Washington, D.C., 09/15/2021 - WSWA is pleased to announce Campesino Rum as the 2021 Brand Battle Champion. Campesino Rum is a unique brand focused on changing preexisting thoughts about the category. By using real ingredients (no additives), promoting brand transparency on the label, and incorporating adventure and sustainability, Campesino Rum is making a big splash in the growing category.
Audience members had the opportunity to vote for their favorite brand during yesterday’s virtual championship competition. Mezcal Quiéreme Mucho was named the People’s Choice winner of the 2021 Brand Battle. Mezcal Quiéreme Mucho is a land-to-bottle product, 150 years in the making. The brand is focused on embracing and supporting the local environment and the community while producing exceptional Mezcal in hand-painted bottles.
Yesterday’s championship concluded a summer-long tournament, providing a unique stage for 46 craft and emerging brands across eight wine and spirits categories. Each brand had the ability to share their products and missions in front of leading distributors, industry experts and consumers. The categories were judged by wholesaler experts who shared insight on the current marketplace and on- and off-premise trends. Nine category winners were selected from the eight category sessions and competed in yesterday’s highly competitive competition.
During the championship, Dale Stratton, a SipSource analyst, presented the latest data on the current trends in wine and spirits. According to SipSource data, spirits continue to perform well but wine is still struggling. In this category, Champagne, sparkling wine and sake remain strong. As we head into the holidays, wine is expected to experience some recovery.
For spirits, premixed cocktails and tequila are driving growth. Rum is also seeing an uptick in sales. The SipSource data also showed growth in on-premise sales for both wine and spirits, but the latter is still leading the charge. As Stratton said, “It’s a great time for spirits right now.”
Campesino Rum is capitalizing on the growth in the rum category, with hopes to expand in the coming months and years. Hatton Smith II, the founder and president of Campesino Rum, remarked on his Brand Battle experience, stating, “It takes something like WSWA’s Brand Battle to give a brand like mine a chance…There is an opportunity for Campesino to lead a ‘rum revolution’ if we do the right things, including zero additives and transparency…I want to show the wonderful aspects of this spirit and the culture behind it…Winning Brand Battle is another testament to the fact that the hard work we are doing is paying off.”
To learn more about Brand Battle and to watch all past competitions, visit wswa.org.
About 2021 WSWA Brand Battle Tournament
WSWA will be holding the 2021 Brand Battle Tournament virtually and has extended the event series for craft, start-up and small production wine and spirits into a bracketology-style tournament. Brand Battle will showcase rising brands with unique stories, packaging and flavor profiles in an engaging digital environment while panels of wholesaler judges provide valuable, thought-provoking insight and feedback to competitors across eight different product categories. Whether you are interested in competing or viewing the competition, you are sure to walk away with greater knowledge of the industry and see hot emerging trends and products.
To learn more, please visit www.wswa.org/brandbattle.
About Wine & Spirits Wholesalers of America
WSWA is the national trade association representing the distribution tier of the wine and spirits industry, dedicated to advancing the interests and independence of distributors and brokers of wine and spirits. Founded in 1943, WSWA has more than 380 member companies in 50 states and the District of Columbia, and its members distribute more than 80 percent of all wine and spirits sold at wholesale in the United States.
To learn more, please visit www.wswa.org or connect with us on Facebook or Twitter.
###