Alcopop
Encyclopedia
Alcopop is a colloquial term describing certain flavored alcoholic beverage
s, including:
The term 'alcopop' (a portmanteau of the words alcohol and pop
) is used by advocates of tighter restrictions on alcoholic beverage sales, who argue that the beverages are especially appealing to underage drinkers.
Other terms include FAB (flavored alcoholic beverage), FMB (flavored malt beverage), PPS (pre-packaged spirit or premium packaged spirits), Poof Juice (Scotland and Ireland) and RTD (Ready To Drink - Aus
& NZ
). The alcoholic beverage industry does not use the term "alcopop."
and served in small bottle
s (typically 330 ml in Europe and 355 ml, the normal size of a soda pop can, in North America), and between 4% and 7% alcohol by volume
. In Europe and Canada, alcopops tend to be pre-mixed spirits, including vodka (e.g. Smirnoff Ice) or rum (e.g. Bacardi Breezer
). In the United States, on the other hand, alcopops often start out as un-hopped
beer
s, depending on the state in which they are sold. Much of the malt (and alcohol) is removed (leaving mostly water), with subsequent addition of alcohol (usually vodka or grain alcohol), sugar, coloring and flavoring. Such drinks are legally classified as beers in virtually all states and can thus be sold in outlets that do not or cannot carry spirit-based drinks. There are, however, stronger ones that are simply pre-mixed spirits (e.g. Bacardi Rum Island Iced Tea), often containing about 12.5% alcohol by volume, that can only be sold where hard liquor is available.
In the United States there is a proportionally limited tax on alcopops relative to those sold in Europe, though some states are considering legislation to bring their tax levels closer to the European model which is credited with limiting consumption by youth.
According to the U.S. Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau
(TTB):
In some Continental Europe
an countries, such as Austria
and Germany
, bottled beer cocktail
s and shandies
are available, which are being marketed the same way like alcopops. However, these beverages are based on traditional hopped beers and therefore not considered to be alcopops.
introduced the Breezer
. A growth in popularity occurred around 1993 with Two Dogs
, DNA Alcoholic Spring Water, Hooper's Hooch
and Zima
, which was marketed under the title of "malternative beverage". Wine coolers were on the decline due to the increase in the US federal wine tax, and using a malt-beverage base became the new industry standard. 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
-flavor
ed 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."
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 are 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 Australia
n 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. This tax was revoked during March 2009 meaning the government had to pay back the 290 million collected on the tax.
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.
Some notable brands include: Smirnoff Ice, Mike's Hard Lemonade, Bacardi Breezer
, Skyy Blue, Jack Daniel's
Hard Cola, WKD Original Vodka
, and Six Degrees.
The Australian government attempted to increase the tax on these drinks to the same rate as spirits, volumetrically, in an effort to stop binge drinking
. The tax was criticized by the opposition as a tax grab, and voted down in the Senate on March 18, 2009. Such a tax was in effect for some period of time, raising at least $AU 290 million after April 2008. In April 2009, some Labor party members said that they planned to resubmit the tax to the Senate, where this time it was expected to pass.
In the United Kingdom
, alcopops were criticised as "insidious means by which the brewing companies seduce young people into the evils of drinking." Secretary of State for Health
, Patricia Hewitt
called for a tax increase on such products, although this had not yet happened as of December 2010.
Alcoholic beverage
An alcoholic beverage is a drink containing ethanol, commonly known as alcohol. Alcoholic beverages are divided into three general classes: beers, wines, and spirits. They are legally consumed in most countries, and over 100 countries have laws regulating their production, sale, and consumption...
s, including:
- malt beverageMalt beverageMalt beverage is an American term for both alcohol containing and non-alcoholic fermented beverages, in which the primary ingredient is the grain, or seed of the barley plant, which has been allowed to sprout in a traditional way called slightly before it is processed...
s 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 (wine coolers)
- beverages containing distilled alcohol and added ingredients such as fruit juices or other flavorings
The term 'alcopop' (a portmanteau of the words alcohol and pop
Soft drink
A soft drink is a non-alcoholic beverage that typically contains water , a sweetener, and a flavoring agent...
