agave loco

Boston-based Latitude Beverage has launched Tequila Zarpado, the first agave spirit in the company’s portfolio. The release was distilled at Cavas de Don Max from 100% blue agave and will initially be available as a Blanco expression. The 40% abv Tequila will retail for around $25 a 750-ml. and will be available in Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Jersey, New York, and Rhode Island.

Agave Loco has announced the national release for RumChata Limón. The 14% abv liqueur is a blend of Caribbean rum and cream with added vanilla and lemon flavoring. In addition to making Limón available across the U.S., the company has added new sizes—a 375-ml. bottle ($16) and a 3-pack of 100-ml. bottles ($12)—to the roster. RumChata Limón is also available in 750-ml. bottles for around $22 at retail.

Jackson, Mississippi’s Cathead Distillery has launched Bitter Orange vodka, the first flavored innovation for the company’s Cathead vodka in eight years. The 35% abv spirit is made with Bitter Orange and Satsuma extract and bottled without any added sugar. It joins the unflavored original vodka and two flavors—honeysuckle and pecan—in Cathead’s vodka portfolio. Cathead Bitter Orange vodka is now available in select retailers across the U.S. at around $20 a 750-ml. and $27 a liter.

Bombay Sapphire gin has launched a line of canned cocktails. The new ready-to-drink offerings—Bombay Sapphire Gin & Tonic and Bombay Sapphire Gin & Tonic Light—mark the Bacardi brand’s entry into the canned cocktail space. The cocktails are packaged in 4-packs of 250-ml. cans, retail priced at $13. Bombay Sapphire canned cocktails are currently rolling out nationwide.

The Dubliner Irish Whiskey is launching The Dubliner Beer Cask Irish Whiskey. The release was created in partnership with Massachusetts craft brewer Wachusett Brewing Company. First, the distiller shipped casks used for its Bourbon Cask Aged Irish Whiskey to Wachusett to use to create a barrel aged version of its Quinn’s Amber Ale. Then the brewer shipped back the now-beer soaked casks to Dubliner for its release. Dubliner Beer Cask is now available in Massachusetts and surrounding New England markets like Rhode Island and Connecticut.

Louisville, Kentucky’s Barrell Craft Spirits has launched Seagrass, a new blend of American and Canadian rye whiskies. The release comes in at 59.2% abv and is blended from whiskies finished in Martinique Rhum Agricole casks, apricot brandy casks, and Madeira barrels. The American component of Seagrass is sourced from Indiana and no age statements were disclosed. Seagrass is now available in 45 markets across the U.S. for a suggested price of $90 a 750-ml.

County Down, Ireland’s Two Stacks Irish whiskey has launched Dram in a Can, a new 43% whiskey packaged in 100-ml. cans. The whiskey is blended from Irish grain whiskey, single pot still whiskey, and peated malt whiskey. Four-packs of 100-ml. cans are now available across the U.S. for around $19. Looking ahead, the company plans to release the canned whiskey in 750-ml. bottles alongside Two Stacks Blender’s Cut, a 65% abv brand offshoot. Two Stacks Dram in a Can is imported by High Road Spirits.

Versailles, Kentucky-based Woodford Reserve is releasing its annual high-proof expression for 2021. Woodford Reserve Batch Proof, part of Woodford’s Master’s Collection, was bottled this year at 128.3 proof (approximately 64% abv). It comes in a new bottle, which features a long neck and rounded shoulders. This limited-edition release is available in select U.S. markets for a suggested price of $130 a 750-ml. and can be purchased at the Brown-Forman-owned Woodford Reserve Distillery.

Diageo has launched Cîroc Summer Citrus, the latest flavored offshoot for the grape-distilled vodka brand. The 35% abv spirit is infused with orange and other citrus flavors, and comes packaged in a multicolor bottle meant to evoke summer. Cîroc Summer Citrus is now available for a limited time across the U.S. for a suggested price of $34 a 750-ml. Last year, Cîroc slipped an estimated 2.2% to 1.35 million cases in the U.S., according to Impact Databank.

Courtesy of Shanken News Daily

Pewaukee, Wisconsin-based Agave Loco has released Tippy Cow—a new range of rum-infused cream liqueurs—in select U.S. markets. Featuring four “old-fashioned” flavor profiles, the Tippy Cow lineup includes Orange Cream, Chocolate, Vanilla Soft Serve and Shamrock Mint expressions, all of which can be served neat or mixed with spirits or coffee. Each 14%-abv entry is blended with Caribbean rum and Wisconsin dairy cream, and packaged in a traditional milk bottle. Tippy Cow will initially be available across 22 states, priced at $16.99 a 750-ml. and $1.49 a 50-ml.

Terlato Wines has added the rare single malt, single-cask Scotch whiskies of Adelphi Distillery Ltd. to its artisan spirits portfolio, signing an exclusive long-term agreement to import and market Adelphi’s aged Scotches in the U.S. market. Adelphi, based in the Scottish Highlands, sources and bottles an exclusive collection of super-premium single malt Scotches from some of Scotland’s most storied distilleries. “Each independent bottler has its own signature style,” said Whisky Advocate in a recent issue. “Adelphi’s is about relaxed, contemplative drams with rich maturity and a certain seriousness.” Terlato will release limited quantities of Adelphi Scotch whiskies four times each year. The inaugural Adelphi Selection release will feature four offerings: Highland Park, 14 Years Old (suggested retail price: $170); Bunnahabhain, 21 Years Old ($220); Glen Grant, 23 Years Old ($285); and BenRiach, 32 Years Old ($475).

Pernod Ricard USA is introducing two new single pot still Irish whiskies in the U.S., both crafted at Midleton Distillery Co. in Cork. The first, Redbreast 21-year-old ($250), is triple distilled in copper pot stills and matured in a combination of American Bourbon barrels and first fill Spanish Oloroso Sherry casks. The second, Green Spot ($50), is comprised of pot still whiskey aged between seven and ten years, matured in a combination of new Bourbon and Sherry casks. Both whiskies will be available in limited quantities in the U.S. market beginning March 1.

Courvoisier Cognac, part of the Beam Inc. stable, is launching a new limited edition, L’Essence Year of the Horse. Part of the L’Essence de Courvoisier series that debuted in 2010, L’Essence Year of the Horse is a blend of rare eaux-de-vie that commemorates Chinese New Year. Rolling out this month, the new entry is packaged in a Baccarat crystal decanter engraved with an image of Napoleon on his horse. Each bottle is showcased in a wooden trunk and will be sold in the U.S. and other international markets in an exclusive, individually numbered series, retailing at around $3,500.

Illinois-based A. Hardy USA is targeting the prestige Cognac market with a new release, A. Hardy Printemps. A blend of Grande Champagne Cognacs dating back to the 1920s, A. Hardy Printemps is the first offering in a series of four rare Cognacs that will be released in Lalique crystal carafes at two-year intervals. Printemps, of which 400 carafes were produced, is aimed primarily at the U.S., Canada and China markets, retailing at $14,000 a 750-ml.

Zeiler Spirits’ Coldcock American Whiskey is adding several new markets in the first quarter, including Arizona, Maryland and Washington, D.C. in January, with Texas, Colorado, North Dakota and South Dakota to follow. The expansion will bring Coldcock’s footprint to 15 U.S. markets. The herbal whiskey brand ($19.99 a 750-ml.), which is targeting music and extreme sports events with its marketing, launched last September.

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Debuting nationally this month, Captain Morgan White Rum is 80-proof and retails at $15.99 a 750-ml. Diageo says it’s backing the launch with a “robust marketing mix,” including television, print and online ads.