Scotch in a Can, Part 2

After a big hubbub over canned whisky in January 2010, look who’s putting their whisky in a can now.

Well at least this time its not just the whisky, but Whisky and Cola, Whisky and Ginger Ale, etc.

See original story, Scottish Spirits Company Causes Furor Over Canned Scotch Sales and Labeling.

Its really just too horrible to think of. Whisky and Cola commingling in a can for weeks or months on end until, suddenly, someone drinks them. Egad, what is the world coming to?!

Well, in Australia you can get canned Ballantine’s & Cola, Haig Scotch & Cola, Johnnie Walker & Cola, Johnnie Walker & Dry, Jim Beam & Mixer, Jack Daniels & Cola plus bottled Jim Beam & Cola and Wild Turkey & Cola. These drinks in a can or bottle are all part of the RTD (Ready to Drink) category.

In the UK you can get Famous Grouse Scotch Whisky and Cola, 6% ABV. It was introduced in 2010, by Edrington Group, the owner of Famous Grouse. In recent years Edrington has looked to expand the Famous Grouse Blended Scotch brand with Black Grouse, a peatier take on the product line as well as Snow Grouse, intended to be served from the freezer, a serving style they may have picked up from of recent trend of serving Johnnie Walker Gold 18, ice cold. In the UK you can also find Brown-Forman’s Jack Daniels & Cola, also 6%ABV.

In another twist on the RT

D market in the UK, Famous Grouse is testing an on-tap, pre mixed Famous Grouse and ginger beer they call a Ginger Grouse, which has an ABV of 6%. It is served over ice in a branded tall glass. Maxxium UK, the Famous Grouse distributor, says, “Pre-mixed Ginger Grouse is part of a new drive to broaden the appeal of whisky among male and female consumers.”

A March 2011 article in Scottish Licensed Trade News, quotes Whyte & Mackay and Famous Grouse spokesmen talking about the recent trend of what they call (RTS) Ready to Serve Scotch & Cola rather than (RTD) Ready to Drink Scotch beverages. Marketing Manager, Chris Anderson for Famous Grouse had this to say, “In the short term, the pre-mix can, will encourage new drinkers to trial the brand in a long drink, increasing their confidence in choosing The Famous Grouse as a mixed drink, and, in the long term, extend usage from the pre-mix can into the parent brand.”

Both Whyte & Mackay and Famous Grouse highlight the advantage of giving, “consumers the chance to try blended Scotch without having to buy a full bottle.”

Well what the hey?! If you want to drink your Scotch mixed with Cola it probably doesn’t matter much what you drink it out of.

Doesn’t scare me a bit.

Other media on this subject:

http://www.nytimes.com/1994/05/21/business/worldbusiness/21iht-scotch.html

http://www.tradenewsonline.com/content/show/id/7592

http://www.scotchmaltwhisky.co.uk/famousgrousecans.htm

Pre-Mixed Scotch - The Drink Whose Name We Dare Not Speak

Thursday, August 4, 2011

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