Everything about Alcopop totally explained
Alcopop is a term often used to describe flavored alcoholic beverages including:
- malt beverages to which various fruit juices or other flavorings have been added,
- beverages containing wine to which ingredients such as fruit juice or other flavorings have been added, or
- beverages containing distilled alcohol and added ingredients such as fruit juices or other flavorings.
Other terms include
FAB (flavored alcoholic beverage),
FMB (flavored malt beverage),
PPS (pre-packaged spirit or premium packaged spirits), and
RTD (Ready To Drink -
Aus &
NZ).
Description
Alcopop drinks tend to be
sweet and served in small
bottles (typically 330 ml in Europe and 12
fl oz or 355 ml, the normal size of a soda/pop can, in the US and Canada), and between 4% and 7%
alcohol by volume. In Europe and Canada, alcopops tend to be pre-mixed spirits, including vodka (for example
Smirnoff Ice) or rum (for example
Bacardi Breezer). In the United States, alcopops are often
un-hopped beers with added sugar, coloring and flavoring. Such drinks are legally classified as beers and can be sold in outlets that don't or can't carry spirit-based drinks.
However, US company
Shotpak sells flavored 17.5%
alcohol by volume vodka shots in brightly-colored 50 ml plastic pouches.
According to the U.S.
Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB):
"Flavored malt beverages are brewery products that differ from traditional malt beverages such as beer, ale, lager, porter, stout, or malt liquor in several respects. Flavored malt beverages exhibit little or no traditional beer or malt beverage character. Their flavor is derived primarily from added flavors rather than from malt and other materials used in fermentation. At the same time, flavored malt beverages are marketed in traditional beer-type bottles and cans and distributed to the alcohol beverage market through beer and malt beverage wholesalers, and their alcohol content is similar to other malt beverages in the 4-6% alcohol by volume range.
Although flavored malt beverages are produced at breweries, their method of production differs significantly from the production of other malt beverages and beer. In producing flavored malt beverages, brewers brew a fermented base of beer from malt and other brewing materials. Brewers then treat this base using a variety of processes in order to remove malt beverage character from the base.
For example, they remove the color, bitterness, and taste generally associated with beer, ale, porter, stout, and other malt beverages. This leaves a base product to which brewers add various flavors, which typically contain distilled spirits, to achieve the desired taste
profile and alcohol level.
While the alcohol content of flavored malt beverages is similar to that of most traditional malt beverages, the alcohol in many of them is derived primarily from the distilled spirits component of the added flavors rather than from fermentation." (70 Fed. Reg. 194 et seq.
(
January 3,
2005).) A growth in popularity occurred around 1993 with
Two Dogs,
Hooper's Hooch and
Zima, which was marketed under the title of "malternative beverage". Later,
Mike's Hard Lemonade was released in the United States, with humorous commercials depicting what they called "violence against lemons".
Smirnoff also came out with another
citrus-
flavored
malt beverage in the United States in the late 1990s called
Smirnoff Ice, which promoted itself with flashy commercials, usually involving trendy young people dancing in unlikely situations and places. (In the UK, Smirnoff Ice is marketed by
Diageo as a PPS.)
Some have expressed concern that such drinks might appeal to children as they tend to be sweet and brightly colored. Many
alcopop advertising campaigns have been criticized as trying to make alcopops appeal to young drinkers. In the United Kingdom, that led to a media outcry during the mid-1990s as the
tabloid press associated alcopops with under-age drinking which damaged sales and would lead to
off-licences withdrawing them from their stores.
In response to a complaint from the
Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI), the
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) conducted an extensive investigation in 2001. The agency "found no evidence of intent to target minors with the FMB products, packaging, or advertising. Furthermore, after reviewing the consumer survey evidence submitted by CSPI in support of the proposition that FMBs were predominantly popular with minors, the FTC concluded that flaws in the survey's methodology limited the ability to draw conclusions from the survey data."
The Federal Trade Commission again in 2003 investigated FMB ads, product placement, and internal company marketing documents after a directive from the conferees of the House and Senate Appropriations Committees. "The Commission’s investigation found no evidence of targeting underage consumers in the marketing of FMBs. Adults 21 to 29 appear to be the intended target of FMB marketing" and found that "the majority of FMB drinkers are over the age of 27."
Nevertheless concern remains. In December 2003,
Ireland raised the tax on alcopops to equal that of spirits, the second highest in
Europe.
Germany has imposed an extra duty of 0.80 to 0.90
euro per bottle effective
August 1,
2004. To circumvent higher taxation, some German producers have switched to
wine coolers, which are being marketed the same way. Some bottles now carry a warning stating that they're not for consumption by people under the legal drinking age (under 18 in the UK and 21 in the United States). On May 11, 2008, the
Australian Government increased the excise tax on alcopops by 70%, to bring it inline with the tax on spirits. There is the concern this tax will encourage consumers to buy straight spirits and mix the drinks themselves, possibly resulting in drinks with a higher alcohol concentration than the premixed alternatives.
(External Link
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The Federal Trade Commission report states, "Further, industry-conducted research on consumers over the age of 21 who use FMBs shows that these consumers generally view the FMBs as substitutes for beer, ... This research also concludes that consumers are not likely to consume more than two or three FMBs on any occasion because of the products’
sweetness. This bill has been praised by groups advocating against alcohol use by minors and younger adults, since these drinks are favored by young people due to their flavor.
List of drinks
Some of these drinks are currently available; others have been discontinued.
Cult Shaker
Hooch
Gordon's Gin and Tonic
K Ice
Metz (discontinued)
Ceasar (produced by Mott's and The Keg)
Spirit, Hop And Grape Co. (outlawed by the Portman Group – rude)
Spoof (discontinued by the Portman Group - marketing 'too young')
Smirnoff Raw Tea
Twisted Tea
Two Dogs
Vikingfjord
WKD
Coast
Joose (new "energy" hybrid containing stimulants: caffeine, ginseng, taurine)
Sparks (new "energy" hybrid containing stimulants: caffeine, taurine)
Tilt (new "energy" hybrid containing stimulants: caffeine, guaraná and ginseng)
TVX
Vex
Four
D/C = discontinuedFurther Information
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