As Alcohol Sales Drop, Nonalcoholic Options Multiply
While consumers are buying more alcohol from grocery and liquor stores for consumption at home, those gains are far outweighed by the massive decline in alcohol shipments to restaurants, bars, sporting arenas, concert venues, and other facilities that shuttered due to the coronavirus. Global alcohol consumption is not expected to return to pre-pandemic levels until 2024, according to Mark Meek, Chief Executive Officer of IWSR Drinks Market Analysis, a leading authority on the alcohol market. “The pandemic is set to cause a deeper and more long-lasting after-effect to the global drinks industry than anything we’ve experienced before,” said Meek, who predicts that the U.S. recovery will likely take even longer.
As alcohol sales have gradually declined, the non-alcoholic beverages market has slowly but steadily grown. Nonalcoholic beer currently accounts for less than 2% of the U.S. beer market but is expected to increase by a third this year as the overall beer category will likely decrease by 3.7%, its fifth straight annual decrease, according to IWSR data. For example, the exclusively nonalcoholic beer company, Athletic Brewing Co., is already seeing this year’s sales surpass all of 2019’s record-high sales, according to CEO Bill Shufelt.
U.S. Whiskey Industry Loses $300 Million Due To Trade Tariffs, Report Says
Two years ago, the European Union enacted a 25% tariff on U.S. goods as retaliation for U.S. tariffs on European steel and aluminum. To get its point across, the new E.U. tariff specifically targeted iconic American products such as bourbon and other U.S. whiskeys. The Distilled Spirits Council of the United States reports that European exports decreased by 33% over the course of the dispute, resulting in $300 million in lost revenue.
Between January 1997 and June 2018, U.S. whiskey exports to Europe shot up from $143 million to more than $750 million, according to Distilled Spirits Council data. To calculate current losses, the Council multiplied projected growth for the year by the 33% drop in European exports. Later this summer, the U.S. Trade Representative office will consider additional tariffs on imported European wine, spirits, and food products such as coffee, olives, chocolate, and vodka, likely escalating the trade war further. .
U.S. Map Shows Which States Drink The Most Wine
Curious about how much wine is consumed in your state? A new color-coded map from VinePair shows which U.S. states drink the most wine per capita and by volume based on recent data from the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism. Surprisingly, those living in Idaho drink the most wine per capita (1.2 gallons) beating out America’s winemaking mecca, California. West Virginians drink the least wine per capita (0.1 gallons), but they drink about a gallon of beer and 2 gallons of spirits each year.
The wine map shows that the highly populated state of California, which is responsible for 86% of America’s total wine output, does indeed drink the most wine by total volume, with other large states like Florida, New York, and Texas not far behind. Conversely, Wyoming and South Dakota consume the least wine by volume. Top to bottom, that’s a difference of 155.6 million gallons overall for California compared to just 1.2 million gallons each for Wyoming and South Dakota.
Airlines Limit Alcohol To Minimize Contact On Flights
Delta and American Airlines in the United States, KLM and Easyjet in Europe, and Virgin Australia in Asia have limited drink menus to water only on many flights in order to minimize contact between staff and guests. Delta Airlines is not serving alcohol on domestic flights or in the Americas, but beer, wine and spirits are still offered on international flights. American Airlines is limiting food and drink service in the main cabin according to flight length and destination (check specific flights for details). Virgin Australia is offering guests water and a snack, but no more food or drinks are available to purchase on board. As always, airline travelers are permitted to carry up to 3.4 ounces of alcohol (two miniature bottles) in a clear, quart-size, zip-top bag.
Craft Brewers Repackage To Stay Afloat
According to the Brewers Association, an industry trade group, most American craft breweries keg 40% of their beer to sell on draft at their own taprooms or other brewpubs, bars, and restaurants. As on-premise sales dried up completely due to the pandemic, craft brewers began repackaging their beer any way they could. Many stepped up their canning operations. Others transitioned to growlers or crowlers. Those new to canning partnered with mobile canning companies such as Codi Manufacturing or Mobile Canning. Like restaurateurs, many craft brewers scrambled to establish online ordering systems and curbside pickup.
Many also turned to delivery. According to Bart Watson, Chief Economist at the Brewers Association, the number of craft breweries offering local delivery increased by 31% since last year. In some states, lawmakers have eased alcohol delivery restrictions, even allowing breweries to list their products on delivery services such as Doordash and UberEats. The online beer retailer Tavour saw a significant bump in sales, as 47 new breweries joined the retail website since March. Despite the overall economic downturn, most craft brewers remain optimistic, according to Watson, and many are hoping that legislators will allow beer delivery to continue after pandemic restrictions are lifted. “There are a lot of people who have really gotten used to staying at home,” says Megan Birch, Tavour’s director of marketing, “and when everything does open up, they’re not really going to want to go out. It’s so much easier to just get beer delivered to their house.”
Facing Racism Charges, Court Of Master Sommeliers Removes “Master” Address
The Court of Master Sommeliers Americas is facing charges of failing to be inclusive of people of color. The first to speak out against the organization was Atlanta wine professional Tahiirah Habibi who took the Court’s famously difficult introductory exam in New York in 2011. On June 16, she recounted her experience in an Instagram video post, recalling how exam proctors told her and other candidates to call them “master.” After passing the introductory exam, she decided not to enroll in further courses or exams with the court, saying, “I just couldn’t imagine having to pour a glass of wine for someone while calling them ‘master.’”
