Labatt Breweries of Canada announced this week that it has acquired Delta’s Goodridge & Williams – a distillery that makes the Nutrl vodka and vodka soda drinks, along with several other spirits and mixed drinks.
“The ready-to-drink category in Canada has grown by double digits in recent years,” said Labatt president Kyle Norrington in an email, citing industry data from the past three years that tracked the rise of pre-mixed drinks, like vodka sodas and gin and tonics.
The vodka soda market, in particular, saw triple-digit growth over the past three years, he said, he added.
That presents a contrast to the overall beer industry. Domestic and imported beer sales fell 0.3 per cent from 2017 to 2018, according to Beer Canada, a trade association. Meanwhile, per capita consumption fell 1.2 per cent to 74.6 litres in 2018, according to its most recent figures.
That drop isn't new. In 2011, Canadian beer consumption per capita was 83.4 litres, according to a 2017 report from market-research firm Mintel. By 2016, it was 76.9 litres — a trend the firm said partly came thanks to Canada's growing senior population drinking less beer.
Beer makers are embracing other alcoholic products, especially those in the rising ready-to-drink category, to combat sluggish beer performance.
Last October, Montreal-based Molson Coors Brewing Co. announced a restructuring effort that includes changing its name to Molson Coors Beverage Co. as it focuses on expanding beyond beer.
The company will work quickly to push into the spaces of premium ciders, hard seltzer and CBD-infused, non-alcoholic drinks, said the company's CEO Gavin Hattersley at the time.
Labatt also jumped on this trend when, back in late 2015, the company announced it was adding ready-to-drink brands Mike's Hard Lemonade, Palm Bay and some ciders to its portfolio.
The G&W acquisition furthers its offerings in this space.
The distillery's Nutrl vodka soda was among the first products that responded to a shift in consumer preferences to low-calorie beverages, said Labatt's Norrington, also highlighting that the products lack added sugar and preservatives, and have a small number of ingredients.
The distillery's founder Paul Meehan said in an email: “Nutrl is currently the fastest growing vodka soda ready-to-drink beverage and represents close to half of the vodka soda segment. Considering the growth of the category and the segment we see continued growth opportunities for this brand.”
He will continue to lead operations there, and all 15 employees will retain their jobs. They will work to create new products.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 27, 2020
