Every year, Market Watch Magazine sister publication Impact Newsletter salutes the top performing wine, spirits, and beer brands in the U.S. market over the past decade with its “Blue Chip” Brands awards. Amid economic fluctuations, changing consumer tastes, and geopolitical upheaval, these standout brands have continued to thrive in the drinks market over the long term. To meet Impact’s Blue Chip criteria, brands must show at least ten consecutive years of volume growth, or average annual compound growth of at least 2% from 2013 through 2023 with positive growth in at least eight of those ten years. In addition, the brands must have maintained gross margins of at least $25 million last year.
Whiskey And Tequila Shine
This year, 35 spirits brands earned Impact Blue Chip honors. All of these brands are titans of the beverage alcohol world, moving a minimum of 500,000 cases in 2023, seeing a gross margin of $25 million or more, and broadly growing over the past ten years. The 35 winning brands come from a variety of categories, with whiskies and Tequila making up 25 winners between them. Vodka notched four Blue Chip brands, and rum, RTDs, Cognac, and gin are all represented by one brand each. The final two Blue Chip spirits come from the liqueurs category.
North American whiskies led the way with 13 winners overall, including eight Bourbons, three Canadian whiskies, and two Tennessee whiskeys. The largest, Diageo’s Crown Royal, reached 7.8 million cases last year, having added more than 3.5 million cases in the last decade. The brand has been extremely successful with its flavored extensions, which have boosted sales, drawing new consumers into the franchise. The brand’s latest flavor, Blackberry, hit shelves earlier this year, joining other successful Crown extensions like Apple, Salted Caramel, and Peach. In addition to building the brand through flavors, Diageo consistently extends Crown at higher price tiers with releases like this summer’s Crown Royal Single Malt Canadian whisky. Diageo and Crown Royal have also found success with a branded line of spirits-based RTDs using Crown Royal and its flavored releases.
While Crown Royal is Diageo’s largest Blue Chip whisky by a margin of millions of cases, two portfoliomates—Bulleit and Buchanan’s— also earned honors. The brands’ paths to success have somewhat mirrored Crown’s expansion, with both Bulleit and Buchanan’s using innovative or flavored releases to appeal to wider audiences. Bulleit reached 1.75 million cases in the U.S. last year, quadrupling in size since 2013, when it was at 437,000 cases. Led by flagship Bourbon and rye whiskeys, Bulleit’s innovations include cask strength and age-stated bottlings, as well as a foray into American single malt early this year. The brand’s most recent new release is a 10-year-old bottling of its rye whiskey. “Our Bulleit 10-year-old aged whiskeys showcase the bold, spicy rye-forward flavors that define our brand. Each expression is a testament to the meticulous craft of aging,” says senior brand manager Jenika Newsum.
Buchanan’s is the third-largest blended Scotch in the U.S. at 760,000 cases and the only Scotch to earn Blue Chip honors. Last year Buchanan’s bucked the category-wide slump, growing 16%. If trends continue, Buchanan’s could be the second-largest blended Scotch in the U.S. by the end of 2024. Since 2013, Buchanan’s average annual compound growth rate has been 8.8%, a feat in a category that’s faced ten years of headwinds. While Buchanan’s has plenty of more traditional releases, like its 12- and 18-year-old blends, the current buzz around the brand is built on innovation with Buchanan’s Pineapple. Retailing at $30 a 750-ml., Buchanan’s Pineapple is made with Scotch whisky, pineapple, citrus, and other natural flavors and is bottled at 35% abv. “Buchanan’s has continued to do well off of Pineapple, and Pineapple’s really in its second year. One of the things we’re trying to do is to have innovation that is not so short-cycle, really bringing in new buyers,” says Diageo CEO Debra Crew.
Just behind Crown Royal is the second-largest Blue Chip whisk(e)y, Brown-Forman’s Jack Daniel’s. The Tennessee whiskey was at 7.45 million cases last year and averaged 3.1% growth from 2013-2023. But Jack has faced some challenges recently. For Brown-Forman’s first quarter in 2024, the company posted a decline of 4%, led by Jack Daniel’s. Looking at the wider picture, Brown-Forman remains optimistic for the year. The company is projecting net sales and operating profit growth in the range of 2%-4%. “We believe we have the right strategy, brands, and geographic breadth in place to effectively manage through the challenging consumer and cost environment,” says Brown-Forman president and CEO Lawson Whiting.
