Whether you’re hosting a party or simply relaxing by the poolside, a cocktail can transform any moment into a classy affair. Most people don’t want to run back and forth to their kitchen or home bar, though, especially when they’re having fun. This is where ready to drink cocktails can come in handy. Simply crack open an RTD cocktail and get back to spending time with friends.
The biggest benefit of a ready-to-drink cocktail is that someone else has done all of the hard work for you. No more measuring out ingredients, no more mixing, and no more worrying about whether or not your drink will taste good. When you make a cocktail from scratch, you need to worry about whether your ingredients are fresh. With a ready-to-drink cocktail, all of the ingredients are sealed in one place, so you know they’re as fresh as can be. This also means that there’s no need to worry about keeping things like mixers or fruit juices on hand.
Coca-Cola Europacific Partners (CCEP)
Costa Coffee claims to be the fastest growing major brand within RTD chilled Coffee in independent convenience, up 46% in value vs 12.5% for the total segment, and contributing more incremental value sales than any other major brand within independent convenience. The launch will be supported by a new Costa Coffee RTD brand campaign entitled ‘Lift up your Break’ which encourages consumers to add an RTD Costa Coffee to a morning or lunchtime break. The campaign will run for three months and includes social media, PR, outdoor advertising and will tap into Costa Coffee’s customer loyalty club members.
Helen Kerr, associate director of portfolio development at Coca-Cola Europacific Partners GB, said: “Sales of price-marked soft drinks in independent convenience continue to grow, in fact they were up by 35% last summer in comparison to the quarter before. Shoppers perceive them as offering better value which in turn helps to drive sales for retailers. It also offers a point of difference that shoppers can’t get in larger stores. In short, we now want to help convenience retailers to offer visible value on a premium product from the nation’s favourite coffee shop, particularly as the weather improves throughout the year.”
Absolut
Absolut officially introduces the Absolut and Ocean Spray Vodka Cranberry cocktail in a ready-to-drink (RTD) format now available in the US. Inspired by the classic combination of Absolut Vodka and Ocean Spray Cranberry Juice, the new Vodka Cran RTD range combines the highest quality premium vodka from Absolut with real cranberry juice from Ocean Spray, crisp sparkling water and other natural flavours. The range includes Vodka Cranberry, Vodka Cran-Grape, Vodka Cran-Pineapple and Vodka Cran-Raspberry, which are available in an 8-count variety pack (2 per 4 flavours), single flavour 4-pack (Vodka Cranberry and Vodka Cran-Pineapple) or single cans.
“Absolut Vodka and Ocean Spray Cranberry Juice have long been enjoyed together at bars and in homes across the country,” said Natalie Accari, Vice President, RTD & Convenience North America, Pernod Ricard USA. “We’re pleased to bring this beloved classic cocktail from two powerhouse brands to our consumers in a convenient new format.”
This is the first time Ocean Spray is bringing its real juice credentials to the spirits category by licensing the brand for an RTD. “We’re excited to work with Absolut to bring this iconic cocktail to consumers,” said Monisha Dabek, Chief Commercial Officer and General Manager, USA at Ocean Spray. “Ocean Spray has had a long history with the cocktail and is often credited with introducing the drink in the 1940s as a marketing tactic to showcase the variety of cranberry juice pairings. We love how far it has come in its nearly 80-year history and are excited to see renewed consumer excitement with the new ready-to-drink.”
To celebrate the launch of the new Vodka Cran RTD, available just in time for the season of love and friendship, Absolut is releasing a limited-edition Galentine’s Day kit for easy hosting with friends. As seen with pop culture personalities Becca Tilley & Tanya Rad, the best friends enjoy the essentials for a perfect night-in over their favourite Vodka Cran cocktail, exclusively designed can accessories and gift card for takeout or snacks.
be.
The global producer and distributor of delicious RTD drinks, Global Brands, is this week launching a premium range of 8.4% ABV cocktails -named be. – in 250ml cans. Global has a confirmed listing in over 400 stores with a large mult grocer and is in advanced conversations with other retailers. Global Brands will initially launch five of the most popular cocktails in the UK, made from the finest spirits and juices including Passion Fruit Martini, Pina Colada and Strawberry Daiquiri, all of which are nitro infused for a smooth, velvety texture. They will be sold alongside a pre-shaken Margarita and a sparkling Paloma that satisfy the growing appetite for tequila and tequila-based cocktails.
