This year’s Thanksgiving Eve (November 22) was a bit lackluster for beer, with Drinksgiving/Blackout Wednesday draft volume down -2.5% year-over-year (YoY), according to BeerBoard, an on-premise market research firm.
The day marked the second consecutive YoY decline for the unofficial holiday. However, the decline was significantly smaller than the -17.1% YoY decline recorded in 2022.
Despite the YoY volume loss, the on-premise still saw a sizable boost versus an average week, with draft volume increasing +45% versus the previous Wednesday (November 15).
Light lager was once again the No. 1 draft beer style on Wednesday, with volume up +46% versus the previous Wednesday. Lagers were No. 2, boosted by a +53% WoW increase, followed by IPA (+29%).
The top 10 brands poured nationally include:
- Anheuser-Busch InBev’s (A-B) Michelob Ultra (No. 2 in 2022);
- Molson Coors’ Miller Lite (No. 3 in 2022);
- A-B’s Bud Light (No. 1 in 2022);
- Molson Coors’ Coors Light (No. 5 in 2022);
- Constellation Brands’ Modelo Especial (No. 4 in 2022);
- Molson Coors’ Blue Moon Belgian White (No. 7 in 2022);
- Heineken’s Dos Equis Lager Especial (No. 6 in 2022);
- Yuengling (No. 8 in 2022);
- A-B’s Busch Light (No. 11 in 2022);
- A-B’s Stella Artois (No. 9 in 2022).
On-premise bev-alc package volume increased +61% week-over-week (WoW) on Drinksgiving. The No. 1 brand overall was Constellation’s Corona Extra, with 16.3% share of on-premise package volume, followed by Michelob Ultra (+12.4% share). The No. 1 craft brand was Yuengling (No. 15 overall), with 0.81% share of packaged bev-alc volume.
Mark Anthony Brands’ White Claw Black Cherry was the No. 1 malt-based hard seltzer and No. 9 package overall, with 2.5% volume share. E. & J. Gallo’s High Noon Sun Sips Pineapple was the No. 1 spirits-based hard seltzer (No. 16 overall), with 0.7% volume share.
On-premise spirits volume increased +26% WoW. Bourbon/whiskey was the No. 1 spirits style, followed by vodka and tequila/mezcal. However, Tito’s Vodka was the No. 1 spirits brand, followed by Pernod Ricard’s Jameson.