While Jack Daniel’s may be regaining its footing, portfoliomate Woodford Reserve continues to charge ahead. Last year, the brand grew to 1.42 million cases, averaging nearly 20% growth per year over the last decade. So far in 2024, the brand continues to grow, rising 5.2% in control states through October. “Woodford Reserve continues to experience growth, even amidst the tough environment for the spirits category,” says Tracey Johnson, vice president of Woodford Reserve and Old Forester at Brown-Forman. “Woodford Double Oaked still has a long runway for growth. It gained significant traction a few years ago when we redesigned the bottle to distinguish it from the core Bourbon bottle.”
Rounding out the five largest Blue Chip brands are two whiskies, Sazerac’s Fireball and Suntory Global Spirits’ Jim Beam. Fireball, the lone primarily flavored whisky to earn Blue Chip recognition, reached 7.23 million cases last year after averaging nearly 12% growth per year. The brand is offered in a variety of sizes and production methods, with both malt-based Fireball drinks and the flavored spirit-based original Fireball available. Suntory Global Spirits’ Jim Beam reached 6.1 million cases last year, capping a decade of steady growth.
While Jim Beam is Suntory’s largest brand, Maker’s Mark is its most dynamic Blue Chip whiskey. Last year, the wheated Bourbon reached 2.35 million cases, nearly double its size in 2013. The brand is the leading super-premium Bourbon in the U.S. and continues to add to its high-end credentials. Last month the brand launched its 2024 Maker’s Mark Cellar Aged expression, a blend of 15% Maker’s Mark 12-year-old and 85% Maker’s Mark 13-year-old, bottled at 59.7% abv and retailing at $175 a 750-ml. Maker’s Mark managing director Rob Samuels notes that the newcomer is the brand’s most mature Bourbon release to date. Behind Beam and Maker’s, volume considerably drops for Suntory’s remaining two Blue Chip whiskeys, Knob Creek and Basil Hayden. Both brands have been wildly successful for Suntory, with Knob Creek reaching 531,000 cases last year and Basil Hayden reaching 502,000. Both brands retail in the super-premium segment and are building out Suntory’s position as the American whiskey leader in that tier.
At nearly 4 million cases, Pernod Ricard’s Jameson is the largest Irish whiskey in the U.S. and the only Irish whiskey to earn a Blue Chip award. While the spirits market has become more challenging for Irish whiskey in the last few years, Jameson still managed an average annual compound growth rate of 7.7% for the last decade. Just behind Jameson among Blue Chip winners is Heaven Hill’s Evan Williams. The affordably-priced brand was at 3.4 million cases last year. While the brand’s biggest seller is the budget-friendly black label Bourbon, the brand is seeing growth with its higher-priced 1783 Small Batch Bourbon. The latter posted solid gains in 2023, up 10.8% to 154,000 cases, and its upswing has continued this year. “Our Evan Williams Bottled-in-Bond has been really strong both in the on-premise as well as in the off-premise,” says Heaven Hill vice president of American whiskey Susan Wahl. “The other shining star has been Evan Williams 1783 Small Batch. I think for a long time people didn’t understand what 1783 was within the Evan Williams lineup.”
Other Blue Chip whiskies are Campari America’s Wild Turkey at 1.35 million cases and Proximo’s Pendleton, the final Canadian whisky on the list after Crown Royal and Fireball. Pendleton reached 522,000 cases in 2023, averaging 12.1% growth over the last decade. The final Blue Chip whisk(e)y, Tennessee’s Ole Smoky, combines traditional Tennessee whiskey, flavored whiskies, and flavored moonshines to create a 1.25 million case portfolio that’s averaged nearly 20% growth since 2013. “Our wholesale business continues to grow across the country,” says CEO Robert Hall. “At the moment, growth is being driven by our whiskey portfolio.”
The Tequila category saw ten brands receive honors. The largest, Proximo’s Jose Cuervo, remained above 5 million cases last year after a decade of solid growth. While the bulk of its volume still comes from its value-oriented mixto Tequilas, Cuervo has received an increasing contribution from its 100% agave Tradicional tier, which is following the wider trend of 100% blue agave Tequilas at higher price points. While less than half the size of Cuervo today, Proximo’s 100% blue agave 1800 Tequila also earned a Blue Chip award. The brand grew to 2.1 million cases last year.
