World's 50 Best Bars Brands Report: Brandy

04 February, 2014

For the latest instalment of the Brands Report, we quizzed the class of 2013 on the brandy brands moving through their bars.

We polled 100 of the top 250 bars that recieved votes in our World’s 50 Best Bars 2013 survey.

We asked which are the best sellers and which brands are catching the imaginations of consumers for the trending list.

Don't forget to check out the results for ginvodka, rum, Tequilaliqueurs/bittersScotch and World Whiskies.


SELLING

Cognac has taken over the list this year – there are no brandies in sight when it comes to best sellers. The mighty Hennessy remains at the top and it has been building its cocktail credentials in competitions. 

Pierre Ferrand has long been a friend of the bartender and its Pierre Ferrand 1840 Original Formula Cognac won Best New Product at the 2012 Tales of the Cocktail Spirited Awards. 

Pierre Ferrand 1840 was launched in 2011 at the same cocktail festival and it was created by Cognac Ferrand owner Alexandre Gabriel with help from cocktail historian David Wondrich.

The aim was to recapture the spirit of the cocktail days of the 1800s. The pair collaborated again on Pierre Ferrand Dry Curaçao Ancienne Méthode and there’s no question the brand has its finger on the pulse when it comes to what bartenders want. 

But it’s obviously not all about cocktails – more traditional brands such as Delamain, Meukow and Camus, which make little or no reference to cocktails on their websites, are still on the list. So there is still room to sip and savour as well as shake and stir.

TRENDING

Rémy Martin has knocked Hennessy off the top spot to become the on-trend brand for this year.

According to a report in the Financial Post, 50% of the company’s business is in Asia, 30% in the US and only 20% in Europe. Like many brands, financial woes in our home continent lead to investment abroad and it is paying off. 

Courvoisier has been upping its cocktail game for a few years now and has moved two places up the list.

Most recently in the UK, the brand has launched a campaign aimed at broadening its appeal across a range of drinking occasions – arguably a very important message for the future of Cognac in mature markets. Courvoisier continues to be innovative. 

Unlike the best seller list, there is a brandy on the trending list. Osborne is a Spanish brand and the Solera Reserva spends an average of three years in American oak while the Gran Reserva spends an average of 10 years in oak. 





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