Such has been the popularity of ready-to-drink (RTD) cocktails at Julio’s in Westborough, Massachusetts, that this summer the retailer hosted its very first Ready-To-Go Fest. Customers bought a $10 gift card for entry and that allowed them and a plus-one to peruse tables from 25 brands and enjoy samples of everything from Two Chicks to Snoop Dogg and Dr Dre’s Gin & Juice.
It’s little wonder RTD cocktails have been such a boon for the retailer; it has emerged as a mega category in the past few years, with brand innovation swiftly rewarded by consumers who enjoy the convenience of a quality cocktail in a can. While other categories have experienced a decline or marginal growth in the past year, NIQ reports that RTDs (including seltzers, fermented malt beverages, and spirits-based and wine-based RTDs) have seen a six percent value increase. And spirits-based RTDs specifically are driving that growth, contributing 40 percent more to total RTD sales than a year ago.
“This has been the summer—let’s be honest, the past few summers—of the RTD,” says Kristina Ferdinand, the general manager of Elemental Spirits in Atlanta, Georgia. “This means a lot of fun new products on the market—and a lot of not-so-great things on the market.”
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The stats agree with her: NIQ noted that sales peak for RTDs in the summer, and with 50 percent of total alcohol innovation dollars today coming from the RTD space, there’s a lot of options for a retailer to sift through.
“We’re in the boom phase; we can’t keep up with all of them that are coming out,” says Julio’s owner Ryan Maloney. “The retailer’s trick is to try to pick more winners than losers. You only have so much shelf space.”
To help with that task, SevenFifty Daily asked retailers across the U.S. for their RTD cocktail recommendations and these are the products they’re excited to stock right now. (All items are listed with price at the noted establishment.)
On The Rocks Old Fashioned; $25 per 750-ml bottle
Selected by Justin Sloan, cofounder and owner, Justins’ House of Bourbon, Lexington, Kentucky
Justins’ House of Bourbon is home to a staggering collection of rare and vintage bourbons and is on the radar of many whiskey enthusiasts. Opened by Justin Sloan and Justin Thompson in 2018 after some key legislation changed in Kentucky allowing for the sale of privately purchased vintage spirits, it serves as a whiskey shop, tasting room, and educational spirits space.
One of the RTD cocktail brands that performs particularly well with their customers is the On The Rocks series. “Their cocktail varieties incorporate premium spirits, which is a big selling point for me,” says Sloan. “We understand the at-home bartender doesn’t always have time to dedicate to layering cocktail recipes; On The Rocks does a great job of pairing premium ingredients so each RTD is as close to a crafted cocktail as you can get.”
The standout SKU for Sloan is the Old Fashioned, which features Knob Creek Small Batch Bourbon in its recipe. “This is a huge win for the consumer with a much better flavor payoff,” he says. “As a retailer, the inclusion of premium bourbon justifies the higher price point.”
Golden Rule Margarita; $24 per four-pack of 100-ml cans
Selected by Rachel Malm, agave spirits product specialist and assistant manager, Bitters & Bottles, South San Francisco, California
A cocktail and spirits destination in South San Francisco, Bitters & Bottles stocks craft spirits, mixers, and tools, and offers guidance on how to elevate its customers’ home bars, gaining a loyal fan base. Assistant manager and agave spirits products specialist Rachel Malm picks Golden Rule’s Margarita as her stand out. It’s a local, San Francisco-based company—and the first RTD cocktail brand that the shop stocked, convinced by the qualities of the Margarita specifically.
“Tart, refreshing, and pocket sized!” says Malm of the Margarita, which is crafted from a 100 percent agave tequila and a proprietary triple sec. “Customers appreciate the easy convenience with major returns on classic Margarita flavor.” Malm finds this is also one of her personal go-tos. “I love tossing a couple into my carry-on when I’m traveling or cracking one open at the park,” she says. “Juicy and fresh just over ice but also strong enough (27% ABV) to do a short shake with ice in a cocktail tin for the full craft cocktail experience.”
The Family Jones Earl Grey Negroni; $34 per 750-ml bottle
Selected by Andrew Auwerda, founder, Botld, King of Prussia, Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania has particularly strict liquor laws, with liquor stores in the state falling under the charge of the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board. With a desire to bring Pennsylvanians a taste of craft and independent spirits not otherwise available in the state, Andrew Auwerda found a particular loophole; spirits from elsewhere in the U.S. could be sold in Pennsylvania if they were bottled within the state. And Botld was born.
It recently expanded with a new RTD cocktail collection working in collaboration with its craft distiller partners, such as Colorado-based The Family Jones, which has a ready-to-pour line under the name of Automatic Jones. Auwerda spotlights the Earl Grey Negroni, made with Earl Grey Juniper Jones Gin and housemade liqueurs. “I have been a gin guy for two decades and I love the Negroni,” says Auwerda. “I also happen to be a tea drinker and so the combination and ease of use for this ready-to-pour cocktail is fantastic.”
