Stroll through the wine shelves of your favorite local supermarket or liquor store, and you’ll notice a decided uptick in a certain product. Ready-to-drink wine in aluminum cans has exploded across the country, and it’s on the rise in Baton Rouge, too.
“Canned wines are the fastest growing wine segment in the country,” says Sly Cosmopoulos, corporate mixologist for Republic National Distributing Company, which has a distribution center on Industriplex Boulevard. “This is definitely part of a convenience trend that’s geared toward younger generations.”
Cosmopoulos says Republic saw cases of 375-milliliter canned wines increase 62% between 2013 and 2018. Now, he says, 2019 is emerging as the “Year of the RTD,” or ready-to-drink beverage. Consumers are discovering broader choices not only in canned wines but also canned cocktails.
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While wine in a can seems a far cry from its traditional glass bottle, Cosmopoulos says it’s an idea whose time has come.
“They are casual, portable and versatile and can go where bottles can’t,” he says, “including places that millennials enjoy, like sporting events, the beach, concerts, tailgates, picnics and outdoor activities.”