The Flavored Whiskey Boom

Flavored whiskies weren’t invented with Fireball, despite what American college kids might think. Even that drink has been around since the 1980s, though it was only in 2013 that sales rocketed when it became the beverage of choice for kids who like to drink to get drunk, and of course drink anything their parents didn’t.

No, way before Fireball, way back in 1893, the name Drambuie was first registered as a trademark. Its history goes back even further, but is it a liqueur or a flavored whiskey?

‘We find that Drambuie is referred to as neither a whisky nor a liqueur,’ says Drambuie’s Global Ambassador, Freddy May. ‘It’s just Drambuie, though technically it needs to be put in a category that USA and EU food and drink regulators can use, so you find liqueur written on the bottle.’

In fact a liqueur is simply a distilled spirit that’s been flavored with something, so you could call gin a liqueur if you wanted to. Drambuie is simply Scotch whisky that’s been flavored with honey and the inevitable secret recipe of herbs and spices. Although many people like it neat, May thinks otherwise.

‘A classic brand like Drambuie offers a rich tapestry of herbs and spices best used in cocktails,’ he says. ‘Drambuie is essentially an orchestra of spices, herbs and real honey blended with Scotch. Think about the cocktails people are buying now and these flavors are ripe for thoughtfully-made drinks. Bartenders the world over know Drambuie and I trust the International Bartenders Association when they voted the Rusty Nail as one of 30 unforgettable cocktails.’

The Flavored Whiskey Boom

Wild Turkey has made its American Honey liqueur for over twenty years, ever since the Master Distiller Jimmy Russell was determined to make a drink that his wife would like. She didn’t like their bourbon so he sweetened it with honey and a few other things till she liked it, and it remains their second-best seller in all of their range.

Jack Daniel’s is another of the big names that has a honey flavor in their portfolio, with their Tennessee Honey line alongside Winter Jack and Tennessee Fire.

‘Winter Jack is 30-proof seasonal apple cider liqueur sold from October to December,’ says the company’s Global PR Manager Svend Jansen. ‘It’s great for gifting and holiday entertainment. Jack Honey and Jack Fire are 70 proof honey/cinnamon liqueurs blended with Jack Daniel’s Tennessee Whiskey. These two brands are a great entry point for non-traditional whiskey drinkers by appealing to two entirely different tastes.’

It isn’t only big names that are benefitting from the flavored whiskey boom. Smaller distillers like Bird Dog have built a reputation on flavors. Their very first release was a Blackberry Whiskey, which won a Gold Medal at the 2010 San Francisco World Spirits Competition.

‘Our most popular flavors have been Blackberry and Peach,’ says Bird Dog’s Vice President of Marketing, Jon Holecz. ‘Blackberry was the original concept for Bird Dog Whiskey, but peach was released two years later. Peach has been a very popular flavor for us around the country! We’ve tried to create a range that appeals to all types of palates. From fruit flavor offerings like Peach, Blackberry, and Apple, to seasonal favorites like our hot cinnamon, maple, and peppermint moonshine, through to our options which include a Jalapeño Honey.’

Holecz remains very optimistic about the flavored whiskey market and doesn’t see it going the way of flavored vodkas.

‘Flavored whiskey still has lot of room for expansion, and should continue to grow over the next five-ten years,’ Holecz says.

And did the recent boom in flavoried whiskies surprise him, given that Bird Dog has been making them for over five years now.

‘Not at all. With the vodka category expansion years ago and a high interest from new whiskey drinkers, the flavored whiskey category was the perfect fit for a boom. And to help the boom, bourbon has been on fire for the past two years and shows a ton more opportunity for growth.’