Spirits Business has announced its top 10 selling Rum
Brands for 2016. There have been some
very interesting changes over the past year.
1. Bacardi
2016: 17.23m Cases - 2015: 17.42m Cases – Percentage of change: -1.09% - Place
last year: 2 Having lost its position as the world’s best-selling rum brand in
2014, Bacardi finally has gotten the title in 2016, despite a marginal sales decline.
In recent years, the brand has been in a close battle with McDowell’s No.1
Celebration. Bacardi is set to increase its presence in the
key US market after moving distribution to
the newly formed any Southern Glazer.
2. Tanduay
2016: 16.60m
Cases - 2015: 16.50m Cases - Percentage of change: +0.61% - Place last year: 3 With McDowell’s
dropping to number 3 it makes Philippines-made Tanduay Rum the world’s
second-largest selling rum brand despite relatively slow sales in 2016. The brand has had solid volume gains since
2013, but it hasn’t hit the record highs of nearly 20m cases back in 2012. Tanduay is the best-selling rum in Asia and available
in the US.
3. McDowell’s No.1
Celebration
2016: 14.90m
Cases - 2015: 16.20m Cases – Percentage of change: -8.02% - Place last year: 1.
2015’s best-selling rum brand now
finds itself in the third spot. Last year, India’s McDowell’s No.1 Celebration experienced
an 8% drop to 14.90m cases, which was the lowest sales in five years. The brand was likely hit by market
difficulties in India.
4. Captain Morgan
2016: 10.70m
Cases - 2015: 10.30m Cases - Percentage of change: 3.88% - Place last year: 4. Captain Morgan rum has maintained a position as the world’s
fourth best-selling rum with sales gains of nearly 4%. Captain Morgan increased its sales with new
expressions in the past year helping to increase sales. Captain Morgan has also added some punch to
its market efforts for the year ahead.
5. Havana Club
2016: 4.19m
Cases - 2015: 4.01m Cases – Percentage of change: 4.49% - Place last year: 5. Havana
Club is making headlines as speculation mounted over the prospect of the US
lifting its trade embargo against Cuba.
Havana Club and Bacardi are still battling over the Havana Club
trademark in the US. Havana Club
experienced a 5% growth in 2016. Alexandre Ricard, CEO of Pernod Ricard, said that
a significant increase in tourism to Cuba has had an extremely positive impact
on Havana Club’s sales in airports”.
6. Barceló
2016: 2.07m Cases - 2015: 2.04m Cases – Percentage of change:
+1.57% - Place last year: 6. Dominican Republic’s Ron Barceló is sold
in more than 50 countries. It has continued to have a solid performance in
2016. It hit 2.07m cases. Barceló has
not experienced any declines in the last five years, even though its rate of
growth has slowed.
7. Contessa
2016: 1.98
Cases - 2015: 2.70m Cases – Percentage of change: -26.67% - Place last year –
Unranked Contessa was hit hard by market factors in India, and as
such experienced heavy sales losses. Dropping the brand below the 2m case mark for
the first time in many years. Contessa has
a presence in Africa, South East Asia and Middle East and is now ready to open the
USA and Canada.
8. Old Port Rum
2016: 1.69m
Cases - 2015: 1.92m Cases – Percentage of change: -11.98% - Place last year: 7. India’s
Old Port Rum experienced a sudden sales drop in 2016, showing a three-year low
of 1.69m cases. Indian’s market issues last
year like so many other brands.
9. Ron Medellin
2016:
1.39m Cases - 2015: 1.04m Cases – Percentage of change: +34.20% - Place last
year: Unranked Fabrica de
Alcoholes y Licores de Antioquia has for the first time provided its
sales data, showing that Ron Medellin rum is the ninth best-selling rum in the
world. Columbian made Ron Medellin made
an astonishing 34.20% growth during 2016, the fastest growth rate among any
million-case-selling rum brand.
10. Appleton Estate
2016: 1.22m Cases - 2015: 1.25m Cases – Percentage of change:
-2.40% - Place last year: 8. Having
increased sales by 50,000 cases in 2015, Appleton Estate Rum sales had significantly
different results in 2016. Volumes have
dropped by 2.40%. The growth of
Campari’s total rum portfolio was held back in 2016 by the US and Canada
following the new naming classifications and packaging updates for three of its
core expressions.
