With huge swaths of the U.S. population still in stay-at-home mode, and many bars and restaurants closed to on-premise business, consumers are stocking up on beer, wine and spirits at retail — both in-store and online.
According to Nielsen, during the seven-week COVID-impacted period ended April 18, brick-and-mortar alcohol dollar sales were up 21%, while online sales of alcohol have skyrocketed to over twice that of a year ago, up 234%. In fact, alcohol is the fastest growing e-commerce department among consumer packaged goods (CPG), and weekly growth has continued.
The beer category has also seen consumers trading up to larger pack sizes, with double-digit sales growth among 30-packs (+21%) and 24-packs (+20%) in the week ended April 18.
Here are some of the latest new adult beverages to hit the market.