Gallo Winery adds Scotch to portfolio
E.&J. Gallo Winery has branched into the whiskey business through an agreement to distribute products from Scotland.
The Modesto-based company will be the exclusive U.S. importer for Whyte & Mackay, the fifth-largest producer of Scotch whisky, as the drink is spelled there. Terms of the deal, which starts Jan. 1, were not disclosed.
It is the latest foray into hard liquor for Gallo, which has made wine since 1933 and now is the world’s top producer.
Gallo started distilling E.&J. brandy in 1977 and launched New Amsterdam gin in 2008. It later added vodka to the New Amsterdam line and started distributing Familia Camarena tequila from Mexico in 2010. Shellback rum from Barbados came along in 2012.
The new products include single-malt Scotch selling for $45 and up under the Dalmore and Jura labels and John Barr blends starting at $20.
“We’re excited that this partnership allows us to expand our portfolio with brands owning such a strong global equity, particularly in the luxury space,” said Anna Bell, director of marketing for Gallo Spirits, in a news release.
James Whyte and Charles Mackay founded the company on the Glasgow docks in 1844. It employs about 470 people around the world and has five distilleries and a bottling plant in Scotland.
The law there requires that malt Scotch be made from just malted barley, yeast and water. Blends can be produced by adding grains such as rye or wheat. The liquor ages in oak casks for at least three years.
Scotch last year accounted for 5 percent of the U.S. liquor market by volume, which totaled 195.4 million cases, according to the Distilled Spirits Council of the United States. It had a 9 percent share of the total dollar value of $22.1 billion.
The nation’s wine drinkers, meanwhile, spent $37.6 billion last year, much of it on products made in or near Stanislaus County, the Wine Institute reported. U.S. beer sales totaled $101.5 billion in 2014, according to the Brewers Association.
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U.S. liquor market, 2014
1. Vodka: 66.9 million cases, $5.8 billion in sales
2. Rum: 25.2 million cases, $2.4 billion in sales
3. Cordials/liqueurs: 20.4 million cases, $2.5 billion in sales
4. Bourbon/Tennessee whiskey: 19.4 million cases, $2.7 billion in sales
5. Canadian whisky: 16.3 million cases, $1.7 billion in sales
6. Tequila: 13.8 million cases, $2.1 billion in sales
7. Brandy/cognac: 11.1 million cases, $1.5 billion in sales
8. Gin: 10 million cases, $865 million in sales
9. Scotch: 9.4 million cases, $2 billion in sales
10. Irish whiskey: 2.8 million cases, $553 million in sales
Source: Distilled Spirits Council of the United States
This story was originally published December 2, 2015 at 2:41 PM with the headline "Gallo Winery adds Scotch to portfolio."