) is used by advocates of tighter restrictions on alcoholic beverage sales, who argue that the beverages are especially appealing to underage drinkers.
Legal drinking age
Laws about the legal drinking age cover a wide range of issues and behaviours, addressing when and where alcohol can be consumed. The minimum age alcohol can be legally consumed can be different to the age when it can be purchased. These laws vary among different countries and many laws have...
Other terms include FAB (flavored alcoholic beverage), FMB (flavored malt beverage), PPS (pre-packaged spirit or premium packaged spirits), Poof Juice (Scotland and Ireland) and RTD (Ready To Drink - Aus
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
& NZ
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
). The alcoholic beverage industry does not use the term "alcopop."
Description
Alcopops tend to be sweetSweetness
Sweetness is one of the five basic tastes and is almost universally regarded as a pleasurable experience. Foods rich in simple carbohydrates such as sugar are those most commonly associated with sweetness, although there are other natural and artificial compounds that are sweet at much lower...
and served in small bottle
Bottle
A bottle is a rigid container with a neck that is narrower than the body and a "mouth". By contrast, a jar has a relatively large mouth or opening. Bottles are often made of glass, clay, plastic, aluminum or other impervious materials, and typically used to store liquids such as water, milk, soft...
s (typically 330 ml in Europe and 355 ml, the normal size of a soda pop can, in North America), and between 4% and 7% alcohol by volume
Alcohol by volume
Alcohol by volume is a standard measure of how much alcohol is contained in an alcoholic beverage .The ABV standard is used worldwide....
. In Europe and Canada, alcopops tend to be pre-mixed spirits, including vodka (e.g. Smirnoff Ice) or rum (e.g. Bacardi Breezer
Bacardi Breezer
Bacardi Breezer, Breezer for short, is a rum-based alcopop with 4% alcohol It comes in a variety of fruit flavours: lemon, peach, pineapple, apple, ruby grapefruit, lime, orange, blackberry, watermelon, cranberry, coconut, raspberry, blueberry, pomegranate and mango...
). In the United States, on the other hand, alcopops often start out as un-hopped
Hop (plant)
Humulus, Hop, is a small genus of flowering plants native to temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere. The female flowers of H. lupulus are known as hops, and are used as a culinary flavoring and stabilizer, especially in the brewing of beer...
beer
Beer
Beer is the world's most widely consumed andprobably oldest alcoholic beverage; it is the third most popular drink overall, after water and tea. It is produced by the brewing and fermentation of sugars, mainly derived from malted cereal grains, most commonly malted barley and malted wheat...
s, depending on the state in which they are sold. Much of the malt (and alcohol) is removed (leaving mostly water), with subsequent addition of alcohol (usually vodka or grain alcohol), sugar, coloring and flavoring. Such drinks are legally classified as beers in virtually all states and can thus be sold in outlets that do not or cannot carry spirit-based drinks. There are, however, stronger ones that are simply pre-mixed spirits (e.g. Bacardi Rum Island Iced Tea), often containing about 12.5% alcohol by volume, that can only be sold where hard liquor is available.
According to the U.S. Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau
Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau
The Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau, statutorily named the Tax and Trade Bureau and frequently shortened to TTB, is a bureau of the United States Department of the Treasury....
(TTB):
(70 Fed. Reg. 194 et seq. ( January 3, 2005).)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.
In some Continental Europe
Continental Europe
Continental Europe, also referred to as mainland Europe or simply the Continent, is the continent of Europe, explicitly excluding European islands....
an countries, such as Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
and Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, bottled beer cocktail
Beer cocktail
A beer cocktail is a cocktail that is made by mixing beer with a distilled beverage.In this type of cocktail, the primary ingredient is beer...
s and shandies
Shandy
Shandy, or shandygaff, is normally a beer mixed with citrus-flavored soda, carbonated lemonade, ginger beer, ginger ale, or cider. The proportions of the two ingredients are adjusted to taste, normally half-and-half. There are also non-alcoholic shandy mixes known as “rock shandies”...
are available, which are being marketed the same way like alcopops. However, these beverages are based on traditional hopped beers and therefore not considered to be alcopops.
