Understanding the Future of Vermouth

Challenge

Helping an alcohol brand determine where it stands with bartenders, and its place within the vermouth landscape, to identify what changes needed to be made to ensure future success of the brand.

With the vermouth category trending downward at the time, our client was keen to understand the modern-day landscape of vermouth, particularly in France, Spain, Italy & Russia. By looking at the sentiment around the brand and vermouth in general, The Sound needed to add a layer of dimension to the selection funnel and contextualize opportunities (and watch-outs) for the brand going forward.

Approach

In order to understand barriers to trial and product relevance, it was imperative to explore bartender perceptions of the brand, as well as to get their thoughts on drinkers’ motivations and emotions surrounding the vermouth category as a whole. As such, we conducted 40 interviews with respected expert bartenders of cocktails and vermouth from around the world, in order to give us a rich 360 degree view of trends in the category and pros and cons of the brand and its competitive set.

Impact

Going beyond the obvious, our debrief immersed the client into the attitudes, motivations and barriers of vermouth drinkers and the bartenders that pour it, truly identifying where the category is now and where the brand should head in the future.