Sherry bleurgh?

Is sherry set for an on-trade revival? Or will it always be consigned to Auntie's drinks cabinet? Ben McFarland talks to the major players.

It's been far from a vintage decade, let alone year, for the beleaguered sherry category. Its archetypal image as the chosen tipple for elderly relatives, vicars and undertakers is in stark contrast to its position in its native Spain, where it boasts both the young and old among its followers and is very much a part of the country's café culture.

It is traditionally drunk during the warmer months and natives think nothing of drinking a bottle of dry sherry as we would a dry white wine.

The drink has not enjoyed that kind of success in the UK since the 19th Century when it was seen as the "thinking man's" beverage in Victorian households.

However, since its heyday sherry has endured a rough ride in the UK and it is now commonly perceived as an obscure dark, sweet and sticky liqueur. Consumers treat it neither as a spirit nor a wine and most let it gather dust in a drinks cabinet and only bring it out to sedate overactive grandparents at Christmas time.

Its perception in pubs is no-better. Sherry has failed to do anything spectacular in the on-trade with little promotional activity or investment behind the major brands.

Although presence is high, volume sales figures make very grim reading indeed as the vast majority of sherry is drunk at home rather than in the pub and while a seasonal peak around the Christmas period is eagerly anticipated by all the major brands, it by no means manages to paper over cracks that appear during the spring and summer months.

Following a considerable period of inactivity, fortified wine giant Gonzalez Byáss has taken steps to kickstart the sherry category by investing heavily in its Tio Pepe brand.

The number one dry fino sherry is the first of the major players to substantiate rumours of a sherry renaissance, which seem to echo round the trade on an annual basis. UK distributor First Drinks Brands has embarked on an ambitious and unprecedented £3million marketing campaign aimed at enticing both wine lovers and a younger audience of thirty-somethings to the brand.

A new look bottle, closely resembling the kind used by wine producers, has replaced the old dark design that did little to dispel sherry's enigmatic aura.

A comprehensive UK print and outdoor advertising initiative will also accompany a major sampling campaign in support of the brand.

First Drinks Brands spent two years and more than £250,000 researching how to raise the profile of Tio Pepe and make sherry more attractive.

Marketing manager Jeremy Rockett said: "What became evident to us was that dryness was incredibly important indicator of style to the consumer - to move it right away from the sweet, sticky connotations historically associated with the image of sherry.

"We also wanted to know what makes wine such a successful product and to see if there's anything to learn for the sherry market."

Attitude​

In an attempt to move the brand closer to the booming wine sector, the new Tio Pepe bottle has adopted a number of characteristics that not only emphasise its affinity to the grape but more specifically its extra dry qualities. "It is a wine bottle with attitude," exclaimed Rockett.

The brand name appears on a slate-like strip that has been printed onto the bottle to indicate Tio Pepe's bone-dryness while on the reverse bottle label, serving suggestions, a clear note to serve chilled and other wine-style recommendations have been added. In fact, the less attentive consumer could not be blamed for mistaking the sherry for a bottle of New World wine.

Rockett was anxious to stress that Tio Pepe was not trying to deny its sherry roots but pointed out that growing the brand rather than the category was his main concern and pointed to the success of Guinness and Jack Daniel's as prime examples.

"If Guinness was referred to as a stout I'm sure it wouldn't command such a huge following - whisky and stout are unfashionable yet Jack Daniel's and Guinness talk about their brands not the type of drink."

Increasing Tio Pepe's distribution in the on-trade is another key priority for Rockett and one of the main tasks facing both the brand and the category is managing to persuade publicans and bar managers to start treating sherry like a wine rather than a spirit. This means serving it correctly, chilled from the fridge, and selling it in more generous portions.

Rockett added: "We found that males won't drink sherry in the on-trade even though they drink it at home partly because of the image problem and partly because they experience a poor serve in pubs and bars."

A perfect serve initiative will brief staff on how to serve sherry and in addition to sales-linked incentives, stylish staff shirts, tent cards and branded glasses will be supplied.

In size terms, the perfect serve would be a 100ml serving in a large (175ml) glass, said a spokeswoman."Absolutely not a Schooner!" she said.

Although Tio Pepe's ambitious plans have been welcomed by rival brands as a move in the right direction for the entire sherry category, there seems to be a "wait and see" attitude among others in the trade.Simon Haywood, national accounts marketing manager at Matthew Clark's wholesale wine division, Grants of St James's, was dubious about a possible sherry revival. "Wine has grown at the expense of fortified wines and although it still makes up one to two per cent of the market it is falling year on year," he said."It's not a real drink anymore, and the huge popularity of Chardonnay is bound to scupper any serious plans to become a recognised aperitif.

"You never know though, in 20 years the next generation might think wine is a bit passé and sherry might make a real comeback."

Stephanie Rutherford, brands director of cognac and fortifieds at Allied Domecq - owner of the big-selling cream sherry, Harveys Bristol Cream - said: "As a marketer I'm not sure how successful it will be although I welcome any move aimed at attracting more people to sherry.

"I think it's dangerous to try and pretend you're something that you're not, as the consumer will not be fooled by it. Dry fino sherry is a particularly acquired taste and is the smallest sector within the sherry category.

"To really change perceptions you really need to spend a lot of money and it's a huge commitment."

Harveys Bristol Cream, which is a little darker and sweeter than fino sherry, has adopted a much more low key approach to building brand awareness.

"There are 12 million consumers who drink sherry and if we can get them to drink sherry once or twice a year more then we will see some serious growth within the market and volumes will go up."

Direct mail​

As well as continuing to target established sherry drinkers through its direct mail marketing initiative, Harveys is actively promoting itself as an ideal drink for the spring and summer months.

Rutherford added: "We want to get publicans to suggest Harveys as a great drink over ice with a slice of orange in an effort to demystify the drink and encourage new and established sherry drinkers to experience sherry the way it's supposed to be drunk."

One point on which everyone agreed is that if sherry is served chilled, in the right glass, and presented as a viable alternative to a very dry glass of white wine, there's no reason why the prejudices surrounding sherry cannot be dispelled.

Rockett concluded with a novel, yet fitting, comparison with other drinks: "Champagne is just a wine made from grapes in a certain area which is then modified - sherry is no different."