Chair of the board of directors for the Court, Devon Broglie, discussed the incident with Habibi and told reporters, “I expressed deep regret for the unwelcoming experience and the racism perpetrated then.” He added that the Master Sommelier board “will move to officially end any use of ‘Master + Last name’ only.”
Master sommelier Richard Betts also announced his resignation from the Court on June 17, the first time a master sommelier has resigned from the organization. Among Betts’s reasons for resigning, he believes the court should take a stronger stance on racial injustice, and he disapproves of how the court handled a cheating scandal in 2018. Brian McClintic, star of the popular television documentary “Somm,” walked away as well, because he felt that issues such as dismantling inherent classism were not being addressed by the organization. McClintic is one of four wine professionals in the documentary, which reveals the details and intensity of taking the world’s top wine exam and attempting to attain Master Sommelier certification.
How Diurnal Swing Creates Lively Wine
To make exceptional wines, winemakers become highly attuned to regional and local shifts in climactic factors like temperature, wind, and humidity. Wine grapes are particularly sensitive to diurnal swing, the contrast between the highest daytime and lowest nighttime temperature. Generally, a big diurnal swing translates into fresher, livelier, better-tasting wine. Higher daytime temperatures increase sugar production in the grapes, while lower nighttime temperature tap the brakes on development, keep the grapes from becoming too mature. Together, the contrast in temperatures creates rich aromas in wines while preserving their acidity and freshness.
Big diurnal swings are more common at high elevations in regions that have a spike in midday temperatures. While factors like soil composition are key to a wine’s terroir, diurnal swing may be even more critical in some regions. It helps to create a balanced flavor profile. “By balancing out the heat spikes that jack up sugar levels and drive down acid,” says Evan Goldstein, MS, and president of the wine education platform Full Circle Wine Solutions, “the physiological development of the grape is more moderate and balanced, and leads to livelier flavors.” .
Ankle Tags Now Keep Dutch Alcohol Offenders On The Wagon
The Dutch justice ministry has instituted the use of electronic bracelets or tags on people convicted of alcohol-related offenses. The tags monitor any and all alcohol consumption by analyzing the sweat of the person wearing it. The previous monitoring system used blood or urine tests only twice a week. With the new tags, data is sent to a central server once a day for probation officers to inspect. Pilot studies by the justice ministry showed that 71% of those wearing tags abstained from any alcohol consumption during the study, even though some were permitted access to alcohol. Roughly half of the participants said they even abstained from drinking for at least three months after the ankle tag was removed. The new tags aim to stem the increase in alcohol-related offenses in the Netherlands. Studies cited by the justice ministry show that 26% to 43% of all violent incidents in the Netherlands are alcohol-related, and alcohol abuse costs Dutch society an estimated $6.75 billion a year.
American Cancer Society Recommends Eliminating Alcohol Entirely
For the first time in eight years, the American Cancer Society (ACS) has updated its guidelines on reducing cancer risk. The new guidelines say it’s best to eliminate alcohol from one’s diet to cut risk. “Alcohol use is one of the most important preventable risk factors for cancer, along with tobacco use and excess body weight,” according to the organization. In the United States alone, alcohol use accounts for about 6% of all cancers and 4% of all cancer deaths, according to ACS data. The organization had previously recommended limiting alcohol consumption to one drink a day for women and two drinks a day for men (a drink defined as 12 ounces of regular beer, 5 ounces of wine, or 1.5 ounces of 80-proof distilled spirits). These amounts were recommended for people who didn’t want to entirely cut alcohol from their diets.
The new guidelines also recommend eliminating processed and red meat from one’s diet entirely, as well as cutting out sugar-sweetened beverages and “highly processed foods and refined grain products.” Previously recommendations for physical activity included 150 minutes of “moderate-intensity” or 75 minutes of “vigorous-intensity” activity every week for adults. Now, the ACS says “Adults should engage in 150-300 minutes of moderate-intensity or 75-150 minutes of vigorous-intensity physical activity per week; achieving or exceeding the upper limit of 300 minutes is optimal.”
Binge Drinking Linked to Estrogen Hormone, Study Says
Researchers at the University of Illinois in Chicago have found that high estrogen levels may make alcohol more rewarding to female mice. Their study, published Monday in the Journal of Neuroscience, builds on existing research suggesting that treatments for binge drinking may be more effective if sex differences are considered.
“Women more rapidly transition from problematic alcohol drinking to having an alcohol use disorder and to suffer from the negative health effects of alcohol, such as increased cancer risk, liver damage, heart disease, and brain damage,” said co-author Amy Lasek, a psychiatrist at the University of Illinois. Lasek’s research focused specifically on how the brain’s estrogen receptors regulate alcohol sensitivity. The increased neural activity, she suggests, may translate into more intense feelings of pleasure among women when drinking. Though the study was conducted on mice, its findings may help lead to new, sex-based treatments for alcohol use disorder.
