BUZZ-Fever-Tree: raising the bar

** Buyside have taste for Fever-Tree, whose upmarket tonic water & mixers for discerning gin drinkers coming into their own as premium gin's popularity grows

** With premium gin sales on the rise, buyside bullish on Fever-Tree, named best tonic water by world's top 100 bars (retails c.3x price of mixers like Schweppes) (Link: http://bit.ly/1Vkixnf) (Link: http://on.ft.com/1LAdqe0)

** "Why would you put an inferior tonic in a premium gin --it just doesn't make any sense," says Standard Life (LSE: SL.L - news) Investments' Harry Nimmo

** His most recent top-up of Fever-Tree holdings on day of "outstanding" H1 update (July 8, sparked sell-side upgrades e.g. Investec FY15E PBT +22% & c.20% share rally)

** Chris Murphy, manager of Aviva Investors UK Equity Income Fund, also proponent of Fever-Tree; bought stock at Nov IPO (up c.160% since)

** Solid (KOSDAQ: 050890.KQ - news) growth prospects, though valuation deterrent for some, c.42x 1-yr fwd PE

** Launch of tonic water in mini-cans at Sainsbury's (followed by Waitrose) & British Airways distribution deal to increase brand penetration (RM (LSE: RM.L - news) : tricia.wright1.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net)