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FACTS & FIGURES Top Spirits, Top Trends K nowing which spirit brands to carry on your backbar or stock on your retail shelves has just become a lot easier. A recently released report from Technomic's Adult Beverage Resource Group, a marketing research fi rm based in Chicago, offers a statisti- cal look at the 250 bestselling spirits in the U.S., as well as hard intel on which spirit categories are growing hot and which are trending down. According to the 2012 SpiritsTAB, the fi rst in Technomic's Trends in Adult Beverage series, the leading 250 spirits brands grew 3.1% in total volume in 2011, a rate slightly lower than the total market's increase of 3.5%. Likewise, the brands col- lectively generated 89% of the total U.S. spirits volume of 199.7 million 9-liter cases. "These brands are per- forming well overall, which points to the strength of the spirits market," says David Henkes, Vice President and leader of the Adult Beverage Insights Group at Technomic. "Some of the more established Top 250 brands were affected by the recession and may now be experiencing a somewhat slower growth pace than prior to the recession. Others, however, are enjoying tremendous gains as they tap into various consumer trends." Among the fastest-growing brands, low- calorie Skinnygirl Cocktails, marketed by Beam Inc., outpaced all other Top 250 brands with a 388% gain and breaking the 500,000-case mark. Familia Camarena Tequila, marketed by E&J Gallo subsidiary Alto Spirits, achieved 233% growth, making it the second-fastest growing brand. Other brands achieving triple-digit increases include Malibu Prepared Cocktails, Fireball Cinnamon Whisky and Rökk Vodka. 70 / the tasting panel / may 2012 SPIRITSTAB 2012, FROM TECHNOMIC'S ADULT BEVERAGE RESOURCE GROUP, PUTS THE FACTS TO WORK FOR YOU by Robert Plotkin These leading spirits brands refl ect dichoto- mies in both fl avor preferences and spending among U.S. consumers. "Among the fastest- growing spirits brands, we see a defi nitive shift towards sweet and also spicy fl avors, with fl a- vored vodka, rum and whiskey products gaining steam. This is a change from the savory fl avor profi les that had been popular in recent years," says Donna Hood Crecca, Senior Director of the Adult Beverage Resource Group. "Also, the emergence of innovative value-priced products, particularly in vodka, is occurring right along- side continued growth of several established premium- and ultra-premium priced brands." The largest brands of 2010—Smirnoff, Bacardi, Captain Morgan, Jack Daniel's and Absolut— maintained their positions in 2011. On a category basis, vodka brands dominate the list, followed by entries in the cordials and liqueurs, rum and straight whiskey categories. This soon-to-be-indispensable spirits guide provides a comprehensive overview of key consumption trends for on- and off-premise. Included in the report are: In-depth spirits category information: category volume and retail dollars, sub-category trends, leading brand performance and share, price information, market share by price tier, import/export results and advertising activity by media type. Key rankings: Top spirits supplier companies share of category by supplier, leading category brands and top markets for specifi c categories. Volume statistics: On- and off-premise volume and retail dollars, and share of market. Consumer insights: spirits consumer demo- graphic profi le, attitude and usage information. International market trends: Leading countries for spirits consumption, global supplier performance, global brand performance. To purchase or learn more about this and other industry reports from Technomic, visit Technomic.com.