Captain Morgan has released a new ready-to-drink cocktail, but don’t expect it to contain rum.
For the first time, Diageo has extended its flagship rum brand into the flavored malt beverage category with a new cocktail-inspired product, Captain Morgan Sliced.
The canned 5.8% ABV cocktails arrive this month nationwide in four flavors: Pineapple Daiquiri, Strawberry Margarita, Passionfruit Hurricane and Mango Mai Tai. The 12 oz. cans are packaged in a 12-count variety pack running for a SRP of $19.99. Sizing up, the brand also launched another product this month, Captain Morgan Sliced Up, a 16 oz. and 23.5 oz. offering in two flavors, Long Island Iced Tea and Tropical Hurricane.
This isn’t Captain Morgan’s first foray into RTDs: the brand collaborated with Vita Coco last year to launch a line of coconut water spiked with white rum. In 2021 the brand also launched a line of rum-based Captain’s Cocktails in 1.75 liter bottles, which seem to be off the market now.
RTDs with vodka and tequila have driven growth for the premixed cocktail segment, with some rum-based cocktails gaining momentum, although yet to steal shelf space from the most popular bases. Rum-based RTDs were up 20.9% compared to tequila at 59.4% and vodka at 44% in off-premise sales ending the 52 weeks prior to Jan 27 according to NIQ data. Overall, premixed cocktails including spirits RTDs was the fastest growing spirits segment, up +26.8% to $2.8 billion (+$599 million) in 2023, according to the Distilled Spirits Council of the U.S.
While the growth of spirits-based RTDs has lured Diageo to leverage some of its best known premium brands into the space, the market has also become increasingly crowded. In less than a year, the number of moving RTD UPCs in Circana-tracked channels has increased from 5,800 (through April 9, 2023), to more than 6,300 (through January 28, 2024). Many of those entrants have been from beer or soft drink companies diving into spirits products.
The Captain’s move into malt signals how beverage companies are angling for a broader share of the RTD market by emphasizing flavor or tapping into Gen Z-led trends like carbonation-free cocktails. Molson Coors, for instance, released its line of tropical sugar-based refreshers Happy Thursday last year based on feedback from legal-drinking-age (LDA) Gen. Z consumers.
“A driving factor of launching Captain Morgan Sliced is our excitement in Flavored Malt Beverages (FMBs) and the unique position they hold in the RTD category,” said Laura Merritt, CMO of Diageo Beer Company. “We’ve also seen that RTD shoppers are turning towards full-flavored RTDs, and more specifically FMBs.”
The expansion also gives the spirit company access to more retail channels, particularly the c-store, where spirits-based RTDs are limited and FMBs have found success.
“With our entry to the FMB space, Captain Morgan Sliced will be sold in even more retailers nationwide, and consumers can now simply pick up Captain Morgan Sliced during a quick run to the convenience or grocery store,” said Merritt.
FMBs recorded the second highest dollar sales growth in the beer category in 2023, increasing +17%, behind only non-alcoholic beer (+29.3%) according to Circana. The launch comes as traditional FMBs, plus hard soda and hard tea continue to grow share of their own segments and chip away at shelf space with new entrants.
Diageo’s rival, Pernod Ricard, also launched a slew of ready-to-serve (RTS) and ready-to-drink (RTD) products this month, including a three-SKU Malibu Rum RTS line in one-liter TetraPak cartons.