehouse in the Los Angeles suburb of Bellflower. "Tony and his son [and store manager] Joe do it right here," states Adam Rosen, EVP Marketing/Jägermeister at Sidney Frank. "Their store was a great platform to market Jägermeister Spice because they've consistently done an excellent job of advertising and promoting new and exciting products to their customers over the years." The feeling is mutual. "I've really enjoyed the relationship I've had with Jägermeister for as long as I've owned the store," DiCorpo states. "It's a great product, and we move a lot of it here." So what can longtime lovers of Jägermeister expect from Jägermeister Spice? For one thing, the hallmarks of the original product can be found here—from its signature blend of 56 herbs, roots, blooms and fruits to its astounding 383 quality check. But in the Spice version, these familiar flavors intermingle with complex notes of cinnamon and vanilla, resulting in a beverage that feels familiar and new all at once, either on its own at room temperature or as a mixer. "It's not the Jägermeister that you're used to," Rosen says. Even so, DiCorpo is absolutely confident that his customers will embrace the new expression of the product. "I think the only problem Jägermeister will have is the high demand for the product, since they only made 100,000 cases," he says. "Of course, that's a nice problem to have." 46  /  the tasting panel  /  november 2013 TP1113_034-65.indd 46 10/24/13 9:18 AM

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