Importer appoints new team
28-Aug-2008
Drinks importer PLB has made four new appointments as it bids to expand the company's presence in the on-trade.Headed up by sales managers Jonathan...
Guinness proves to be good for Diageo
28-Aug-2008 By Hamish Champ
Guinness producer Diageo has announced net sales for the year up eight per cent to £8.1bn.Driven primarily by growth in its international markets,...
New ad campaign for Gordon's
27-Aug-2008
Diageo is launching a £3.5m marketing campaign for Gordon's gin, extending the brand's partnership with Gordon Ramsay.The campaign includes press,...
Red Square Reloaded falls foul of watchdog's code
22-Aug-2008 By James Wilmore
The producer of vodka-based drink Red Square Reloaded is being forced into changing the drink's packaging - to make it clear it contains alcohol....
22-Aug-2008 By Ewan Turney
Alcopop Red Square Reloaded has been ordered to alter its packaging to make it clear the drink contains alcohol. Industry watchdog Portman Group's...
Premium spirits brands' value increases 4.3 per cent
19-Aug-2008
The value of premium spirits brands' sales in the on-trade has increased by 4.3 per cent in the past year, according to research group CGA...
07-Aug-2008 By Ewan Turney
Drinks giant Diageo has announced plans for a £65m bioenergy facility at Scotland's largest distillery. The facility at the Cameronbridge Distillery...
07-Aug-2008 By Jessica Harvey
This month, Diageo kicks off a £4m campaign to encourage new ways of serving and drinking Smirnoff vodka. The television, print, digital and...
Focus South West: A decent proposal
05-Aug-2008
There comes a point when every old swinger looks in the mirror, sees those dyed locks, that gold medallion and the skin-tight trousers and realises...
Diageo to acquire stake in Cobra Beer
30-Jul-2008
Diageo is in talks to acquire a 30 per cent stake in Cobra Beer, according to reports.The move, likely to cost Diageo around £30m, would see the...
Consumers tired of celeb-based marketing
25-Jul-2008
Brands should stop basing marketing campaigns around sports, music and TV stars as consumers are becoming fed up of celebrity marketing, according to...
Pernod Ricard completes Absolut acquisition
24-Jul-2008
Pernod Ricard (P-R) has completed its £4.4bn acquisition of Vin + Sprit, owner of Absolut vodka.The French spirits giant has added the Absolut...
Making its Mark on the bourbon market
23-Jul-2008
BOURBON IS struggling like most other categories in the UK spirits market but retains the image of a sexy young stud up against the rather more...
Diageo welcomes alcohol consultation
22-Jul-2008 By James Wilmore
Diageo, the world's largest drinks firm, says using current laws around alcohol and wider information campaigns are the way forward for tackling...
Diageo invests £600,000 in staff training
22-Jul-2008
Diageo is investing £600,000 in a new training programme for bar staff in August, claiming well-served spirits can provide a crucial point of...
17-Jul-2008 By Jessica Harvey
As part of this year's £15m investment in its namesake brand, Bacardi will kick off a summer campaign pushing mojito sales across the on-trade this...
Stirring stuff for cocktails
17-Jul-2008
US cocktail brand Stirrings has plans to up its UK presence to tap into the "discerning drinker" who is "interested in drinking better, not drinking...
Bacardi's mojito moves
17-Jul-2008
As part of this year's £15m investment in its namesake brand, Bacardi will kick off a summer campaign pushing mojito sales across the on-trade this...
Drinks suppliers on the smoking ban
16-Jul-2008
It is not an exaggeration to call the smoking ban the biggest and most significant piece of legislation to hit the pub trade since the Beer...
New Bacardi campaign based around Mojito
14-Jul-2008
Bacardi is putting its faith in the Mojito to drive the rum category, launching a summer-long consumer marketing campaign and bar staff training...
Raising summer spirits
11-Jul-2008
With hotter days and nights, consumers are more likely to want to head out to the pub to enjoy the sunshine with friends and family and less likely...
Smells like teen spirit
10-Jul-2008
Fifteen teenagers sit in a classroom transfixed by a video in which teacher Barbara Pierce describes how her life was changed forever by a...
Raising the spirits
10-Jul-2008
The rise of premium and super-premium varieties of gin is creating a major buzz in pubs. Richard Woodard reports The rekindled interest in gin has...
Three steps to gin nirvana
10-Jul-2008
Step one: The perfect serve. Use a good highball glass — 12oz or 14oz; fill it with ice (too few cubes and it won't stay cold); add your measure of...
Smirnoff to trial new fruit flavours
10-Jul-2008 By Jessica Harvey jessica.harvey@william-reed.co.uk
Diageo has begun a six-month trial of two new vodka flavours, Lime Smirnoff and Green Apple Smirnoff, in a select number of pubs and bars in Bristol....
