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There are a lot of new mainstream beer items coming to our market area for Spring/Summer. Bud Light Lime-A-Rita tastes great, but customers might be tempted to pour the bottles into their blender with ice to make a blended margarita. Anheuser-Busch is also coming out with Mich Ultra 19th Hole Tea/Lemonade. I drank it last week, it has a strong tea flavor and a very mild lemon/lemonade flavor. Very refreshing for those that drink tea. Mike’s is bringing out Strawberry Margarita in 6pks. Sam Adams decided to get into the growing Cider business and is launching Angry Orchard Ciders. I am starting with the Crisp Apple variety for my stores to introduce the brand to our customers. We will continue to see lots of new items, so if you are in the mood to try something new, there will be plenty of options in the stores.
Vodka is the largest selling category in spirits, and flavored vodka’s have always kept up with the latest trends like Cranberry, Lime, Pomegranate, etc… But there are some new unique flavors that I had my doubts about, but they taste incredible and are selling well. We have Pinnacle Cherry Lemonade, Pinnacle Whipped Cream Vodka, UV Cake Vodka (tastes like cake and frosting!), UV Sweet Tea Vodka, UV Espresso Vodka, Three Olives “Dude” Lemon-Lime Vodka (to mix with Mt Dew), Burnett’s Fruit Punch Vodka, and coming next month Smirnoff Coconut Vodka and Burnett’s Whipped Cream Vodka. They are different for sure, but you have to give them a try. Most mix well with Coke or Pineapple Juice.
Crown Imports brought a new Mexican beer to the U.S. this year in a few select markets. They launched it in Texas, California, Chicago and some downstate IL areas, and the Carolinas. It is called Victoria Beer. It is the #1 selling beer in Mexico. I had a chance to drink this item this week. It is an outstanding beer. Very smooth and easy to drink. If you like Corona, you have to try this. If you don’t like Corona because it has a “skunky taste” you need to try this. If you like hoppy IPA’s, you won’t like this because it won’t have enough flavor for you. We are currently selling it in these markets in downstate IL – Monmouth, Pekin, Bloomington, Springfield and Sterling. These are the only markets we can get it at this time. If you are fortunate to live in or near one of these areas, get out to County Market or Cub Foods (Bloomington) and give this beer a try. Victoria Beer available in 6pk Bottles only. Take care.
The Moscato craze is as big as White Zinfandel was years ago. White Zinfandel was made by accident when Zinfandel grapes were removed from tanks early and created a pink wine. They added sugar for sweetness and White Zinfandel grew to become the #1 varietal for many years. Moscato was no accident. The Muscat grape has been used for years in Sparkling wines. Our #1 Sparkling Wine, M&R Asti, is actually made with 100% Muscat Grapes from the Asti region of Italy, it just never called itself a Moscato D’ Asti. You can find Moscato’s that have “frizzante” or bubbles in our sparkling sections, or if you don’t want bubbly, there are several to choose from in the misc. white sections. They all taste great, with just the right amount of sweetness. I have found that the Italian Moscato’s have a little more flavor and crispness than the California ones. Yellow Tail Moscato is new from Australia and it has just a touch of bubbles which makes it unique and very popular. Other popular Moscato’s are Barefoot Cellars, Beringer, Jacob’s Creek and many more. Pick up a bottle today, chill it down and give it a taste. I think you will be pleased.
I received a couple 12pk Bottles as samples of this new line extension from MillerCoors, and it is a great product. MGD 64 Lemonade is a 64 calorie beer with lemonade flavor. Last year, I really enjoyed Leinekugel Summer Shandy, which is a similar lemonade flavored beer, but they do taste different. Sometime in the next month when you are outdoors on a hot night grilling and enjoying a beer – You must try MGD 64 Lemonade, a refreshing lighter beer that tastes incredible. We will have these available across all stores in 6pk Bottles and 12pk Bottles.
