The rise of brown spirits is the dominant story in the U.S. spirits market, which grew three percent in the first four months of the year, Rabobank said in its newly released report. Sales of Tennessee whiskey and bourbon expanded their already large shares, while flavored whiskey, rye, small batch whiskey, Irish and single malt scotch maintained their growth rates. Rabobank analysts, however, point to trends of softening sales growth in the spirits market, particularly among vodkas, which grew only 2.6 percent year-to-date. The recent softness in the category appears to be driven by slowing growth in the flavored vodka segment, suggesting the flavor trend may be peaking.