Flavoured vodka is one of the fastest growing segments in the United States spirits industry according to US market research firm, Technomic, in its recent Trends in Adult Beverage report. The report showed that flavoured vodka sales of 9-litre cases increased by 3.3 Million during 2011, with flavoured vodka fuelling the ongoing growth of the US vodka industry.

It was reported that almost three-quarters of new vodka products introduced in the US in 2011 were flavoured vodka products. Although all of the flavoured vodka portfolios grew in 2011, Technomic reported that Smirnoff Vodka was the market leader.

Eric Schmidt, director of research for Technomic’s Adult Beverage Resource Group, said that the growth of the flavoured vodka segment was attributed to a variety of price points and continuous innovation of flavours.

“Innovation around flavors is non-stop, which means suppliers are keeping consumers engaged by constantly bringing new offerings to the marketplace. Flavored vodka is one of the most dynamic categories in spirits today, and is growing in both the retail and on-premise channels due to its approachable and highly mixable positioning,” Mr Schmidt said.

Although the Technomic report detailed that raspberry and citrus were the most popular flavours, the US market has seen a variety of flavours emerge in 2011 including ‘peanut butter and jelly’ and ‘whipped cream.’ Australian Food News recently reported the growing popularity of salted caramel flavours including that of a ‘Salted Karamel’ vodka by Stoli Vodka, released earlier this year.

More information on the 2012 Trends in Adult Beverage report is available from www.technomic.com

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