On a mission to reinvigorate the world of low-alcohol spirits with Australian flair, Tanica Founder Adriane McDermott first dreamt up the product back in 2020 during the pandemic.
“Like so many of us, I found myself ordering cocktail-making supplies for home and overindulging in Zoom call happy hours,” McDermott recalls.
Tanica was born from a desire to create a low-alcohol, healthier alternative to spirits that were already on the market, but with the same full flavour as a full-strength spirit.
“For the first two years, this was the first Tanica we brought to market. A pretty, pink bottle that disrupted the spirits category as the ‘Mecca Beauty of drinks’, but it only got as far as selling at markets and online,” says McDermott.
In late 2022, after a year of marketing Tanica as a low-alcohol botanical spirit, McDermott was contacted by Distill Ventures (DV), the innovation pipeline partner to Diageo, and applied to the pre-accelerator program.
“By May 2023, after months of preparation and pitching, Tanica became a part of DV’s portfolio which afforded us the opportunity to embark on consumer research, reformulation and rebranding. After a full year of focus groups, testing and learning, and mentoring, we launched Tanica 2.0 in April 2024.”
Now marketed as a 17 per cent aperitif, Tanica adopted a refreshed identity and updated formulation earlier this year, with the improved liquid already receiving a gold medal at the San Francisco World Spirits. Distilled from fresh botanicals and blended with hand-harvested native plum, Tanica honours locally sourced ingredients with a fresher, slightly sweeter flavour than typical aperitif spirits.
McDermott says the reformulated product has massively outsold the original in just six months.
“For the trade, we finally know where we belong on shelf, and on menu, and we have distinctiveness. We aren’t just another derivative of Aperol. We’re showing there’s white space that’s premium to Aperol. We’re made with native Davidson’s plum, for a tangy, zesty flavour that caters to today’s tastes.
“We’ve squarely innovated into the Spritz cocktail segment, which is growing at 40.4 per cent by volume and 34.5 per cent by value. We’ve shown that a well-conceived Spritz offer can help venues make more money in daytime cocktails, especially when the sun is shining.”
Challenges for an independent brand
Since 2020, McDermott has been the mastermind behind Tanica, but prior to this, her involvement in the liquor industry dates back many years, working for Diageo from 2001 to 2005.
“After a year as a NSW Sales Manager, I was tasked with spirits category development and shopper insights, planning spirits shelves, RTD fridges and the best signage for bars. My time at Diageo was memorable because I was fascinated with marketing and they are experts in innovation,” says McDermott.
In 2005, McDermott left the industry to move back to the US, working in different roles around the world with Nike, David Jones, Camilla, Seafolly and Petbarn. Returning to Australia’s drinks industry almost fifteen years later, McDermott hasn’t observed quite as many changes as you’d think.
“The industry is still pretty male-dominated, there are still too few routes to market, and the big retailers and global players continue to make it challenging for locally crafted brands to succeed on scale,” she explains.
“Don’t get me wrong, there are some great success stories that didn’t exist 15 years ago – Four Pillars, Starward, Mr. Black, Archie Rose, Manly Spirits, to name a few. However, I believe the continued dominance of global brands and disproportionate excise tax on spirits versus other alcoholic beverage categories tends to stifle innovation and set up big barriers to entry for start-ups like us. The market share of Australian-distilled brands in our own country is still woefully low.”
An all-Australian Spritz
According to McDermott, Tanica was made for Spritzes. The signature Tanica Spritz serve comprises 60ml Tanica, 30ml Prosecco and 60ml soda water, garnished with a slice of lemon and a sprig of fresh mint, or for a sweeter Spritz, garnished with a slice of orange or strawberries.
It’s a simple serve, but one that is well-suited to the Australian lifestyle and consumer.
“The spritz origins belong to Europe, but that doesn’t mean it cannot be disrupted. So many consumers tell us they love the idea of a Spritz, but not what’s on offer, especially when it comes to taste,” McDermott stated.
“We believe we’ve created a delicious, premium product, not to replace Aperol but to be served alongside it, and that the good-natured lifestyle we represent has the ability to go beyond Australia and be aspirational globally.
“Tanica is really about a Spritz that captures the feeling of what it’s like to live here, all-in and at ease at the same time. Sophisticated yet supremely relaxed. A celebration of both our coastal-loving lifestyle and the native botanicals of Australia.”
Looking to the future of the brand, McDermott says she wants nothing more than to see Tanica succeed on the world stage, and to put the botanicals of Australia into the global Spritz occasion.
“I feel like Tanica has the potential to give people a taste of what it’s like to spend time in Australia. And for those who live here, to spark a new appreciation for what we have in our own backyard,” McDermott concluded.
