PREMIUM GIN: STAYING STRONG

The ‘ginnaisance’ is a good candidate for being the number one drinks trend of the century so far. It’s a well-worn story, but one that is worth repeating: within a matter of a few years, gin transformed itself from a grandparents ’tipple, to major millennial favourite.

By virtue of its botanical nature, gin was able to handily harness the local ingredient, craft production and authenticity trends that have proved so compelling for younger adult drinkers over recent years.

While the shop local trend appears irrepressible, there is a whole world of possibilities offered by overseas gins – with major Australian drinks companies getting on board.

One of these is Angove’s VintageHouse Wine and Spirits, which added Finnish brand Arctic Blue Gin to its portfolio earlier this year. National Liquor News asked Marketing ManagerMatt Redin what the motivation was to introduce an international gin, with the domestic industry still so impressive.

“The market for imported gin is still strong – as long as the brand has a point of difference,” Redin explains.

“For Arctic Blue it is its Finnishorigin and being distilled using wild-grown Arctic blueberries, to give it a distinctive taste.”

Arctic Blue has joined the international ranks of Vintage House’s portfolio alongside Drumshanbo Gunpowder IrishGin. Redin described this brand’s selling point as its “exotic mix of 12 botanicals that give it a unique flavour profile that keep consumers coming back.

-Belinda Sanderson, Head of Gin, Whiskies and Agave Pernod Ricard

“We have just expanded the Drumshanbo range with the introduction of their Sardinian Citrus Irish Gin,” Redin adds.

This expression was the result of PJ Rigney, founder of Dumshanbo, travelling to the Mediterranean island of Sardinia.

“The locals introduced PJ to the ‘Sa pompia’ [also called China Citron] of Citrus monstruosa,” Redin says.

“The result of PJ Rigney’s curious discovery is an intriguing expression of Drumshanbo Gunpowder Irish Gin with subtle hints of Sardinian citrus.”

This lemon-influenced gin responds to a growing trend in the category, also identified by Amber Beverage Australia’s Jonathan Howells.

“Trends we are seeing is the increase in the use of citrus botanicals. No better [gin] sums that up as the recent launch of Gin Mare Capri – made with Italian bergamot from Calabria and lemons from Capri,” he said.

Howells agrees that there is still strong opportunity in the international gin segment, a perspective that is echoed by Ben Inglis, Head of Sales for Spirits Platform, which imports both The Botanist and Martin Miller’s brands.

“Imported gin in Australia is still seeing growth – imported gins are also still playing a major role in the total gin category’s growth,” Inglis says.

Inglis believes that Australians’ love of travel inspires a particularly strong connection to imported gins.

“Aussies love to travel more than most, and international gins are an excuse to dream of other places,” Inglis adds.

“I think that Aussie gins and international gins share the same place in the consumer’s heart – they have to be different, and special and most importantly, they have to be 100 per cent genuine.

Pernod Ricard is another company with major imported gins in its portfolio. In recent years, the company has sought to diversify its offering, introducing more modern international spirits to its selection, as Belinda Sanderson, the brand’s Head of Gin, Whiskies and Agave outlines.

“Our gin portfolio comes from all parts of the globe, offering diversity of region, and the all-important botanicals,” Sanderson says.

“We’ve focused on gin as an area of growth over the past few years and brought in new brands to accompany our more traditional UK gins in Beefeater and Plymouth.

“It is a dynamic time for imported gins in Australia as consumers look to discover something new from gin by uncovering new countries of origin. We have seen this in particularly across Malfy from Italy, Ki No Bi from Japan as well as the much-loved German Monkey 47.”

Like Inglis, Sanderson sees the growing desire to experience the foreign and exotic as a key driver of sales in the overseas gin segment, particularly with Malfy Gin.

“The Italian ‘la dolce vita’ lifestyle that Malfy embodies is appealing to consumers both during lockdowns as it encompassed what they wanted to be experiencing, and now because there is such passion to explore Europe again,” Sanderson says.

“We then see this translating to the home experience consumers are looking to create.”

For Bibendum Bar, distributor of gins such as those from Animus Distillery and Ester Spirits, the general consumer thirst for exploration is influencing gin from all angles, both domestic and international.

“Home consumers are starting to head pretty far from your traditional Friday night G&T. People are getting more creative with their cocktails from their living room,” said Sam Volard, National Key Account Manager.

“As people start to experiment with different drinks at home it boosts the demand for more variety of interesting and delicious gins.”

Sean Baxter, Co-founder and Brand Director of Australian gin brand NeverNever, noted this trend as important too, saying: “One of the clearest trends identified within the gin category is that gin drinkers are always on the hunt for something new, something unique and something that fits into their changing lifestyles.”

Redin believes that certain overseas trends suggest a slight compression in the Australian market is to come soon.

“In the UK and USA in particular, we are starting to see a bit of a shakeout of the category with many of the smaller brands being forced out of the market as retailers consolidate their ranges,” Redin outlines.

And it appears similar trends are afoot back in Australia too, as Baxter suggests: “There are certainly more and more gin brands entering the market every month with no signs of slowing down.

“In terms of category growth, we're starting to see things flatten out slightly which is why it’s more important now than ever for brands to establish themselves outside of their local markets.”

