The Wine Intelligence Global Wine Brand Power Index 2022 has reported that Yellow Tail is again the world’s most powerful wine brand with Casillero del Diablo meaning an unchanged top two.

Spanish producer Familia Torres has retained its crown as The World’s Most Admired Wine Brand after topping the list for 2022.

Kenyan ultra-premium spirits producer, Procera Gin has announced a partnership with Axiom Brands to accelerate growth in the UK on- and off-trade.

Pernod Ricard UK has expanded its American whiskey portfolio with Rabbit Hole making the UK the first European market to launch the brand.

Listening to the demands of bartenders, premium mixer brands have become increasingly experimental with their flavour combinations. To reflect this greater variety, the tonic water table of previous reports has been broadened to encompass all mixer brands.

Perhaps one of the smaller categories of the Brands Report, sherry is significant nonetheless. More than three-quarters of venues we polled stock sherry behind their bar. And most of those that do have two brands, while more than half will have three or more.

High-end bars rarely allocate bar-top space to draught systems, meaning the bestselling list is a battle of the bottles.

Pernod Ricard’s Del Maguey is still the dominant force within the mezcal sector. Its flagship Vida expression can be found in the best bars around the world and its green bottle is fast becoming one of the most recognised in the agave industry.

Believe it or not, cachaça is the third most popular spirit in the world. In its homeland of Brazil, there are some 5,000 registered brands, with many more unregistered, and 40,000 distilleries.

The glow up that the tequila category has undergone in recent years must be the envy of the wider spirit world.

Our brandy category takes into account any brandy outside the Cognac region and embraces a hugely diverse collection of spirits.

Barsol reigns supreme in the pisco category. The Peruvian brand took a whopping 31% of the first-choice votes and 23% of the top-three pours in the World’s Best Bars.

Suntory has ended Nikka’s six-year reign as the most popular world whisky in the Brands Report.

Diageo’s Bulleit just about retained its position as the bestselling American whiskey in the World’s Best Bars.

It seems loyalty remains strong within the scotch whisky sector given the same 10 brands make up the bestselling list in 2022 as the previous year, albeit in a different order.

The usual crowd have populated this year’s bestselling rum list. In fact, nine of the 10 brands remain a constant, with the first seven in the ranking identical to the previous year. 

Probably of all the leagues in the Annual Brands Report, a place in the Bartenders’ Choice list is the most sought-after among brands.

Brands Report editor Hamish Smith explains the methodolgy behind the report's polling system.

Pernod Ricard has completed the sale of a majority stake in Société des Produits d’Armagnac (SPA) to Cloudsweeper, an entity owned by entrepreneur Alexander Stein.

Suntory’s Yamazaki has topped the inaugural edition of Drinks International’s The World’s Most Admired Whiskies which launched on 21 October.

Lucas Bols has entered a joint venture with Edrington under the name Maxxium BeLux for distribution in Belgium and Luxembourg.

Pernod Ricard has taken a minority stake in the New York-based wine and spirits producer Sovereign Brands.

For many drinkers outside of its native Brazil, cachaça is a largely mysterious category, perhaps known as the star of a Caipirinha and nothing more. In its homeland, however, cachaça’s popularity borders on religious.

It has been a sobering quarter for hard seltzers. Sales of the canned RTD that disrupted the US alcohol market when it burst on to the scene in 2016 have finally stalled.

Marlborough-based wine producer Indevin has signed a conditional agreement to buy Villa Maria from parent company FFWL.

Diageo expects direct-to-consumer sales to grow rapidly and emerge as an important part of the business in the years ahead.

It’s been a sobering quarter for hard seltzer. Sales of the canned RTD that disrupted the US alcohol market when it burst onto the scene in 2016, have for the first time, stalled.

Outside I’ve got a five-litre, left-hand drive Mustang. That’s right, I watched The High Chaparral, I love everything American. So to make an American whiskey was a dream come true.”

Stars continue to flock to give their endorsement to 100% agave brands, but sustainability has become an issue as consumer demand has risen.

Nick Strangeway looks at how travel restrictions have left a permanent impression on the global bar trade.

Pernod Ricard says its New Zealand wine brands Brancott Estate and Stoneleigh will be unable to meet global Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc supply this year after one of the smallest New Zealand harvests in 10 years.

Spirits giants Edrington and Beam Suntory have agreed to an equity swap of stakes in their jointly-owned distribution companies in Spain and the UK.

Stock Spirits Group increased volume sales by 2% to 8.3 million 9-litre cases in the six months to March 31.

Kirker Greer Spirits has launched in France after securing a deal with wine and spirits importer, Maison Milhade.

Bacardi’s global travel retail department has opened a luxury seasonal boutique for its whisky portfolio in China.

Drinks International caught up with Becky Davies, head of commercial at Ten Locks, to learn more about the firm's plans to kickstart a defining era for tequila in the UK.

South African wines and spirits producer Distell International has signed a distribution agreement with French cognac house Camus for China duty free, effective immediately.

The World’s Most Admired Wine Brands 2021 will be revealed in a countdown on YouTube from 6pm GMT on April 1.

Terlato Wine Group has announced an exclusive sales and marketing agreement with Champagne Lanson to become effective April 1, 2021.

Diageo has maintained its acquisition drive by snapping up the firm that produces the Lone River Ranch Water hard seltzer brand.

Global campaign OurWhisky is calling for whisky makers to improve female representation in marketing after conducting a new study on gender equality within the industry.

Louis Roederer has been crowned The World’s Most Admired Champagne Brand for the second year in a row.

French distributor BBC Spirits has bolstered its portfolio with several UK spirits brands as it bids to drive growth in 2021.

Pernod Ricard sales for H1 FY21 have shown an organic decline of -3.9% on the previous year largely due to the ongoing struggles of travel retail.

MGP Ingredients has agreed a deal to acquire US spirits company Luxco for a value of $476m in cash and stock.

JW Filshill, the Glasgow-based wholesaler, has acquired Eldorado Tonic Wine as part of its purchase of KB Agencies for an undisclosed sum.

Tito’s Handmade Vodka has appointed new distributors for two of its European markets in Switzerland and Cyprus.

Walsh Whiskey has appointed six new distributors in Eastern Europe in a bid to capitalise upon strong growth in the region.

The former managing directors of Greene King and Ei Group have invested in Hofmeister after growing excited by its potential to take the world beer category by storm.