With a martini resurgence sweeping cocktail bars, Grey Goose is getting in on the action with a ready-to-pour Classic Martini Cocktail bottle launching nationwide today.
The new format is positioned as a solution for consumers to enjoy the cocktail at home during a time when martinis have jumped to the second most popular drink at bars and restaurants, according to Nielsen IQ.
“While martinis have spiked in popularity on-premise, home consumption still presents a challenge, as many report that the cocktail is too intimidating to make themselves,” said Aleco Azqueta, Grey Goose vice president.
The cocktail – made with Grey Goose vodka, dry French vermouth, and orange bitters – is available in two formats. The first (375 ml) serves 4 to 5 martinis and the second (750 ml) serves 8 to 10. The bottles retail for $16.99 and $27.99, respectively.
The marketing campaign will lean on the simplicity behind the classic drink, showcasing how to shake and customize the cocktail. With rising costs of living, analysts expect drinkers to continue to elevate their drinking experiences at home this year, and Grey Goose seems to be banking on reaching those at-home RTD drinkers.
“Our research has shown that there are 20 million people that own a shaker but are reluctant to use them,” Azqueta said.
He added the brand has plans to introduce dedicated marketing programming later in the year, but declined to offer details.
The new ready-to-drink martini is the first of its kind on the U.S. market from a major vodka brand. Several versions of espresso martinis have infiltrated the ready-to-drink category recently, but few single or multi-serve versions of the original cocktail have been introduced. Premium cocktail line, TipTop, just released a gin martini in 100ml cans earlier this week.
The brand does not have plans to launch a single-serve cocktail, as it is focused on a format for social occasions, said Azqueta. The last RTD from the luxury vodka label brought tennis fans a version of the signature U.S. Open cocktail, the Honey Deuce, for a limited run in September 2022. In other spinoffs of the original, it also released a low ABV (30%) vodka infused with botanicals called Essence in 2021.
Grey Goose, which was acquired by Bacardi in 2004, was one of the first higher-end vodkas to enter the U.S. market and positioned itself above Absolut, the lone luxury vodka. Despite dominating as an RTD base, preferences in liquor categories have evolved away from vodka in the past few years. Sales by volume dropped by 1.5 % and the total volume of whiskey sales just barely surpassed vodka last year, according to the Distilled Spirits Council of the United States.