Behind Cuervo is Diageo’s dynamic duo of high-end Tequilas, Casamigos and Don Julio. Both brands showed category leading growth over the last decade, and both are at nearly 2.5 million cases in the U.S. Casamigos grew from 17,000 cases in 2013 to 2.45 million in 2023. Don Julio, though building from a base of 260,000, posted similarly aggressive growth, reaching 2.38 million cases in 2023. “As Tequila continues to grow its share of the total U.S. spirits industry, Don Julio leads as the No.-1 share gainer within the Tequila category,” says Diageo’s vice president of Don Julio Karen Harris, citing NABCA and Nielsen data. Amid a burst in popularity for Tequila, brands from Suntory, Campari, Brown-Forman, Bacardi, and William Grant all earned Blue Chips as well. Suntory’s Hornitos grew to 1.68 million cases. Behind it are Campari America’s Espolòn at 1.37 million, Heaven Hill’s Lunazul at 1.27 million, Brown-Forman’s El Jimador at 885,000, Bacardi’s Cazadores at 832,000, and William Grant’s Milagro at 778,000 cases.
Vodka is represented by the second-largest spirits brand in the U.S., Tito’s. The Texas vodka label reached 12.18 million cases last year with an average annual compound growth rate of 25.3% for 2013-2023. Last year, the brand saw sales grow 5%, with Frank Polley, vice president of trade marketing for Tito’s, noting that 2023 saw strong growth from Tito’s smaller format bottles, including growth for the brand’s 50-ml. format in both individual sales and 12-packs of 50-ml. bottles. Spirit of Gallo’s New Amsterdam returned to the Blue Chip list, reaching 5.35 million cases. Sazerac’s Platinum 7X returned as well, crossing 2 million cases last year, positioning itself just ahead of Heaven Hill’s Deep Eddy. Deep Eddy, another returning winner, was at 1.9 million cases for 2023. From the rum category, the lone Blue Chip brand is Pernod Ricard’s Malibu, at 3.08 million cases. For Cognac, Bacardi’s D’Ussé holds the torch at 640,000 cases, with an AACGR of 42.6%. In gin, William Grant & Sons’ Hendrick’s makes the grade, at 591,000 cases. Liqueurs saw two Blue Chip brands, with Spirit of Gallo’s RumChata at 625,000 cases and Campari’s Aperol at 547,000.
The final Blue Chip winning spirits brand is Sazerac’s Buzzballz spirits-based RTD. The category is currently one of the hottest in all of spirits but with the major players roughly 5 years old or younger, most don’t have the history to make the Blue Chip list. Buzzballz was at 1.43 million cases in 2023, and averaged 26.4% growth each year from 2013 to 2023. The brand and its parent company, Southern Champion, were purchased by Sazerac in March for an undisclosed sum with rumors valuing the brand at $1 billion.
Wine Standouts
The Blue Chip awards for the wine category include 23 winners this year, with the list split almost evenly between imports and domestic bottlings. There’s a range of styles on display, running from premium California table wine brands through European sparklers and even a wine-based cocktail label. California paces the list with 11 honorees, with Italy and New Zealand each fielding four Blue Chip brands apiece. The California contingent is led by premium boxed wine juggernauts Bota Box from Delicato and Black Box from Gallo. Bota is now cruising toward 11 million cases in the U.S., while Black Box is above 8.4 million cases, a few years after joining the Gallo fold from Constellation. Bota Box Mini in the 500-ml. segment and Bota Box Breeze in the better-for-you category have been driving outsized gains for the Bota Box brand. Mini jumped 17% to 775,000 9-liter case equivalents last year, while Breeze rose 29% to 710,000 cases in only its third year on the market. “We’re expecting another strong year of double-digit growth for both brands,” says Delicato vice president of marketing Kathy Pyrce. “The macro consumer trend of moderating alcohol intake aligns with Bota Box Mini, as the size offers convenient portion control.” Delicato’s Diamond Collection brand, acquired from Francis Ford Coppola in 2021, is among the super-premium segment’s leading domestic labels in Nielsen channels. It’s been backed by extensive ad campaigns the past two years, including this summer’s national push featuring U.S. Women’s Soccer National Team captain Lindsey Horan.
