Perry isn’t dead… it’s just being renamed 🍐

Sounds like a niche heritage debate. But it could be a big commercial lever for the drinks category.

A recent Drinks Retailing story highlights how some producers are choosing to position “perry” as “pear cider” to make it more accessible to consumers who might not understand the term. Is this a smart simplification to drive growth, or a slow erosion of category identity?

On one hand, “perry” carries heritage, provenance and regional significance, particularly in parts of the UK where it has been produced for centuries using specific pear varieties and traditional methods. But on the other hand, the reality of modern drinkers is that language matters. If consumers don’t recognise a category, they often don’t buy into it. And we’re seeing that rebranding can unlock real commercial growth.

So the question is...
Do we simplify heritage categories to make them more discoverable or risk losing something important in the process. When it comes to drinks like calvados, port or mead, do these traditional names actually help growth or start to limit accessibility for newer consumers?