Owen Massey >
Alcopops > FAQ
Owen Massey >
Alcopops > FAQ
The term is a combination of 'alcohol' and 'pop' in the sense of fizzy drink. (See Michael Quinion's short piece on the word.) Beer fanciers might describe any remotely palatable alcoholic drink as an alcopop, and there are certainly no absolute criteria. Nonetheless, the classic alcopops can be considered alcoholic versions of soft drinks, even if the non-alcoholic versions don't exist. Hence good indicators of alcopopularity are fizziness, artificial colouring, sweetness and sale by the (330 ml beer-top) bottle.
More formal names for alcopops are 'pre-mixed spirits', 'alcoholic carbonates' and alcoholic 'ready-to-drinks' (RTDs), while 'designer drinks' was once a fashionable term that can include non-alcoholic 'energy drinks'. (Note, however, that the Portman Group's code of practice prohibits the advertising of drinks as 'energising' or 'stimulating' on the justifiable grounds that alcohol is a depressant. It similarly enjoins brewers not to market their drinks at young people, so we can be certain that no underage drinkers choose alcopops.) It's hard to believe that anyone who doesn't work in marketing refers to 'premium packaged spirits', let alone 'coolers', but the 2002 Budget did indeed call them 'premium packaged coolers'. (Perhaps the civil servants responsible for drafting found the abbreviation PPS confusing similar to Parliamentary Private Secretary.)
Arbitrarily, the list includes alcoholic jellies but not alcolollies (e.g. the vodka-and-raspberry Spiked Ice, 5.5% or the tequila-and-lime Freaky Ice, 4.8%) nor frozen cocktails and alcoholic slush. Once-fashionable premixes Taboo and Mirage don't count. 'Down-in-one' shots, which started with Aftershock and Sidekick, are not quite the same concept. Also excluded are combinations such as Bacardi & Cola which, while available pre-mixed, are presumably identical to the, er, post-mixed versions. Alcopops, in a Humpty Dumpty definition, are anything I say they are.
Alcopops as we know them today appeared on the UK market in the summer of 1995. Two Dogs, already a success in Australia, was pipped to the post in Britain by Hooper's Hooch, and Bacardi Breezers followed shortly. Naturally there's nothing new about selling spirits ready-mixed at a substantial markup and with a great opportunity for branding: there are the once-trendy Taboo and Mirage or the American 'wine coolers' Bartles & Jaymes, all available in wine bars in the 1980s. (Remember wine bars?)
All the information I possess is on this website, acquired through a consuming interest (in both senses). My only source of information is personal observation. Sales figures and market share are the sort of information for which large sums of money are given to commercial analysts. That said, students on marketing courses should try their institution's library for trade periodicals. An industry contact suggests The Grocer, Off Licence News, Drinks International, Drinks International Bulletin and The Publican, among others.
The market is undoubtedly still huge. The only statistics I've seen are those published in Metro on 2001-06-21 which show Bacardi Breezer way out in front with sales in 2000 of £69 million, Smirnoff Ice on less than half that (£32 million) and Hooch and Red Square bringing up the rear on £18 million and £14 million respectively, all in a burgeoning market. An update on July 2002 reported that 'Bacardi Breezer has become the first alcopop to make the top ten table of the nation's favourite drinks': said table, compiled by A.C. Nielsen, showed BB tenth with 2001 sales of £80.4 million, up 14.4% on 2000. The article claimed the alcopop market is 'worth more than £1 billion in Britain'. Matthew Clark Brands' FAB page has some useful, if unsourced and undated, information: 50% year-on-year increases in sales to 61 million bottles. Caveat lector: all statistics unverified.
Around 200 calories, unless artificial sweeteners are substituted for sugar solution. But it's impossible to be sure in most cases because alcoholic drinks of above 1.2% by volume are exempt from the relevant UK food labelling regulations. (Some products do list their ingredients and give 'nutritional' information, principally those also marketed outside the UK.) So if you're diabetic, or allergic to gluten, or concerned about animal-derived products then you can't tell whether you're safe (though nut allergies are unlikely to be provoked).
Kudos to Coors Brewers for including calorie counts in their product information page.
An interesting query is the kosher status of alcopops. I'm grateful to correspondents who have informed me that Skyy Blue is kosher, Doc's Hard Lemonade may be, while Smirnoff Ice and Mike's beverages currently lack kosher certification.
I've tasted perhaps three-quarters of the 175 or so brands in the A to Z list, in most of their flavours. Information about others is derived from company websites, advertisements and (especially) the correspondence for which I am extremely grateful. I would love to try some of these alcopops, especially those with rum or gin bases rather than quotidian vodka.
Alcopops can be surprisingly difficult to track down. If you've exhausted your local pubs and bars then try independent newsagents, and look in different areas. Some brands appear to have only regional distribution and indeed some are peculiar to certain countries, so the nectar you found on holiday may not be available at home. If all else fails you can try an online drinks store, of which there are sufficiently many that I don't need to recommend one here. Of course, many brands flourished for only a short time and their likes will not be seen again.
I have no connection with the drinks industry other than enjoying its products and being an advocate for the recreational use of drugs. Nonetheless, all offers of sponsorship will be gladly considered (free drinks would be best, but publicity material is also welcomed). I have a personal site for what it's worth; note that I'm based in the UK. If you have a question that you don't see answered here, send me an email.
Nothing.