Fifteen years after hitting the market with its striking cobalt blue bottle, super-premium north American producer Skyy Spirits has unveiled a new, taller, sleeker bottle design for its Skyy vodka, aimed at making the brand more prominent on the back bar and making it easier to handle. This is the first design tweak to the US super-premium market leader since the 2.9 million 9-litre case…

Moët Hennessy’s ultra-premium Belvedere vodka is stepping into rock ‘n’ roll territory with its latest campaign featuring the photography of Terry Richardson, a seductive Jade Jagger and an ice-pick. Backed by a multi-million dollar spend, Belvedere has used Richardson’s controversial photography to depict luxury and decadence in party scenarios in downtown New York City, loosely tying in with a mix of print ad and outside…

Created by self-made billionaire Sidney Frank and sold to Bacardi for US$2.4 billion in 2004, Grey Goose vodka hit the market in style with ingredients such as alpine water from the Massif Central and winter wheat from south of Paris continuously distilled in the Cognac region of France. Initially aimed primarily at the US market, this super-premium brand is also now aiming to up the…

A niche player maybe, but the distinctively-flavoured Zubrowka Bison Grass has been steadily growing its presence in more than 30 markets globally, with China, Switzerland, Iceland, Slovenia, Portugal and United Arab Emirates recent additions to its territories. Its 1 million case sales in 2007 earned it a place in the Drinks International Millionaires 2008. Campaigns are often independently tailored to individual markets, so while Bulgarians…

From the Poznan distillery in Poland, Pernod Ricard’s Wyborowa continues on its remarkable sales curve with its claim to be the fastest-growing international spirit brand in 2007 (Millionaires 2008, p12). This translates as a 52 per cent increase in sales last year, bringing the brand to 1.8 million 9-litre cases globally, of which 1 million are drunk in the domestic market, with France, Italy,…

Diageo powerhouse brand Smirnoff continues its season of Smirnoff Experience events with music producer du jour Mark Ronson collaborating with Duran Duran on a partnership that will form the centrepiece of Smirnoff Experience Paris at La Cigale early this month. This live, invite-only gig will showcase reworked versions of the band’s classic hits along with material from their latest album Red Carpet, plus elements…

One of Ukraine’s big two brands, Nemiroff currently exports to 55 countries, with Russia and Russian Federation countries providing major overseas markets. However, the brand now has its sights firmly focused on growing exports into European markets and fast-emerging global super-economies, including China and India. In addition, the company has recently opened a new production facility in Russia to keep pace with demand. Nemiroff has…

Stoli Blakberi is the latest variant in the stable of flavoured vodkas , launched in the US in May and backed by a multi-million dollar marketing strategy . Russian vodka Stoli first ventured into flavour s in 1962 with Pertsovka, a pepper vodka, for the then premier Nikita Khrushchev and was the first brand to export commercially produced flavoured vodkas to the US in the…

Created from a recipe based on one Dmitri Mendeleev’s formulation for the Czars, Russian Standard is now a fast-growing modern-day brand with its eye on further penetration in foreign markets. Sales grew 40 per cent in the year 2006-07, boosting the brand from 1.4 million to 1.9 million 9-litre cases globally. With its platform of three labels – Russian Standard Original, Russian Standard Platinum and…

Once the final details are thrashed out , Pernod Ricard will have acquired the 11 million 9-litre case Absolut brand in a deal with the Swedish government to acquire the state monopoly Vin & Sprit. Absolut sales grew by 9 per cent in 2006-07, representing a slight slowdown in the face of tough competition from other premium vodkas, but two new campaigns are rolling…