The popularity of ginger alcoholic beverages is on the rise in Australia, ranging from spirits mixed with ginger ale to ginger beers and the latest innovation on the block - Ginger Joe in cans.
Ginger Joe is perhaps the most unique of them all, it's a wine-based product from Stone's Ginger Wine. Ginger Joe launched four years ago in 500ml bottles and recently became available in 375ml cans.
Ginger Joe was inspired by ‘Ginger’ Joseph Stone, a moustachioed London greengrocer. Legend has it that Joe was fanatical about the taste of the ginger root and created the first ginger alcoholic tipple around 1740.
We spoke to Stone's Ginger Wine maker Amelia Anspach (above) about the growing appeal of ginger alcoholic beverages in Australia.
How long have you been with Stone's?
"I've been with Angove for 10 years and took over the making of Stone’s in 2014 after being trained up by Ben Horley, who had been in charge for over 25 years when his role as Master Distiller for St Agnes Distillery continued to grow and demand more of his time."
What do you enjoy most about creating Stone's Ginger Wine?
"Taking the beautiful fresh, yet relatively simple, ingredients and crafting them into a range of delicious beverages that are consumed by thousands of consumers in Australia and New Zealand."
What consumer category is the biggest for Stone's Ginger Wine and Ginger Joe?
"A look at the Stone’s social pages shows a massive range of ages, occupations, locations and mix across the sexes as fans of Stone’s Ginger drinks. While males tend to slightly favour Stone’s Ginger Wine over females there really is no hard and fast rule across the two categories. At trade shows - when we could have them - there was a massive mix of consumers coming and trying - some for the first time - the Stone’s Ginger range."
A lot of brewers are exploring the alcoholic ginger drinks category, what do you think is driving this?
"They are monitoring different categories and seeing the growth that is occurring in ginger drinks they are jumping on the band wagon – the growth breeds growth scenario. We saw this about 10 years ago as well with a huge number of new entrants entering the market – many ended up in the bargain bin as they didn’t have a proper brand proposition. Stone’s survived and continues to thrive as 'the original and the best' alcoholic ginger beverage brand."
Why do you think consumers are becoming increasingly interested in ginger drinks?
"Ginger tastes great – plain and simple - and consumers are seeking out new taste sensations. There could also be something in the health benefits of ginger, but this has yet to be proven for ginger drinks."
IRI reports there has been huge growth in ginger alcoholic drinks in the last two years, is this something that you've noticed in your sales?
"We were one of the first entrants into the category of alcoholic ginger drinks way back in 2004 with our Stone’s Premium Alcoholic Ginger Beer. Sales were booming until we were caught in the RTD changes and had to reformulate to still ensure it was classified as a beer (basically cutting out a lot of the sugar).
"With Ginger Joe we saw an opportunity to enter as a wine based product and allow our ginger and sweetness levels to be enhanced and more in line with what we knew consumers were craving.
"Sales have grown strongly since first launching in a 500ml glass format four years ago to a point where we are confident the new Stone’s Ginger Joe cans can take a decent slice of the ginger drinks segment.
Stone’s Green Ginger Wine is somewhat of a barometer of the drinks industry in general and sales have been extremely steady for the past decade. More recently though we have seen some solid growth on the back of a campaign to expose it to a new generation of consumers via our digital channels and partnerships with key influencers in the camping/outdoor space which has also been a focus of our retail promotion strategy."
What are some of your favourite ways to serve Stone's Ginger Wine?
"Stone’s Green Ginger wine is hugely versatile and can be used in both mixed drinks and as in many recipes. My favourites are in a Hot Toddy or in summer freshening it up with a Stone's and Soda. In winter you really can’t go past a slow-cooked lamb leg or shoulder in ginger wine."
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