![]() The largest of the Tequila contingent is Proximo’s 1800 at 1.8 million cases, up 18%. In fact, only one of the 13 awardees is a mixto Tequila and the bulk of the winning brands are firmly priced in the super-premium tier. Tequila’s Hot Brand winners skew heavily toward super-premium and luxury priced 100% blue agave bottlings. In addition to earning a Hot Brand award for Maker’s, Beam Suntory landed another super-premium Bourbon on the list with Basil Hayden’s at 475,000 cases, up 21%. Greg Hughes, president of Beam Suntory North America, told Impact that Maker’s 46 and other higher-end whiskies have been driving gains for the brand. Last year, Maker’s Mark topped 2.3 million cases on 16% growth. Representing American whiskey, Beam Suntory-owned Maker’s Mark is the leading super-premium Bourbon in the U.S. Gallo’s entry was at 1.1 million cases in only its third year on the market and Western Son’s line of vodkas was at 379,000 cases for 2021. Gallo’s New Amsterdam Pink Whitney and Western Son’s namesake brand-also earned Hot Brand awards. The French vodka is the largest imported vodka to earn a Hot Brand, jumping 27% to just over 2.6 million cases. Just behind Jameson in the top five is Grey Goose, another brand shifting gears after a challenging period. The brand grew 17.1% last year to 3.7 million cases, completely erasing 2020’s 7% dip and returning the brand to solid footing. The third-largest spirits Hot Brand is Pernod Ricard’s Jameson, this year earning the award for its original release, without the help of its buoyant Black Barrel and Caskmates offshoots. ![]() While Fireball remains focused on its core flavored whisky, the brand has also launched a malt-based Fireball Cinnamon in off-premise locations that are unable to sell distilled spirits, further extending its reach. Last year, Fireball grew by 7.5% to roughly 6.8 million cases, earning Hot Brand honors and keeping it in the running as one of the largest spirits brands in the U.S. Sazerac’s Fireball is another rare example of a brand with just one offering in its arsenal. “We try to do one thing and do it really well, so we put all our energy into making the very best vodka out there and have no plans for new products,” says Frank Polley, vice president of trade marketing at Tito’s. A rarity in the vodka category with only a single release in a variety of sizes, Tito’s still has a commanding lead over the other winning Hot Brands it’s ahead of the second largest awardee, Fireball, by over 4 million cases. Though the brand posted substantial growth, 2021 marks a slowdown for Tito’s and is the first time in recent years that the brand failed to add 1 million cases in a calendar year. The brand added 625,000 nine-liter cases last year, coming in at just under 11 million cases in total. Vodka, king among spirits in America overall, also made a solid showing, boasting two of the top five Hot Brands in terms of total volume. While whiskies and Tequila make up 60% of this year’s Hot Brand winners, other categories like liqueurs and Cognac made a strong showing, pointing toward further prominence as consumers explore various brands within those segments. The macro trends of the last few years-a surge of interest in whiskies and Tequila-continues apace, with those two categories placing an equal number of brands on the honor roll. The award winners are among the most successful and valuable brands in the market, and offer a snapshot of what categories and brands are charting the course forward for spirits in the U.S. Some 43 spirits brands were awarded Impact Hot Brand honors, bringing together the fastest-rising players across the spirits world. The minimum volume requirement for spirits and imported wines is 200,000 cases, while domestic wines and RTDs must meet a threshold of 250,000 cases. There are three different ways to qualify as an Impact Hot Brand: a contender must have shown double-digit growth in each year from 2019 to 2021, or be an established player with at least 15% growth in 2021, or otherwise be a top 10 brand with at least 5% growth in 2021 and 15% growth since 2018. This year, a total of 96 brands from the wine, spirits, and RTD cocktail categories made the list. (Photo by Douglas Jones)Įach year, Impact Databank’s annual “Hot Brand” list celebrates the fastest-growing brands across the drinks business. Despite supply chain issues, business is good for Impact Databank’s Hot Brands.
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