RTDs are nothing new, but spirits brands are realising the value in making it easier for consumers to buy into their product. Can bartenders benefit too, asks Millie Milliken.

---

While ready-to-drink (RTD) cocktails have boomed in the UK (the category reached sales of £600m in 2024, up 7.4% according to NIQ), the vast majority are presented as brands in themselves, using nameless spirits of varying quality and generally maximising on recognisable cocktail formats – Margaritas certainly seem to be having a moment.

But spirits brands are beginning to invest in RTDs of their own in a bid to make it easier for consumers to discover their liquids. Some of the drinks world’s best-known brands have introduced their signature serves as RTDs relatively recently: advocaat brand Warninks launched its Snowball in 2019, Jack Daniel’s & Coca-Cola came together in a can in 2023 and just this summer, non-alc Botivo painted the scene its trademark yellow with its Sparkling Botanical Aperitivo.

A quick post on LinkedIn asking brands if it’s on their radar prompted replies from the likes of Sky Wave, which is looking for a partner to help it formulate an RTD; Electric Spirit Co, which launched a tapped Negroni last year; and Sly Dog Rum, which is in the early stages of producing its own cans. “It’s opening doors with retailers and event partners who wouldn’t have looked at us before,” explains Sly Dog co-founder Louis Goddard-Watts. “Spirits brands can’t just hope people will try them at a bar anymore, you’ve got to meet them in a can, at a campsite, on a rooftop, wherever the party is. But execution is everything. It’s easy to put liquid in a can, it’s much harder to make it taste bang on.”

So, what could this mean for how consumers engage with spirits brands – and how will it impact bartenders in the not-too-distant future?

Collab control

One of the most successful ways in which Bea Bradsell, on-trade director at The Drink Cabinet, has seen spirit brand RTDs work is in big bars or less obvious settings where cocktail making might not be the primary skill of the bar team or time might be of the essence. “I’ve always had a feeling with cocktail bars that you want the bartender to be exploring your product,” she says, “but in spaces where time and training are at a minimum it is a great way of getting over that hurdle, like in theatres or hotel rooms.”

Having worked with numerous spirits brands to deliver their signature serves in anything from meeting rooms to conferences, Bradsell is a big believer that the RTD format ensures that spirits and their complementary flavours are showcased in a far more controlled way, with factors like dilution and technicalities taken care of by the experts, aka bartenders.

“Our expertise comes in knowing what tastes good. We can rework recipes; we have had to learn about things like that carbonation only happens under a certain ABV, or that things taste stronger when they’re in a can.”

Collaborations with bars can also add an extra revenue stream for bartenders – from Three Sheets to Tayer + Elementary, they’ve proven that premium RTDs can be an extra boost for both sales and reach. The notion of the guest shift could also be used as a jumping-off point for brands to make the most of their investment.

“Not everyone can get to the venue and that could be a way you can spread your brand further, taking the guest shift out of the bar – that is definitely a place for growth,” adds Bradsell.

Cracking brands open

Most recently we’ve seen Burnt Faith Brandy & Apple cans, and heritage Scotch brands are getting into the game with Cutty Sark this summer launching its signature serve Cutty Sark & Ginger Ale Highball in cans. The brand has previously worked with bartenders on its whiskies and sees even more room in the future to collaborate too. “Their insights into cocktail trends and consumer tastes are invaluable,” says Manon Brochet, international senior brand manager at La Martiniquaise Bardinet. “Looking ahead, we see even more opportunities to collaborate with them, not only for new serve ideas but also to bring the brand to life through events, signature experiences and custom creations.”

While this all sounds like good news for brands and bartenders alike, testing, time and cost still prohibit a lot of brands from entering this growing market, as does an issue with brand positioning for super-premium brands, says Gillet.

Most important though, is flavour. “There was a flavour challenge,” says Goddard-Watts. “The Sly & Stormy isn’t an easy serve to nail in a can – the ginger beer, bitters and lime all need to play nice with the rum, and that took time to balance properly.

“And because we don’t cut corners – no artificial nasties, no filler ingredients – finding the right partners and keeping the quality high added extra layers of complexity.”

Mangrove’s sister company White Label Cocktails is overseeing three new projects this year that will see bartender-loved spirit brands enter the RTD market. “With Chairman’s Reserve and Bounty, which don’t have huge consumer awareness, we’re looking at RTDs and signature serves based on how they are drunk in St Lucia as a marketing exercise to raise awareness,” says Mangrove co-founder Nick Gillet. However, he points out that serves may differ depending on whether they are on or off-trade to reflect how consumers generally spend in those two very different spaces.