Jack Daniel’s leads whiskies category as top three unchanged

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Whisky business: the top nine brands saw no change to their overall positions from last year (credit: Getty/Annabelle Breakey)

While none of the top 10 whiskies on this year’s drinks list showed any growth in volume or value on last year, the top three selling brands have stayed the same.

The most likely cause of this lack of growth was a combination of lockdowns and rising inflation but despite this Jack Daniel’s, Famous Grouse and Bells have retained first, second and third place on The Drinks List - top brands to stock in 2022.

Jack Daniel’s saw a 33.1% drop in sales of 9-litre cases, which were down from 139,775 last year to 93,537 this year, and a 31.5% drop in value while its Tennessee Whiskey Honey Liqueur counterpart saw sales and value fall by 28.8% and 27.7%, respectively.

Number 2 on the list, Famous Grouse, saw the biggest drop in sales of 9-litre cases, 48%, (down from 79,296 last year to 41,204 this year) and a drop in value of 45.3% (down from £73.7m last year to £40.3m this year).

Monkey Shoulder joins list

Monkey Shoulder, which came in at number 10, saw sales of 9-litre cases down from 6,098 last year to 4,863 this year and a drop in value of 20.9%, although this was the lowest drop in sales on the list.

Bell’s, which came in at number 3, saw a 39.5% drop in sales of 9-litre cases, down from 51,161 last year to 30,937 this year, and a drop in value of £18.4m to £30m (38%), followed by Jameson, which saw a drop in volume of 34.5% and a drop in value of 32.7%.

Johnnie Walker Black Label 12-year-old saw sales of 9-litre cases fall from 17,749 to 11,995 (32.6%) while its value fell by 32.7% from £24.8m to £16.7m and its Red Label whiskey saw sales drop from 8,4149lc to 5,7119lc  (32.1%) and value fall from £11.7m to £8.3m (29.5%).

Whyte and Mackay saw a drop in volume of 43.8%, the second biggest drop on this year’s Drinks List, with sales of 9-litre cases falling from 13,571 to 7,626, with a drop in value from £9m to £5m (45%), and Maker’s Mark Kentucky Bourbon its volume sales drop by 35.6% and its value fall by 35%, from £11.8m to £7.7m.

  • All data provided by CGA for the 12 months to 9 October 2021
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