Family-Owned Austin Cocktails Expands Its Award-Winning Line Of Bottled, Craft Cocktails Into Premium, Sparkling Cans

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Sep 01, 2020, 12:30 ET

AUSTIN, Texas, Sept. 1, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Family-owned Austin Cocktails is releasing a new line of sparkling, canned cocktails made with premium spirits, natural ingredients and seltzer water. With an ABV of 12.5%, each 8.4 ounce can contains two full cocktails. Austin Cocktails is entering the canned cocktail category with a variation of three of their most popular bottled, ready-to-drink offerings - Cucumber Vodka Sparkling Mojito, Fred's Ruby Red Sparkling Grapefruit Cocktail and Bergamot Orange Sparkling Margarita.

Retailers, as well as upscale venues such as hotels and golf courses, have sought out allocations from Austin Cocktails because they are one of the only canned offerings that provides an authentic cocktail experience by batching with spirits rather than wine or malt bases. Austin Cocktails also are made with complex ingredients rather than one flavor and provide consumers with the same ABV as a standard, premium cocktail. "Using premium spirits and having a higher 12.5 % ABV distinguishes us from the 4-6% wine and malt-based seltzer offerings that are typically on the sweeter side and made with artificial ingredients, sweeteners, or preservatives," remarked Co-founder, Jill Burns. In contrast to Austin Cocktails, most sparkling ready to drink offerings, including seltzers, are produced using a wine or malt base because both the cost of malt and wine and the taxes on them are significantly lower. Austin Cocktails seems to have landed in a consumer sweet spot of strongly evolving demand. A 2020 study by IWSR found that 50% of consumers are adding spirits, largely vodka, to their seltzers.

In addition to meeting the consumer demand for full proof cocktails, Austin Cocktails' drink development philosophy also has enabled them to deliver on the better for you attributes consumers have come to demand from affordable luxury staples. "We aim to deliver bar quality and bar proof cocktails. We use natural ingredients to build out the body and balance of the cocktail around the spirit and avoid relying on sugars and syrups to mask imperfections. This approach yields bright, crisp, clean cocktails that are full bodied and full flavored, but naturally low calorie and low carb. It allows the cocktails to work everywhere from five star hotel properties to tailgates." All initial production runs for Austin Cocktails cans are pre-sold, and the company is doubling production to meet demand.

Since 2019, ready to drink cocktails seem to have been priming for an explosive era. In 2020, the RTD category has become the top growth driver in alcohol, and canned cocktails are up 140% from the previous year according to August 2020 Nielsen data. Since COVID, ready-to-drink canned cocktails have become especially popular as consumers are craving restaurant-quality beverages from the comfort and safety of their own homes. "Our cocktails were inspired by our farmer grandfather, Fred, who had a tradition of gathering friends and family at 5 pm summer evenings after a long day working in the fields during harvest," remarked Co-Founder, Kelly Gasink. "These small gatherings were his way of making time for joy and connection, and we are proud to share his legacy with cocktails that can be a bar staple year round."

Austin Cocktails is available in 14 states and select, online websites. A four-pack of sparkling, canned cocktails retails between $14.99-$16.99. Austin Cocktails is a certified women-owned business.

ABOUT AUSTIN COCKTAILS:
Founded by successful entrepreneurs and sisters, Jill Burns and Kelly Gasink, Austin Cocktails entered the ready-to-drink cocktail market in 2016. The company pays homage to their farmer grandfather, Fred, who gathered friends and family at 5 pm on summer nights after a long day working in the fields. This tradition was the backdrop of some of their best memories. With deep experience both in beverage development and company building, Burns and Gasink knew how to create a small batch product with top-tier quality, family-owned heritage, and authentic character. While few shared their vision of the concept of craft and prepared for cocktails when they first launched and started knocking on doors, they knew the surging demand for spirits meant the time had come to make a premium cocktail as easy as nice beer and wine. For their vision, Austin Cocktails became one among a very elite group of craft brands picked up by top tier US distributors. They later received a minority investment from industry juggernaut, Constellation Brands. Austin Cocktails is based in Austin, TX and is family-owned and operated.

For more information, please visit AustinCocktails.com or @AustinCocktails on Instagram.

SOURCE Austin Cocktails