2016 Market Watch Best New Spirits Brand: Jameson Caskmates

Pernod Ricard’s beer barrel–finished Irish whiskey has resonated with consumers.

Jameson Caskmates depleted 42,000 cases in its first partial year on the market.
Jameson Caskmates depleted 42,000 cases in its first partial year on the market.

Jameson has dominated the Irish whiskey category for decades, with its core Original label taking most of the share. Various line extensions for the Pernod Ricard–owned brand have come and gone over the years, but few have seen such immediate success as Jameson Caskmates ($29.99 a 750-ml. bottle). Launched in August 2015, the expression features Jameson Original that has been finished in a stout cask from Cork, Ireland–based Franciscan Well Brewery. The offering depleted 42,000 cases in its first partial year, and Impact Databank projects depletions of 100,000 cases for 2016. Retailers have cited Caskmates as a major driver of Irish whiskey sales in the past year. “The demand is enormous,” Jameson head cooper Ger Buckley told Market Watch earlier this year, noting that Jameson has extended Caskmates via hyper-local partnerships with U.S. craft breweries. Through the Jameson Caskmates Drinking Buddies program, breweries such as Denver’s Great Divide Brewing Co. and Brooklyn, New York’s KelSo Brewing Co. will release limited-edition beers aged in Jameson barrels. Pernod Ricard recently announced another line extension, the Jameson Maker’s Series. The first variant, Cooper’s Croze ($69.99), launched in late August, with two additional expressions to follow. Sona Bajaria, Pernod Ricard’s vice president of marketing for high-end Irish whiskey, told Market Watch in a recent interview, “Our premiumization strategy is based on understanding consumers’ desire to enjoy Jameson on multiple occasions and at different venues.”