It’s not surprising that Wolves Whiskey, a brand founded by two fashion luminaries, kicked off in 2019 with exclusive releases priced at over 300 bucks a bottle. I have seen enough lines around L.A. sneaker shops and visited enough whiskey blogs to know that in both fashion and spirits we love a drop. But how does a brand keep the hallmark of luxury— exclusivity— when it extends into accessible products? The boutique whiskey brand comes from James Bond of Los Angeles sneaker mecca Undefeated, and Jon Buscemi of the Buscemi brand. The pair also brought in 13th generation master distiller Marko Karakasevic of California’s Charbay Distillery in Sonoma, California. So far, Wolves Whiskey has released a series of limited-edition small batch whiskeys – but this week they unveiled a flagship offering, a 5-year American single malt available year-round for $89.99. Since launch, Wolves has been primarily direct-to-consumer, gaining a following for its releases while partnering on exclusive bottlings for The Peninsula Beverly Hills Hotel, motorsports gathering The Quail, and Rolls-Royce. The progression of the brand can be partially attributed to bringing on Jennifer Marks as president last year, an exec who comes from botanical brand AMASS and Pernod Ricard. The model of going from exclusive, limited batches to releasing a flagship at retail is not unique, nor is it unique to bev-alc, especially because DTC doesn’t translate like it would in fashion. The brand’s high-profile collaborations have helped establish the tenor of the brand, according to Marks, who added that “consistency is key to building a true luxury brand.” I can see a young, and generally high-end, category like American single malt being an interesting place to explore that consistency challenge. Thanks to leaders in the space who have also been experimenting with limited batches and terroir, the style itself now has a chic, Wild West kind of vibe, whereas other more established categories might require gimmicky-leaning additions to validate a high price (meteorites and such). Otherwise, Marks said it’s about allocation: “we will always stay true to our roots, which is why this product was launched to our allocation list first.” The main difference was getting distributors on board ahead of time to also supply key accounts. Marks said the brand is staying true to its roots with limited drops planned for later this year, while aiming for the lower-price product to allow the brand to expand deeper into the off-premise and open doors to on-premise. With American whiskey coming down from its highs but still gaining ground on-premise, we’ll see how a fashion-y brand competes on the shelf with early adopters of American single malt and the major players, such as Jack Daniel’s and Bulleit, that are now on board. |