Harveys encourages modern serve for sherry
04-Jul-2008
Beam Global UK has launched the second phase of an initiative to encourage consumers to drink sherry in a modern way - chilled, in contemporary...
New marketing campaigns for Newcastle Brown and Scrumpy Jack
02-Jul-2008
Heritage Drinks, the joint venture established between Scottish and Newcastle and Jygsaw Brands last November, has announced new marketing...
First Drinks relaunches Taboo
01-Jul-2008
Vodka fusion drink Taboo, distributed in the UK by First Drinks Brands, has been given a makeover and a summer marketing campaign will complement the...
Maxxium relaunches Sourz
30-Jun-2008
Maxxium UK has re-launched Sourz with a new bottle design and a new variant, Sourz Blackcurrant.The moves are part of a £4m budget set aside for the...
Clerehugh does a Gordon Ramsay
26-Jun-2008
Yes, it's true and Snifter was there. Speaking at the BII's Better Business Roadshow held at Denbies Vineyard in sedate Surrey, celebrity chef and...
MP targets vodka shot cocktails
19-Jun-2008
An MP has claimed a new range of alcopop drinks are being marketed in a design aimed at glamourising teenage drinking. Labour member for Northampton...
Sarah Lewis, Diageo GB
12-Jun-2008
Promoting responsible drinking should be a key consideration for any outlet licensed to sell alcohol. Contrary to popular belief, educating customers...
Diageo completes Ketel One deal
11-Jun-2008
Diageo and The Nolet Group, the family-owned distiller of Ketel One vodka have completed the transaction to form a new 50/50 company that will own...
09-Jun-2008
Polish vodka Wyborowa has launched a new tongue in cheek campaign to tell consumers "there's no V in Wodka". The campaign represents the largest...
Speciality spirits: Success for sambuca
06-Jun-2008
"Sambuca is an Italian aniseed-flavoured, usually colourless liqueur. Its most common variety is often referred to as white sambuca in order to...
03-Jun-2008 By Noli Dinkovski
Martini has launched its first on-trade campaign for 15 years and has added a new rosé-style variant. The campaign, a £2m spend, focuses on...
Beam global launches premium tequila range
02-Jun-2008
Beam Global UK has launched a range of 100 per cent agave tequilas, a growing premium sub-sector, with the agave content denoting the quality of the...
West Eleven teams up with Bibendum
30-May-2008
Drinks wholesaler Bibendum is getting behind the on-trade launch of West Eleven, a new range of pre-mixed, premium cocktails.The West Eleven range...
30-May-2008 By Ewan Turney
Diageo has announced that Guinness ad Bushmills will be commercial sponsors of the British & Irish Lions Tour of South Africa in 2009. Guinness...
30-May-2008
InterContinental Brands (ICB) has launched the first alcoholic smoothie and will back it with two TV sponsorship deals
Frosty Jack's ties with MTV & ITV2
29-May-2008
Aston Manor has tied up Frosty Jack's cider with comedy shows across two Freeview television channels. The £500,000 investment, which will cover...
Guinness and Bushmills to sponsor Lions
28-May-2008
Guinness and Bushmills have today been announced as commercial partners of the British & Irish Lions Tour of South Africa in 2009. Guinness, as...
Bushmills enjoying life under Diageo
27-May-2008
You know you've made it when you get yourself on a banknote. Just imagine how many hands your picture will pass through in the course of a day. But...
Early closing for Bucks vodka bar
22-May-2008 By The PMA Team
Police praise Inventive 'responsible view' Inventive Leisure has agreed to close earlier at a second Revolution vodka-bar site to tackle antisocial...
'Tesco refuses to sell alcohol to adults with children'
15-May-2008
Tesco is refusing to sell alcohol to parents shopping with their children under rules designed to tackle underage drinking. The supermarket has told...
Keeping spirits up
14-May-2008
RANGEWhen thinking about your range, your customers and the reason why they are in your outlet should be taken into consideration.Two main factors...
09-May-2008 By Ewan Turney
But St James's Gate brewery will still brew for British and Irish market
250 jobs to go as Diageo revamps Irish brewing operation
09-May-2008 By Hamish Champ
Diageo said it expects around 250 jobs to go following a proposed £520m investment and restructuring programme across its Irish brewing...
Diageo sales on track
08-May-2008
The global credit crunch appears to have had little impact on Diageo, with the world's biggest spirits company reporting sales growth of seven per...
Caribbean rum to step up to marque
02-May-2008
The West Indies Rum & Spirits Producers' Association (WIRSPA) has unveiled a new initiative to support and promote Authentic Caribbean Rum (ACR)...
