Alcohol Sales Sober in 2009

NORWALK, Conn.According to the Beverage Information Group's recently released Handbook Advance 2010, the bleak economy influenced the success of each segment of the beverage alcohol business in 2009. Distilled spirits and wine experienced positive results, albeit at a much slower rate than in the past, while beer saw unprecedented declines.

Last year, the economy reversed the previous "trading up" trend in the spirits category and consumers changed their drinking occasions with a shift to off-premise consumption. Distilled spirits grew 1.7 percent in 2009 to 188.7 million cases, marking the 12th consecutive year of positive results for the category. However, the spirits market's expansion slowed from the 3.2 percent gain posted in 2007 and 2.1 percent in 2008.

The U.S. wine market grew for the second consecutive year, with more domestic consumption and a boost from the large millennial generations' affinity for wine. Wine experienced a slight slowdown in its 2009 growth rate. Wine consumption increased 0.8 percent, only 0.1 percent less than its 2008 gain, and finished the year at 297.1 million 9-liter cases.

"Wine sales' continued growth can be attributed to consumers entertaining at home more, and to the array of products at lower price points," said Eric Schmidt, manager of information services for the Beverage Information Group.

Conversely, the beer industry experienced a sharper decline in consumption than the other two segments. Total beer consumption declined 1.4 percent in 2009 to 2.9 billion cases. Imported beer has struggled, yet the craft beer segment continues to enjoy positive growth despite its higher prices. There was a sharp drop in volume among mainstream imported beers, as well as a trading down shift that led to a downturn among large volume domestic brands.