Tip Top Proper Mai Tai; $5 per 100-ml can or $18 for a four-pack
Selected by Kristina Ferdinand, general manager, Elemental Spirits, Atlanta
At Elemental Spirits the staff is knowledgeable and passionate, especially about shining a light on wines and spirits that might not have the marketing dollars to tell the world how great they are. When it comes to their RTD cocktail of choice, however, it’s the classic: Tip Top Proper Cocktails. “These small but mighty cans have been consistently a bestseller since we opened in 2020,” says Ferdinand. The new Mai Tai is her current favorite, as it’s “fresh and citrusy without being sharp.”
Tip Top cocktails are known for being balanced but also packing a punch, and, for Ferdinand, the fact that they’re locally produced in Atlanta is a bonus, with Miles Macquarrie of Kimball House in Decatur, Georgia, helping in the recipe creation. ”All in all, you can’t go wrong,” she says. “Our customers love the story behind them and the accessibility of a tiny can.”
OM Cold Brew and Chocolate; $10 per 200-ml can
Selected by LeNell Camacho Santa Ana, owner, LeNell’s Beverage Boutique, Birmingham, Alabama
The first iteration of LeNell’s opened in Brooklyn back in 2003 and became a beloved destination for the aficionados of New York’s burgeoning booze scene. It closed its doors in 2009, and owner LeNell Camacho Santa Ana took a long route via Mexico and back to her home state of Alabama to reopen in its new guise as LeNell’s Beverage Boutique in 2018.
Of its RTD cocktail offerings, Camacho Santa Ana recommends OM’s Cold Brew and Chocolate. “With the renewed interest in Dick Bradsell’s Espresso Martini, OM cans provide flavor without the fuss,” she says. The core product of OM (Organic Mixology) is its Chocolate Liqueur, made with agave nectar at its distillery in Michigan. This gives the OM Cold Brew a gentler 17.5% ABV than the standard vodka-based Espresso Martini, without being too sweet. “My business traveler customers love them for the ease of having a coffee with a kick for their hotel room stays. I love it for the high-quality, all-natural, organic ingredients,” says Camacho Santa Ana.
Hochstadter’s Slow & Low Rock and Rye Old Fashioned; $34.99 per 750-ml bottle
Selected by Terrence Tompkins, COO, Downtown Spirits, Seattle
At Seattle’s Downtown Spirits they carry several dozen different RTD cocktail SKUs, which rotate in flavors over the course of the year. “They all sell well, although the popularity of any given RTD ebbs and flows with the seasons,” says COO Terrence Tompkins. “For example, RTD spritzes and vodka-based cocktails are huge in the summer when the sun is shining and the sailing is good, and not so much come Thanksgiving time.”
But one SKU they carry year-round is Hochstadter’s Slow & Low Rock and Rye Old Fashioned. “It performs consistently rain or shine,” says Tompkins. St. Germain creator Rob Cooper reimagined Hochstadter’s traditional 19th-century recipe in 2010, launching with the bottled Old Fashioned. Tompkins suspects its place as amongst the first of the modern era of RTD cocktails is part of its popularity, but also, “what keeps people buying it over and over is that it’s just really tasty.”
Fabrizia Limoncello Spritz; $19.99 per 750-ml bottle
Selected by Ryan Maloney, owner, Julio’s, Westborough, Massachusetts
Julio’s has been in business for 50 years, earning many accolades as a retailer for its expansive liquor selection—including a wide section for “RTGs” or ready-to-go cocktails, with the store dividing the spirits-based and the malt-based options.
While Maloney is also a fan of Tip Top Proper Cocktails—which they used in an “Easter egg hunt” in the store last spring—he’s looking ahead to a new trend on the horizon: the Limoncello Spritz, which is being facilitated in RTD form by Fabrizia Spirits. “It’s delicious; it’s spot on,” he says. Fabrizia is a small family-owned company out of New Hampshire, which launched its ready-to-serve Limoncello Spritz in April, made with Italian sparkling wine, Fabrizia’s Limoncello (crafted with Sicilian lemons), and soda water. “They’re getting bigger,” says Maloney. “I think they’re ahead of the curve on this one, because the Aperol Spritz is so popular.”
Dispatch
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Tyler Wetherall is the senior editor for SevenFifty Daily and the Beverage Media Group publications. Her drinks journalism has appeared in publications including Punch, The Guardian, Condé Nast Traveler, Thrillist, and The Spirits Business, which awarded her the Alan Lodge Young International Drinks Writer of the Year. Tyler is also the author of No Way Home: A Memoir of Life on the Run, and Amphibian, her debut novel. Follow her on Instagram at @tylerwrites.
