Rum brand Lamb’s is being spiced up in a bid to attract younger drinkers – in the brand’s biggest piece of NPD in 150 years.

Lamb’s Spiced Rum, which is infused with natural spices including cinnamon, lime and vanilla, is set to hit retailers’ shelves next month and sit alongside its core Lamb’s Navy Rum.

The brand currently appealed mainly to over-45-year-old men, said owner Halewood International, and the new variant would make it more accessible to younger consumers of both sexes.

The company, which acquired Lamb’s in 2007, said the move was the first major piece of activity involving Lamb’s since its launch in 1849.

More than £100,000 had been invested in developing the drink, which contained a blend of distilled rums from the Caribbean and spices from India, said senior brand manager Sue Beck. “We are aware of the navy heritage of the brand and have focused on maintaining it, while developing a high-quality variant that will appeal to a different demographic of younger shoppers,” she added. 

The product’s packaging has been designed with a younger, style-conscious consumer in mind, and features an embossed foil label with an image of a gecko to invoke the sunny Caribbean.

The drink will benefit from a share of a £500,000 marketing spend for Lamb’s in 2009 and will be available to retailers from 1 April (rsp: £14.49).

It will compete against Diageo’s Captain Morgan Spiced Rum, which was launched in the early 1990s as an extension to the core brand.