It’s time for the holidays, and drinks players are unveiling this year’s gift sets, special products and celebratory packaging. All the products are seasonal, limited editions—some brand new, others popular returnees—and won’t last long.
Smirnoff Peppermint Twist
First launched in 2015, Smirnoff Peppermint Twist has returned to retail shelves for the holiday season. Peppermint Twist—the most festive of Smirnoff’s flavored vodkas—blends the brand’s flagship No. 21 vodka with natural peppermint flavors. The returning expression also features decorative, Scratch & Sniff packaging that has a distinct candy cane scent. As part of Peppermint Twist’s return to market, Smirnoff has launched a marketing campaign that emphasizes the seasonal expression’s usage in holiday cocktails and as a gift. Available for a limited time only, Smirnoff Peppermint Twist is priced at $15.99 a 750-ml. or $1.59 per 50-ml. mini. For additional information, visit Smirnoff.com.
Cooper & Thief Gift Set
Constellation’s Cooper & Thief wine—a category-blurring label marketed with phrasing and imagery traditionally tied to spirits—has debuted a new gift set for the holiday season. The pack, retailing at $30, includes a 750-ml. bottle of Cooper & Thief’s 2014 Bourbon barrel-aged red blend and two rocks glasses, a nod to the spirits category. For more information, visit Cooperandthief.com.
Champagne Nicolas Feuillate CityScapes
Champagne Nicolas Feuillatte, handled in the U.S. market by Ste. Michelle Wine Estates, has launched new “CityScape” gift packaging for its Brut Reserve expression for the holiday season. Feuillatte’s limited-edition gift boxes (all $36) feature the skylines U.S. cities including New York, Miami, Seattle, Chicago and Los Angeles. Feuillatte is also releasing two limited-edition Enchanted Vine bottle sleeves ($36 to $53) as well as a Star Shower tin ($36) for both the Brut Réserve and Brut Rosé Champagnes. All holiday-focused packaging is rolling out now, and will available for a limited time. Visit Nicolas-feuillatte.com for more.
Patrón Large-Format Holiday Bottle
Patrón Tequila has released its latest limited-edition, large-size bottle in time for the holiday season. Featuring imagery inspired by Mexican ceramic and textile folk art, the new one-liter offering is filled with Patrón Silver and packaged with a pewter label, metallic stopper and green gift bag. The bottle designs include interpretations of the Blue Weber agave plant and Patrón’s iconic bee. This year’s Patrón Silver One-Liter Limited Edition bottle, targeted toward gifting and party occasions, retails at $60, and marks the third edition in Patrón’s collectible holiday bottle lineup. A variety of Patrón-focused holiday cocktail recipes are accompanying the bottle’s launch. To learn more, visit Patrontequila.com.
ImpEx Beverages Advent Calendar
ImpEx Beverages is rolling out a Scotch whisky Advent calendar in the U.S. market. Each of the calendar’s 25 punch-out windows contains a 50-ml. bottle of Scotch whisky made from single casks sourced from a variety of distilleries, some of which don’t normally release single malt expressions under their own label. The final expression, to be opened on December 25th, is aged for at least 30 years. According to ImpEx president Sam Filmus, most of the Scotch whiskies in the calendar have never been on the market before, and never will be again; they’re single-barrel expressions exclusive to the calendar. The Scotch Whisky Advent Calendar also includes a unique whisky glass, collector’s gift, tasting note booklet and distillery postcards. Though this is the calendar’s fourth edition, it’s the first time it’s been available to American consumers. The suggested retail price is $560. ImpEx is also making limited quantities of the second, third and fourth editions available—with 100 units of the second and 200 units each for the third and fourth editions—allocated to California, Massachusetts, Illinois, Maryland, Delaware, Tennessee, Colorado and Washington, D.C. For additional information, visit Impexbev.com.
Dogfish Head Holiday Variety Pack
Delaware craft brewer Dogfish Head has released a 12-bottle variety pack of IPAs for the holiday season. The sampler contains three bottles each of four different ales: Sixty One (6-percent abv), a blend of Dogfish Head 60 Minute IPA and Syrah grape must exclusive to the pack; 60 Minute IPA (6-percent abv); 90 Minute IPA (9-percent abv); and Indian Dark Brown IPA (7.2-percent abv). Retail priced at $22, the Holiday Variety Pack—launched with the tagline, “IPAs for the Holidays”—is available across Dogfish Head’s distribution network for a limited time. Additional information can be found at Dogfish.com.