With the heatwave, the Société des alcools du Québec expects its sales of ready-to-drink beverages to reach new heights this week. And the heights won’t stop there: the Crown corporation is in the process of calling for tenders to renew its canned products.
“It’s a category that is growing at the SAQ, where there are few growing categories,” says Nicolas Bériault, of Distillerie 3 Lacs, from the outset. The Salaberry-de-Valleyfield company offers a few products in this category, including a pink lemonade made with gin.
“More and more people are abandoning wine and beer in favor of ready-to-drink products once in a while,” says the entrepreneur. It’s an offer that didn’t exist and is now widely available. »
According to Nicolas Bériault, one factor plays greatly in favor of these products: the can, recyclable and practical.
Seeing the proliferation of ready-to-drink products at the SAQ and in grocery stores, one might wonder if local producers are not making the same mistake as with gins: flooding the market until more thirsty.
Impossible, replies Nicolas Bériault, who is also a member of the board of directors of the Union québécoise des microdistilleries. Because unlike Quebec gins which automatically all had a place on the SAQ’s shelves, which led to this overproduction, the state company operates by calls for tenders for ready-to-drink products.
The process is happening right now for products that will be on shelves next year.
Distillers here and elsewhere have until July 4 to respond to this call for tenders: the monopoly wants to add around fifteen drinks in this category.
Quebec companies are competing with alcohol giants to find a place on the SAQ’s shelves, but many are succeeding in doing so, since 62% of the ready-to-drink products offered at the SAQ are from Quebec – which represents 54%. Sales.
“Quebec products are growing,” explains Stéphanie Taschereau, category manager – spirits and ready-to-drink products for the SAQ. They gain more and more sales share and they bring growth. »
The tender process is simple: the SAQ describes the desired products according to trends, and manufacturers can submit a beverage that meets these criteria. They can also request a meeting to present their company and their products.
In April, the SAQ announced that it would change its approach to gins and make a selection of products that will now find their place on the shelves.
According to distiller Nicolas Bériault, ready-to-drink drinks cannot save a company that is already on the verge of bankruptcy.
“I don’t think it’s going to be a lifesaver,” he said. It’s a great complementary product to grow a portfolio. From there to saving a company, no. There is something extremely competitive about the ready-to-drink can market. It’s still rough. »
Nicolas Bériault believes that a small player can still find a place in this busy market if it offers an innovative drink.
Good to know: the SAQ has a particular eye on ready-to-drink products that will appeal to men, who buy less, and to older customers, who are also less keen on canned alcohol.
Drinks that are made from neutral alcohol – distilled, therefore, by distillers – are on sale at the SAQ in Quebec. Those made from malt can be found in convenience stores and grocery stores, where the supply has also increased.
And it’s not about to run out of steam, says Samuel Gaudette, co-owner of the Comont distillery, which has made ready-to-drink products its signature.
Over the last three years, the distiller has seen the offerings multiply and notes the growing interest from consumers, even in new markets.
“We are coming back from France and Germany and we are starting to see the interest in cans,” says Samuel Gaudette, happy to see more conservative markets – and where canned alcohol is synonymous with average quality – warming up by relation to the concept.
“It’s definitely not going to stop,” he says.
However, according to him, there are already too many similar products and consumers find themselves confused by too many boxes of cans at the SAQ, while waiting to pay at the cash register. This is not good for promoting products, especially regional products that sometimes go unnoticed, according to the Bedford distiller. Comont offers cans of paloma and margarita, categories where the offer has exploded over the past two years.
Good news, these are products that are very popular in Quebec.
“The margarita is popular this year,” says Stéphanie Taschereau, who specifies that the appearance of new products in 2025 does not mean more quantity or variety, since drinks that perform less risk losing their place on shelves. . But the SAQ has an eye on the tastes of its customers.
What’s going well right now: Rum, gin and tequila coolers.
And especially when the weather is nice: the ready-to-drink category manager observes a direct correlation between sales and the weather.
Are you going to have a sales record this week?
“I expect sales to grow significantly,” confides Stéphanie Taschereau. “With this heat!”