History
Wine coolers gained popularity in the US market in the 1980s when Bartles and Jaymes began advertising their brand of wine coolers, which were followed by other brands, including when BacardiBacardi
Bacardi is a family-controlled spirits company, best known as a producer of rums, including Bacardi Superior and Bacardi 151. The company sells in excess of 200 million bottles per year in nearly 100 countries...
introduced the Breezer
Bacardi Breezer
Bacardi Breezer, Breezer for short, is a rum-based alcopop with 4% alcohol It comes in a variety of fruit flavours: lemon, peach, pineapple, apple, ruby grapefruit, lime, orange, blackberry, watermelon, cranberry, coconut, raspberry, blueberry, pomegranate and mango...
. A growth in popularity occurred around 1993 with Two Dogs
Two Dogs
Two Dogs is a ready to drink beverage that was first introduced in Australia in 1993 and went on to become available throughout the world. It is a lemon flavoured alcoholic beverage that is widely considered to have been the "world’s first brewed alcoholic lemonade," paving the way for similar...
, DNA Alcoholic Spring Water, Hooper's Hooch
Hooper's Hooch
Hooper's Hooch is an alcopop that was most popular during the mid-1990s. The name Hoopers refers to William Hooper, inventor of the hot water bottle and manufacturer of lemonade in the 1840s whose trademark was owned by Burton-on-Trent-based brewer Bass...
and Zima
Zima
Zima is a clear, lightly carbonated, alcoholic beverage, made and distributed by the Coors Brewing Company, ultimately MillerCoors. Introduced in 1993, it was marketed not as a beer, but as an alternative to beer, an early example of what is now often referred to as alcopop. Its domestic production...
, which was marketed under the title of "malternative beverage". Wine coolers were on the decline due to the increase in the US federal wine tax, and using a malt-beverage base became the new industry standard. Later, Mike's Hard Lemonade was released in the United States, with humorous commercials depicting what they called "violence against lemons". Smirnoff
Smirnoff
Smirnoff is a brand of vodka owned and produced by the British company Diageo. The Smirnoff brand began with a vodka distillery founded in Moscow by Pyotr Arsenievich Smirnov , the son of illiterate Russian peasants. It is now distributed in 130 countries.Smirnoff products include vodka, flavored...
also came out with another citrus
Citrus
Citrus is a common term and genus of flowering plants in the rue family, Rutaceae. Citrus is believed to have originated in the part of Southeast Asia bordered by Northeastern India, Myanmar and the Yunnan province of China...
-flavor
Flavor
Flavor or flavour is the sensory impression of a food or other substance, and is determined mainly by the chemical senses of taste and smell. The "trigeminal senses", which detect chemical irritants in the mouth and throat as well as temperature and texture, are also very important to the overall...
ed malt beverage
Malt beverage
Malt beverage is an American term for both alcohol containing and non-alcoholic fermented beverages, in which the primary ingredient is the grain, or seed of the barley plant, which has been allowed to sprout in a traditional way called slightly before it is processed...
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
Diageo
Diageo plc is a global alcoholic beverages company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the world's largest producer of spirits and a major producer of beer and wine....
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
Alcohol advertising
Alcohol advertising is the promotion of alcoholic beverages by alcohol producers through a variety of media. Along with tobacco advertising, it is one of the most highly-regulated forms of marketing...
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
Tabloid journalism
Tabloid journalism tends to emphasize topics such as sensational crime stories, astrology, gossip columns about the personal lives of celebrities and sports stars, and junk food news...
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
Center for Science in the Public Interest
Center for Science in the Public Interest is a Washington, D.C.-based non-profit watchdog and consumer advocacy group focusing on nutritional education and awareness.-History and funding:...
(CSPI), the Federal Trade Commission
Federal Trade Commission
The Federal Trade Commission is an independent agency of the United States government, established in 1914 by the Federal Trade Commission Act...