Volard believes that this shift towards consolidation may apply to the flavours of the spirits themselves.

“I think the last few years have shown that there are few limits to how creative distillers can be in their botanical usage,” Volard said.

“I’m not saying it’s a bad thing, though if it’s like other spirit categories historically, I would imagine the next direction of gin is about refinement and bringing it back to classic delicate balance.”

Meanwhile, Stuart Gregor, Co-founder and Trade Director of Four Pillars Gin, strikes a more hopeful chord about the category’s future.

“It’s still going strong – the category continues to grow at around nine per cent per annum, and the local craft category at a rate well beyond that. There will inevitably be some gin businesses doing better than others but that is just market forces at work,” Gregor states.

“There will naturally be a little bit of rationalisation – meaning, the strongest brands with the best products, the smartest marketing, the best innovation, and distribution will win out.”

Gregor’s own brand has made a practice of innovation since its launch in 2013. One of its most creative concepts was the Bloody Shiraz Gin, which combines Four Pillars gin with Shiraz grapes.

“There’s a few more grape gins around than there were when we created Bloody Shiraz Gin in 2015, but that just shows what a bloody good idea it must have been at the time,” Gregor says.

Never Never is another brand operating in this space, with its Ginache bottling, which steeps Grenache fruit with gin. Baxter suggests that the growth of these products reflects a wider trend toward legitimate flavoured gin.

“Flavoured gin is taking a lot of ground off coloured. Where once coloured gin was king, flavoured gins are proving to be the latest trend driving the gin category forward,” Baxter says.

Blind Tiger Gin is one brand that is certainly taking advantage of the trend towards quality flavoured gins that deliver on more than just a colour. The brand is distilled at the historic St. Agnes distillery, and has just released a special winter release Organic Shiraz Gin, made using organic McLaren Vale Shiraz grapes from Angove Family Winemakers’ Warboys Vineyard.

“Deep opaque crimson with a purple hue, the juniper spice and citrus botanicals of the Organic Blind Tiger Gin lift the unctuous Shiraz fruit, full bodied and delicious on the palate the Single Vineyard Organic Shiraz Gin finishes long and sweet,” said Redin.

Blind Tiger also has a special summer release that delivers on the flavourful trend, while tapping into the citrus movement. The Blind Tiger Organic Mandarin Gin was made using organic Dancy and Imperial mandarins grown by the Howie family at Fat Goose fruits.

“It is an explosion of exotic botanicals infused with intense mandarin aromas from the Imperials with the Dancy’s coming through mid-palate with a refreshing juicy citrus finish,” said Redin.

Beyond interesting flavourful concoctions, Australian distillers are innovating for the better when it comes to the overall taste profiles and compositions of their gin. This is how Animus Distillery aims to stay ahead of the pack, according to Distiller, Luke Jacques.

“It seems gin, as a category, becomes more competitive by the day. Innovation and experimentation have always been at the core of the Animus ethos,” Jacques said.

“When Animus launched in 2016 with their three core gins - a bold interpretation of a classic dry (Macedon Dry), a South East Asian inspired gin (Ambrosian) and a herbaceous/ savoury gin (Arboretum), there was nothing like them on the Australian gin market. That range has now grown to six, the three core or signature gins and three annual releases: Davidsonia (Davidson Plum), Ananas (Pineapple) and Barrel Aged gins.”

Retailers will no doubt have honed their sales techniques over the course of the gin renaissance, however, the brands that National Liquor News spoke to did suggest there remained the opportunity to further connect with consumers.

“The quality of the communication tools due to COVID is generally out of sight and sharing this with your customers is the key to inspiring trial to different gins,” Inglis says.

“We definitely don’t want the message to be too ‘gin-eric’. Share the great stories brands are about and the consumers will follow!”

This position is held by Volard too, who said: “I think of premium gin in quite a similar way to premium wines.

“It’s the story, place and people that really sell a brand for me. Personally, I need to believe in the people behind the brand to justify the cost. If retailers can convey that message to the consumers, then there is more chance of conversion and recurring purchases.”

Sanderson recommends “putting the consumers’ needs at the heart of the activity.

“They love the opportunity to share something new, that often sparks the discussion around ‘that moment on holiday’ or ‘that cocktail they loved in a bar somewhere’.”

Gregor’s top tips are about making the category extra accessible to customers who are looking for premium gins that deliver on their needs.

“Premium gin shoppers like to know where their favourite brands are, so put them front and centre. If someone wants to hunt around and seek the more obscure that’s fine, but they will be happy to look harder at the edges,” he said.

“Gin deserves lots of facing and lots of real estate, it’s a growing category with a lot of consumer interest. Be sure to train up your staff about the best local gins, too – that’s a great selling point.”

With all these facings though, Baxter reminds retailers that its important to know your range intimately, and recommends reaching out to producers to gain this knowledge. From here, staff are in the best position to give consumers satisfying gin experiences.

“A win for the customer is a win for the brand and the retailer. There’s a lot of noise on gin shelves and it’s getting louder, so engaging with distilleries to learn more about the products or even the category can be a great way to make sure that they’re recommending the right products to the right customers,” Baxter said.