Benzinga | Mar 8, 2021 05:36PM EST

Diageo Debuts Ready-To-Drink Crown Royal Canned Cocktails

Diageo plc (NYSE:DEO) has launched a ready-to-drink canned cocktail line under its Crown Royal Canadian Whisky brand.

What Happened: The new line comes in three flavors:

* Washington Apple featuring Crown Royal whisky, apple and sparkling cranberry flavors

* Whisky & Cola featuring Crown Royal whisky and cola

* Peach Tea featuring Crown Royal whisky, peach flavor and brewed tea

The new canned cocktails are available for a suggested retail price of $14.99 for a four-pack of a single flavor and $3.99 for a single 12-fluid ounce can.

Why It Matters: Although the COVID-19 pandemic shut down the nation's bars, liquor stores remained opened because state governments viewed it as an essential business. As a result, alcohol consumption shifted from local watering spots to living rooms and dining rooms, with ready-to-drink offerings taking on a new popularity.

Diageo's North American market recorded a net sales increase of 12.3% during the last six months of 2020, which was also the company's first half of fiscal 2021. Much of the activity was fueled by sales of ready-to-drink offerings in its Smirnoff, Ketel One Botanical and Tanqueray portfolios.

In an interview with Yahoo Finance Live last week, Diageo North America President Debra Crew did not see the trend abating.

"We're just seeing that people want more optionality in their ready-to-drink," she said. "It used to be if you wanted ready-to-drink, you could just have beer. Now you can have all sorts of cocktails as well. And people have really latched on to that trend."

(Photo: Diageo)