Josh Cellars, from Deutsch Family Wine & Spirits, likewise returns to the Blue Chip list, after averaging 35% growth over the past decade. According to Impact Databank, Josh is now by far the leading table wine brand in the U.S. market by retail dollar value in the $10-plus segment at over $1 billion. Earlier this year, Josh was extended with Seaswept, a blend of Sauvignon Blanc and Pinot Grigio. With a relatively low alcohol content of 11.5%, it’s made with grapes from the cooler growing regions of California and retails at $16 a 750-ml. Constellation Brands saw its Meiomi label garner Blue Chip accolades, with volume now above 1.8 million cases. Meiomi boasts the third-highest advertising spend among Blue Chip wines at $5.6 million in 2023, behind only portfoliomate Kim Crawford and Riboli Family’s Stella Rosa. Meiomi’s volume was roughly flat in control states in the year-to-date through July.
Also on the premium end of the spectrum, Duckhorn has placed two entries on the list. Longtime growth label Decoy by Duckhorn has expanded nearly sixfold in volume terms over the past ten years, now just shy of 1.5 million cases. It’s joined by Sonoma-Cutrer, which Duckhorn acquired for $400 million and stock from Brown-Forman last year. “Duckhorn wines consistently outperformed the broader $15-and-above luxury wine market as reported by Circana,” company CEO Deirdre Mahlan told analysts this summer. “While we expect to continue to take share and outpace the luxury market, we believe the softness across the industry will persist in the coming quarters.” Duckhorn announced its pending acquisition by Los Angeles-based private equity Butterfly for $1.95 billion earlier this year.
Another California wine giant, Jackson Family Wines, is represented with La Crema, which has surpassed 1.4 million cases. La Crema recently expanded into Cabernet Sauvignon with a Sonoma County appellated wine from the 2022 vintage, sourced from vineyards across the Alexander Mountain, Alexander Valley, Dry Creek Valley, and Bennet Valley regions and retailing at $45 a 750-ml. Treasury Wine Estates announced a blockbuster billion dollar deal for Paso Robles-based Daou Vineyards last year, acquiring a member of the Blue Chip honor roll. Daou has soared to above 800,000 cases in the U.S. from just 25,000 cases ten years ago. “The experience the consumer has at Daou Mountain is a big part of the success, and the distribution the brand has achieved over many years is something to be admired,” Treasury Americas president Ben Dollard says. “Our job is to continue to nurture that. I fundamentally believe there’s a very significant opportunity across the country and around the world for Daou.”
A newcomer to the Blue Chips roster is Bread & Butter from WX Brands, which averaged more than 50% growth over the past ten years to reach 1.5 million cases. Last year, Bread & Butter was the second-fastest growing table wine brand in the U.S. above $10 a 750-ml., behind only Josh Cellars. “Unlike other brands, we have multiple varietals that are successful,” WX Brands chief commercial officer Jeff Ngo says. “We have strong brand awareness within the wine category, but if you think about the overall alcohol beverage world, it’s still relatively light in terms of penetration and awareness, so there’s more room for us to grow.”
Jam Cellars, meanwhile, earned honors with its Butter label, which is poised to cross the 1-million-case mark. Earlier this year, Butter was extended with new Sauvignon Blanc and Pinot Noir bottlings, both California appellated. Retailing in the below-$20 segment, the Butter range also includes Chardonnay—its lead item—as well as ButterCans, Butter Bubbles, and Butter Cab. From the wine-based cocktails segment comes BuzzBallz Chillers. The 1.3-million-case Chillers brand joined Sazerac along with the rest of the Southern Champion portfolio this year.
Among imports, New Zealand and Italy each placed four brands on the list. From the kiwi category, Constellation’s Kim Crawford leads the way, having averaged 10% growth for the past decade. Kim Crawford is joined by Oyster Bay from Delegat USA, now above 1.2 million cases. Oyster Bay’s core Sauvignon Blanc has been among the most popular wines ordered from the Gopuff platform over the past year. Whitehaven, from Gallo, and Matua, from Treasury Wine Estates, likewise represent New Zealand, with Matua making the list for the first time.
Italy’s Blue Chips are led by 4-million-case player Stella Rosa, the second-largest imported wine brand in volume terms, and second-largest table wine brand overall by retail value among all labels selling at $10 and up, at more than $600 million. This summer, Riboli Family backed Stella Rosa with a campaign featuring singer and songwriter Prince Royce. Riboli says the new push extends its outreach to multicultural consumer groups. “Within the total wine category, multicultural consumers account for only 27% of total spending, but they contribute to 68% of spending on Stella Rosa,” the company notes, adding that 66% of Prince Royce’s fan base is Hispanic.