(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
Product placement
Product placement, or embedded marketing, is a form of advertisement, where branded goods or services are placed in a context usually devoid of ads, such as movies, music videos, the story line of television shows, or news programs. The product placement is often not disclosed at the time that the...
, 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."
In December 2003, Ireland
Republic of Ireland
Ireland , described as the Republic of Ireland , is a sovereign state in Europe occupying approximately five-sixths of the island of the same name. Its capital is Dublin. Ireland, which had a population of 4.58 million in 2011, is a constitutional republic governed as a parliamentary democracy,...
raised the tax on alcopops to equal that of spirits, the second highest in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
. Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
has imposed an extra duty of 0.80 to 0.90 euro
Euro
The euro is the official currency of the eurozone: 17 of the 27 member states of the European Union. It is also the currency used by the Institutions of the European Union. The eurozone consists of Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg,...
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 are 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 Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n 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. This tax was revoked during March 2009 meaning the government had to pay back the 290 million collected on the tax.
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.
Alcopop brands
Alcopop brands are numerous and their alcoholic base vary greatly.Some notable brands include: Smirnoff Ice, Mike's Hard Lemonade, Bacardi Breezer
Bacardi Breezer
Bacardi Breezer, Breezer for short, is a rum-based alcopop with 4% alcohol It comes in a variety of fruit flavours: lemon, peach, pineapple, apple, ruby grapefruit, lime, orange, blackberry, watermelon, cranberry, coconut, raspberry, blueberry, pomegranate and mango...
, Skyy Blue, Jack Daniel's
Jack Daniel's
Jack Daniel's is a brand of sour mash Tennessee whiskey that is among the world's best-selling liquors. It is known for its square bottles and black label. As of November, 2007, one blogger was claiming that it was the best-selling whiskey in the world. It is produced in Lynchburg, Tennessee by...
Hard Cola, WKD Original Vodka
WKD Original Vodka
WKD Original Vodka is a brand of alcopop produced by Beverage Brands. It is sold and heavily marketed in the United Kingdom with the slogan ‘Have you got a WKD side?’ , and also in many countries in mainland Europe. AC Nielsen ranked it as the number-one UK ready-to-drink brand in 2006.-Product...
, and Six Degrees.
Unsuccessful attempts to change laws to discourage "alcopops"
California's state assembly recently passed AB 346, a bill which requires manufacturers of "alcopops" to carry a 'warning' label stating "ATTENTION: THIS DRINK CONTAINS ALCOHOL." This bill was praised by groups advocating against alcohol use by minors and younger adults, since these drinks are sometimes favored by young people due to their flavor. However, passage of a bill by the state assembly alone does not change the law and the state senate and governor had not yet endorsed the bill.The Australian government attempted to increase the tax on these drinks to the same rate as spirits, volumetrically, in an effort to stop binge drinking
Binge drinking
Binge drinking or heavy episodic drinking is the modern epithet for drinking alcoholic beverages with the primary intention of becoming intoxicated by heavy consumption of alcohol over a short period of time. It is a kind of purposeful drinking style that is popular in several countries worldwide,...
. The tax was criticized by the opposition as a tax grab, and voted down in the Senate on March 18, 2009. Such a tax was in effect for some period of time, raising at least $AU 290 million after April 2008. In April 2009, some Labor party members said that they planned to resubmit the tax to the Senate, where this time it was expected to pass.
In the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, alcopops were criticised as "insidious means by which the brewing companies seduce young people into the evils of drinking." Secretary of State for Health
Secretary of State for Health
Secretary of State for Health is a UK cabinet position responsible for the Department of Health.The first Boards of Health were created by Orders in Council dated 21 June, 14 November, and 21 November 1831. In 1848 a General Board of Health was created with the First Commissioner of Woods and...
, Patricia Hewitt
Patricia Hewitt
Patricia Hope Hewitt is an Australian-born British Labour Party politician, who was the Member of Parliament for Leicester West from 1997 until 2010. She served in the Cabinet until 2007, most recently as Health Secretary....
called for a tax increase on such products, although this had not yet happened as of December 2010.
External links
- Portman Group (a U.K. alcoholic beverage industry trade advocacy group with a code of marketing practices)