Let’s talk about Malbec today. This is an original French grape varietal that was traded to South America hundreds of years ago and now is grown almost exclusively in Argentina and Chile. When I heard about the push on this varietal I figured the big companies just found a cheap grape to put in a bottle, but Malbec is GREAT! Malbec tastes very similar to a Cabernet Sauvignon or a Merlot. If you drink Cab, you will find a Malbec to have less tannins and be a little softer. If you drink Merlot, you will find a Malbec to have a little more complexity and a fuller finish with stronger fruit notes. The Malbec’s I have authorized for our chain have all been taste approved by me, I have rejected dozens (my competitors haven’t). I only have Argentine Malbec’s available at this time plus 2 from Chile, and none from California. True there are some decent ones coming from California now, but to get a true picture of what a great Malbec tastes like, stick with South American Malbecs. Any of the Malbec’s in our store in the $8.99-$14.99 range will satisfy. Check one out!
Sorry I haven’t posted for a month, I went into hiding until Spring arrived. Anyway, lots of great new items coming to our stores in March. Let’s focus on liquor for this blog. If you haven’t tried Jim Beam Red Stag you need to try it, but more of the cherry bourbons are on their way – Evan Williams Cherry Bourbon and Seagrams 7 Crown Stone Cherry Whiskey. We also have a new ChocoVine coming. It is ChocoVine Raspberry! Also, check out the “Dude”. Three Olives is bringing us “Dude” Lemon Lime Flavored Vodka. Mixes well with Mt. Dew or other white soda’s. Thanks for following my blog, I’ll get back to you in a couple weeks. Marty the Liquor Guy.
Vodka is over 30% of all hard liquor sales across the U.S. The reason is because Vodka has the best mixability. Good vodka is odorless, tasteless and colorless. Starting next week we have both Smirnoff Vodka and Flavors and UV Vodka and Flavors in our ad across our IL Supermarket chain. There is so much you can do with vodka for your SuperBowl party. The mixing options are endless. The UV flavors are colored, so you can mix UV Pink Lemonade with white soda or ginger ale for a great drink. The Blue Raspberry is the #1 seller and can also be mixed with white soda, ginger ale and even fruit drinks. Great recipe ideas on www.thebar.com or the UV Vodka website. You can’t have a SuperBowl party without vodka, and next week is a great week to pick up a few bottles in our stores while they are in ad at GREAT prices. Thanks,
Have you ever experienced Menage A Trois Red Wine? It is one of our top sellers, and I haven’t seen the latest Nielsen data, but it was close to becoming the #1 selling red wine in the entire State of IL. If you are a premium Cab or Zin drinker this probably won’t be your style, but for other red wine drinkers that enjoy Cab, Zin, Merlot or Pinot Noir, give this a try. It is a blend of 3 grapes. Zinfandel gives it some character, Merlot softens it up and rounds it out and Cabernet Sauvignon gives it some backbone. It is aged in French and American Oak Barrels so they have spent some time giving this wine time to mature. You can get this in our stores for $10! Enjoy your Menage A Trois experience!
There a lot of great sparkling wines to choose from for your New Year’s party, it really depends on how much you want to spend. Our #1 selling Sparkling for 7 years running is M&R Asti Spumante. Retails from $9.99-$12.99. A secret about this wine – It is made from 100% Moscato Bianco grapes from the Asti region of Italy, making it an actual “Moscato D’ Asti”. People have been loving Moscato D’ Asti’s this year and we have added several to our shelves – Bartenura, Luccio, Castello Del Poggio, Batasiolo, etc… They are all very sweet and everyone enjoys them except those few that can’t drink extra sweet wines. Funny that our #1 selling Sparkling all along is also a Moscato D’ Asti, just not labeled that way. Another secret – Brut is drier than Extra Dry. If you want a mildly dry Champagne or Sparkling Wine, select an Extra Dry, they are very popular. A Brut is richer and more dry and confuses a lot of people. Korbel is a great brand for either Brut or Extra Dry, and they even have a Sweet Rose which is a dry Rose. Lastly, if you want a Spanish “Cava” we carry Freixenet Negro Brut that is a top selling Spanish “Cava”. Happy New Year to all and here’s to a great 2011.
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