It all started one lunchtime, in the offices of Pernod Ricard France. Two bottles from the United States were placed on a table, opened "without much conviction." An hour later, the decision was made: we're going for it.
There are launches that are prepared for years. Task forces, consumer studies, deployment plans scheduled down to the quarter. And then there's Skrewball. An impromptu tasting between two meetings, a unanimous verdict, and a green light. Martial Reynaud, Director of Whisky & Rum Brands at Pernod Ricard France, recounts this episode with a frankness rarely heard from a brand. "We said to ourselves, 'well, let's taste it anyway.' And the verdict was clear: let's go for it because it's really very good."
Perhaps this is the best definition of Skrewball: a product that convinces in spite of itself, and especially in spite of all the boxes people try to put it into.
What exactly is Skrewball? A spirit at the crossroads of several categories, difficult to categorize, and that's what makes all the difference.
On paper, Skrewball is a peanut butter whiskey. 35% ABV. Born in San Diego, founded by a couple, Steven and Brittany Yeng, who were simply looking for a cool shot to add to an Espresso Martini. Launched in 2018, it became a phenomenon in the United States within a few years. Pernod Ricard bought the brand in 2023, and rather "more quickly than for other acquisitions the group has made." In France, the product will first arrive in bars at the end of 2025. For a few weeks now, it has been available in supermarkets for 25 euros. (RRP Recommended Retail Price)
The real question remains, the one that sticks to the bottle: what is it, exactly?
Skrewball is a peanut butter flavored liqueur made from 100% North American whiskeys. It's when you try to compare it to competitors that neither Martial nor his teams have a satisfactory answer, because it competes with a large part of the spirits aisle.
And they own it. A whiskey? A liqueur? Not really. Jack Honey? Baileys? Bumbu? Get 27? Each comparison lasts about three seconds before collapsing. The verdict is clear: Skrewball has no direct competitors. It competes with "a large part of the spirits aisle," a phrase that sounds like an evasion but says something very real. The product doesn't fit into any category because it creates a new one.
Peanut Butter, a Market No One Is Looking At (Yet)
The obvious marketing move would have been to capitalize on American peanut butter culture, hoping the French would follow suit. Pernod Ricard preferred to delve into the data files.
In France, the peanut butter market is currently worth 32 million euros. That's small. But projections predict a threefold increase by 2030. It's not yet a widespread phenomenon; French people are familiar with the product, they rarely use it, but the underlying trend is set to last. Skrewball therefore arrives with a head start in a market that is just beginning to awaken.
"As far as we're concerned, that's not a problem," states Martial Reynaud. There's no need to educate anyone about what peanut butter is. It's just a matter of timing and a little patience.
The First Lesson of Winter: Stop Saying Whiskey
Winter activations in ski resorts produced an unexpected effect: a practical learning experience that no study could have delivered as clearly. "When Skrewball was presented with the whiskey angle, it didn't work. Neither for whiskey lovers, who found nothing of the whiskey in it, nor for others, for whom the term acted as an entry barrier," summarizes Martial.
As a direct consequence, Skrewball is now presented as "a peanut butter flavored liqueur". That's what it is from an organoleptic perspective. That's also what it is legally. And that's what works: the success rate at tastings is close to 100%.
The mention of whiskey hasn't disappeared from the label; it's the product's reality. But it has left the commercial discourse. The nuance matters, and honesty is rare enough in the industry to be highlighted.
The Post-Skrew, or Comfort After the Slopes
The entire bar strategy was built around a simple concept: Après-Skrew activations in ski resorts. The idea perfectly aligns with the product. Something comforting, crafted for the moment after the descent, that pairs as well with a hot chocolate as it does with an Espresso Martini or a shot straight from the freezer.
In the resorts, each establishment embraced the product in its own way. No rigid instructions, no "drink strategy ayatollahs," to use Martial's expression. Some bars added it to their menu on their own initiative, invented their own recipes. Exactly what the brand had hoped for without daring to truly believe it. "We came to disrupt the market so much with this product that we didn't expect much, to be very honest."
The black sheep, 25 euros, and the question of premium
The packaging is intriguing. A bottle that "flirts with super premium codes" for a product at 25 euros: the tension is visible, and it's calculated. The objective is to provide visual reassurance for a product with an atypical profile. When you sell a peanut butter flavored liqueur, a bottle that inspires confidence is better.
And then there's this black sheep, the brand's logo, chosen with care. "The black sheep within the flock of white sheep. Skrewball is the anomaly in the spirits aisle." This isn't modesty, it's a stance. To be the anomaly, the UFO, the one that resembles nothing and attracts the eye precisely for that reason.
Regarding the price, the temptation to push it higher existed. Pernod Ricard chose to hold back. "I honestly don't think we had much to gain by going higher." At 25 euros, the product remains accessible, consistent with its promise: a new experience, not an investment.
Who drinks Skrewball?
The typical consumer profile is quite clear. Adventurous, wanting to step off the beaten path. Not necessarily spirit connoisseurs, but rather curious individuals who want to taste something they've never drunk before. The kind of people who smile when told about a peanut butter flavored liqueur, rather than frown.
Two occasions stand out as the most natural. First, after dinner, as a bridge between dessert and digestif: neat, on the rocks, or in an Espresso Martini. Then, as a chilled shot, straight from the freezer, for more energetic moments. No special equipment, no protocol: a freezer and a glass are enough.
The Espresso Martini remains the signature drink when a bit of elaboration is desired. The logic is undeniable: peanut butter and coffee is a gustatory no-brainer.
A key challenge: tasting.
Communication relies on a single lever: getting people to taste it. In supermarkets, promotional events with tastings. In bars, word-of-mouth sparked by field activations. Skrewball will also be present at Paris Whisky Live, on Cocktail Street in late September 2026, a key moment to introduce the product.
It's coherent. Skrewball's main barrier is the mental representation ("peanut butter plus whiskey, what does that taste like?"). And its main driver is the surprise on the first sip. No visual, no hook will ever replace those two seconds when someone puts down their glass and says "this is actually good."
The internal approach follows the same line. "It's a product we really want to have fun with, I say that and it's the reality of what's happening internally." No daily meetings to scrutinize figures, no artificial pressure. Just a launched product, making its way at its own pace.
And now?
The first results in supermarkets are "rather very good," and distributors have welcomed the product well. Germany had paved the way six to eight months earlier, solely in bars. The United States remains by far the largest market in the world, ahead of Canada and Australia.
The range currently consists of a single product. No variations announced, even if, as Martial Reynaud hints with a smile, "there are always things in the pipeline." An extension of the range, if it happens, will be a sign that the gamble has paid off.
"You have to be patient. The more sideways steps we take, the longer it will take to establish itself."
The black sheep needs time for the flock to get used to it. But at the tasting, the conviction is already there.
Skrewball, peanut butter whiskey, 35°.
Recommended retail price: 25 euros in supermarkets.
Distributed by Pernod Ricard France.
