By Andrew Starke
Carlton Dry Fusion Black and Pure Blonde White Lager will join the Carlton & United Breweries (CUB) stable of beers from next week as the Foster’s Group beer unit looks to lift sales growth.
Carlton Dry Fusion Black is described by CUB as ‘a bright lager, which combines subtle citrus sweetness with selected spices and low bitterness to deliver a refreshing, smooth, clean and crisp full-strength beer’.
Pure Blonde White Lager is said to be ‘a premium aromatic wheat beer that delivers a refreshingly smooth full flavour’.
While the flavoured beer category is in its infancy in Australia, Carlton Dry Fusion Lime is presently the market leader after its launch in Dec 2007.
Carlton Dry Fusion Lemon followed in March 2009 to add further variety with Carlton Dry Fusion Black the next step in offering a new flavour experience to the 18-24 year old target market ahead of summer.
“About 16 million litres of flavoured beer is consumed each year in Australia, and that volume is set to grow even further in 2011 as innovative new flavour combinations like Carlton Dry Fusion Black hit the shelves," said Carlton group marketing manager Vincent Ruiu.
“As Australia's leading brewer it's our challenge to develop new and innovative brews and Carlton Dry Fusion Black fits the bill.”
The brand will be supported by a sampling program in both on-premise and off-premise outlets, supported by the tagline ‘Bitter Sweet’.
The new Fusion variant will be backed by a broader program on the Carlton Dry brand that includes a multi-million dollar advertising campaign.
Carlton Dry Fusion Black will be widely available from November 1.
Pure Blonde White Lager will be available from the same date and officially launches on November 9 at an exclusive party at Sydney's Ivy Pool Club.
Pure Blonde remains Australia's number one selling low carb beer and CUB expects Pure Blonde White Lager to offer something unique to the Australian beer scene.