The launch of be. into the ever-growing premium canned cocktail market is a strategic move from the drinks giant, which already produces successful cocktail brands like Shake Baby Shake and All Shook Up. In Great Britain, the off trade RTD category is worth £529m and growing 22% year on year with premium branded cocktail cans helping to fuel this growth with a 36% increase in sales. Such is Global Brands confidence in its new brand and the RTD/RTS premium canned cocktail sector as a whole that it is supporting the launch of be. with a major marketing campaign. This will be split across off trade, on trade and consumer and incorporate marketing tactics such as PR, digital, social media and OOH. be.cocktails can also be bought directly on Amazon, Global Brands’ direct to consumer website goodtimein.co.uk and the soon-to-be-launched becocktails.com.
Alongside off trade sales, Global Brands has had great feedback from on trade ‘dark bars’, where speed of service with top quality liquids is paramount. It has already had a number of promising leads from premium bars, hotel chains and airlines.
Marketing Director at Global Brands, Matthew Bulcroft said: “As the number one off-trade canned cocktail provider, we’re already expert at what we do, and we have the infrastructure in place to do it well and at scale. We’ve invested over a year developing be. cocktails and during that time we’ve been able to bring together all the best qualities a cocktail should have into one can, using industry insights that have influenced flavours, textures, price, design and ABV.”
“We truly believe these are the best liquids we’ve ever produced and are the best in market cocktails in a can, delivering on look, taste and overall experience. They are one hundred per cent bar-quality cocktails. The range is aimed at females from 25-45 who are looking to enjoy a delicious, fresh-tasting cocktail from a can, whether they’re relaxing in the bath, having a laugh with friends or sitting on the train ahead of a big night out.”
Suja Organic
Suja Organic, the leader in cold-pressed, organic beverages, announced today the launch of Suja Organic Protein Shakes, a new line of elevated ready-to-drink (RTD) protein. It offers 16g of plant-based pea, rice and hemp protein, and convenient, transparent nutrition from plants. Available in three varieties including Vanilla Cinnamon, Chocolate and Coffee Bean. The new product offering marks Suja Organic’s entry into the fast-growing RTD protein market.
Suja Organic’s purposeful protein blends combine powerhouse whole foods, functional ingredients, essential vitamins (Vitamins A, B, C, D and E), minerals (iron, calcium and potassium), and macro-nutrients for foundational nutrition. Each shake is 200 calories, blended with almond milk and coconut cream for rich smoothness, with 3-4 grams of Acacia fibre.
Scottish producer BrewDog Distilling Co
Designed to ‘bring the bar-quality experience directly to consumers’, Wonderland Cocktails has debuted with five canned serves: Classic Mojito, Classic Margarita, Espresso Martini, Cantarito Paloma, and Passionfruit Martini. Steven Kersley, managing director of BrewDog Distilling, said: “The culmination of 18 months of work is now here in the form of Wonderland Cocktails, born from a time-honoured mission to bring our range of spirits to life in delicious, bar-quality, ready-to-drink cocktails. The range is a mixture of cocktails that we love to drink and that our customers most wanted us to create.”
The cans are said to have been designed with an ‘innovative feature’, which allows consumers to shake each of the cocktails to aerate the product and deliver a ‘smoothness’ of serve and additional texture. “We’ve made sure that these cocktails taste unlike any other canned cocktail you’ve experienced before, and that’s why our cans are slightly oversized,” Kersley explained. “We’ve left just enough space for you to shake your cocktail, creating silky flavour texture just like it would be in a bar. It’s time to go on an adventure with cocktails.”
Ketel One
The Cocktail Collection is based around classic cocktails, including a Ketel One Vodka Espresso Martini, a Ketel One Vodka Cosmopolitan and a Tanqueray Gin Negroni. The new releases join Bulleit Bourbon’s bottled Manhattan and Old Fashioned cocktails, which launched last year. “The Cocktail Collection is here just in time to make holiday hosting even more memorable,” said Nikhil Shah, Diageo brand director. “Cocktail culture continues to flourish, so it’s only natural that consumers are looking to bring elevated drink experiences into their homes. But making cocktails at home – and doing it well – can be challenging for the less experienced bartender.”
“The Cocktail Collection is here to alleviate those concerns with convenient, bar-quality cocktails from trusted brands, offering a wonderful new way to enjoy holiday celebrations together this year.”
Ready-to-drink cocktails offer a wide range of benefits, from the convenience of not having to mix your own drinks to the wide variety of choices that are available.