The Wine Group has announced its purchase this week of US alcohol-free RTS brand Phony Negroni.
The California-based group, which offloaded the SIMI wine mark in late November, has spent an undisclosed sum on the five-strong premix cocktail portfolio. The brand, which was launched four years ago by founding company St Agrestis, is already available in “over 7,000 retail and on-premise outlets across the US”, The Wine Group said today (30 April).
As well as the namesake non-alcoholic negroni premix, Phony Negroni also includes Phony Mezcal Negroni, Phony Espresso Negroni, Phony White Negroni and Amaro Falso. Citing Mintel as its source, The Wine Group claimed the brand is the “number one RTS 20cl bottled beverage in the non-alc spirits segment”.
“As a small but dynamic team, we defied the odds by establishing Phony Negroni as a clear leader in the growing adult non-alcoholic beverage category,” said St Agrestis founder Steven DeAngelo, who will remain with the business “for the near term”.
“We are very excited to see The Wine Group’s long-term vision for the brand come to fruition and feel that their impressive track record of growing large, world-class brands will catapult the Phony Negroni to new heights in its next chapter.”
Speaking exclusively to Global Drinks Intel in August last year, The Wine Group CEO John Sutton said the company was “very positive about the opportunity going forward to attract the younger consumer”.
“Once you understand the trends that are going on and what they’re looking for,” he told editor Olly Wehring, “then you get more optimistic about coming up with solutions to attract them.”
