Issue link: http://digital.copcomm.com/i/426275
110 { THE SOMM JOURNAL } DECEMBER/JANUARY 2014/2015 { fine spirits } he Irish whiskey category is on fire right now and nowhere more so than in the U.S. Currently, this one market accounts for around one-third of all Irish whiskey sales but that's forecast to grow to 40% in the next four years as the major players continue their heavy investment. The market leader is Irish Distillers' Jameson, but it's clear from a recent visit to Ireland that they won't have things all their own way much longer. They're being chased by William Grant's Tullamore D.E.W. brand, which has doubled volume since 2010 and aims to do so again over the next five years. According to Harvey Purchese, Senior VP for Marketing (USA), Tullamore D.E.W. is the fastest-growing major Irish brand in the U.S. and steadily increasing its market share. Part of the investment has been in people, and part in a brand new distillery, back in the brand's ancestral home of Tullamore, County Offaly. That represents a $45 million spend by William Grant & Sons, who expect the distillery to begin by making enough whiskey for 1.5 million cases annu- ally, but plan on rapidly doubling output. Ambassadors Abroad Given that the brand currently sells around 900,000 cases globally, the measure of their investment, confidence and ambition is clearly seen. U.S. volumes are now just 140,000 cases, but the brand will be pushing hard in major metro markets to communicate its "Irish True" theme and gain more views for the "Parting Glass" video, described by Ad Age magazine as "the creative that all advertising should aspire to." Investing in Heritage T William Grant's New Tullamore Distillery Shows Deep Commitment And Boundless Optimism For Irish Whiskey The new $45 million Tullamore Distillery represents a major investment in Irish whiskey for William Grant & Sons. PHOTO COURTESY OF WILLIAM GRANT & SONS by Ian Buxton