Ten Ball Cocktails: Flavor Innovation

The creative talent behind award-winning flavored whiskey, Bird Dog, saw most RTD flavors as overdone and underwhelming, so they developed new flavors that just happen to make great slushies.

As the ready-to-drink (RTD) cocktail market continues to flourish, brands are plentiful. New flavors? Not so much.

“We spent the past two years researching the RTD category for [our parent company] Western Spirits Beverage,” says VP of Marketing, Jon Holecz. Having produced Bird Dog Whiskey, Holecz and his team are certified experts in innovative flavored alcohol.

Holecz saw that there had been relatively little flavor innovation in the FMB space. And so, he made it Ten Ball’s mission to create a world where “flavor is king and taste reigns supreme.” “Since the inception of Ten Ball, we’ve set out to make the best-tasting FMB, and we believe we’ve accomplished that,” says Holecz.

The result is a lineup of contemporary, inventive flavors like Tropical Bahama Mama, a tropical cocktail with a blend of exotic coconut, pineapple and citrus fruits and Mango Margarita, a fusion of a margarita’s bold, zesty flavors with a succulent, ripe mango. And with each flavor clocking in at 10% ABV, these cocktails are the perfect way to get the party started.

Philadelphia is one of only five test markets for Ten Ball and so far the brand is off to a fast start. This success can obviously be attributed to the rapid growth of RTDs  – but signs also point to a uniquely Philadelphian favorite: slushies. “Ten Ball Cocktails are perfect for the slushie consumer. It’s one of the reasons we picked Philadelphia as an early test market,” says Holecz.

With so many distinctive flavors already in production, can we expect to see other flavor innovations? “We have several offerings in the testing phase – however, we are very focused on our first five flavors,” says Holecz. “Our current lineup includes Mango Margarita, Tropical Bahama Mama, Grape Smash, Watermelon Smash and Spiked Lemonade. We are always exploring new concepts in-house. No new flavors to share just yet… but stay tuned!”