The other three Italian Blue Chip wines are sparklers, with Gallo’s La Marca leading the pack. La Marca averages around $16 a bottle in retail channels. The on-premise market continues to present growth opportunities for the brand. “We’ll continue to grow our footprint and by-the-glass placements in the on-premise,” says Gallo vice president of integrated marketing Amy Lund. “Operators are looking for sparkling wines by-the-glass under $20, and La Marca consistently overdelivers on quality at this price point.”
La Marca’s top competitor, Mionetto, also returns to the list. Freixenet-Mionetto USA CEO Enore Ceola told Impact that recent marketing moves have resulted in “increased share of the sparkling category in the U.S. driven by the strong performance of our leading brand, Mionetto.” Constellation also garnered honors for Ruffino Prosecco, which expanded fivefold to over a half-million cases in the past ten years.
Three French labels earned Blue Chip awards, including Champagne leader Veuve Clicquot. “The outlook for vintage and prestige Champagnes is promising,” says Scott Bowie, senior vice president of Champagne and sparkling wine at Moët Hennessy. “We’ve seen an increased interest in our higher marques year over year.” Moët Hennessy’s Chateau d’Esclans, the leading label in Provence rosé, also made the grade. So too did the namesake brand of Languedoc winemaker Gérard Bertrand, which has averaged 19% annual gains since 2013, leveraging a variety of rosé offerings within a wide portfolio from the Southwest of France.
Beer Imports, FMBs In Abundance
This year’s Blue Chips from the beer and flavored malt beverage category number nine brands, including four labels each from the imported premium and FMB segments along with one domestic light brew. Overall, these nine brands have collectively expanded nearly threefold over the past ten years to total 486 million (2.25-gallon) cases last year. There are four newly minted Blue Chip brands within the beer and FMB categories this year, including two from Mark Anthony Group: Mike’s Harder and Cayman Jack. Mike’s Harder, the higher-strength offshoot of Mike’s Hard Lemonade, has roughly tripled in size over the past decade, reaching 14.5 million cases in 2023.
Cayman Jack was only a blip on the radar screen ten years ago, but is now closing in on 10 million cases after averaging nearly 30% annual growth since 2013. In September, company veteran David Barnett was named president of Mark Anthony Brands, succeeding Phil Rosse, who assumed the new role of vice chairman. Mark Anthony is the fourth-largest beer and flavored malt beverage marketer in the U.S. at 110 million (2.25-gallon) cases, according to Impact Databank. It also has a growing spirits business, led by its forays into vodka and spirits-based cocktails under the White Claw label, along with spirits from Ireland’s Glendalough Distillery and Bearface Canadian whisky, among others.
Also in the FMB segment, Twisted Tea continues to be a growth engine for Boston Beer Co., expanding roughly six-fold to 43 million cases over the past decade. The brand’s influence continues to be seen in a number of recent launches targeting the hard tea category, including spirits-based entries such as High Noon’s vodka teas. Clubtails, from Geloso Beverage Group, likewise earned honors after averaging annual growth of 31% since 2013.
Constellation Brands counts four Blue Chip honorees from the beer segment this year, all of them imports from Mexico. Perennial Blue Chip winner Modelo Especial has continued its long-term run to the top of beer’s leaderboard in the U.S. Currently ranked third, the brand is within striking distance of overtaking Coors Light for the No.-2 position as soon as this year. Portfoliomate Modelo Chelada has surged to 22 million cases, from just 360,000 cases a decade ago. Modelo Chelada has capitalized on the popularity of Micheladas among Hispanic and, recently, general market consumers. Greg Gallagher, senior vice president of brand marketing at Constellation’s beer unit, points to the continuous launch of new flavors, as well as strong reception in both convenience and grocery stores, for driving much of the label’s growth. “We’re continuing to strengthen the media investment behind Modelo Chelada to further drive awareness and reach new consumers across both Hispanic and general markets,” Gallagher says, including both English and Spanish language media. Negra Modelo and Pacifico also earned Blue Chip awards from the Constellation portfolio, with Pacifico jumping more than threefold in the past ten years to surpass 20 million cases.
Lastly, Anheuser-Busch InBev (A-B InBev) is represented on the list with Michelob Ultra, which has averaged 10% growth annually since 2013, nearing 170 million cases. A-B InBev is extending the brand’s range with the non-alcoholic Michelob Ultra Zero. The new release will be hitting shelves in January 2025, with each 12-ounce can containing 0% abv and 29 calories.