![]() Vodka is moving from the elephant in the room to, well, the elephant on the top shelf. Suffice to say, vodka’s status as a stalwart of sales but little else of relevance is changing, as is its currency in cocktail culture. “Some markets have seen minor growth, while others have roared back to life with strong demand and significant growth.” “Understandably, people seem to really want to be back out at their favorite bars and restaurants,” says Dave Smith, the head distiller. George Spirits has also benefited from this boon. “Now, when consumers are going out for drinks, they’re trading up for top-shelf liquors that really enhance the entire experience,” says Katie Redlien, the brand director at Grey Goose, which saw a wild 181 percent increase in on-premise sales in 2021. As consumers head back to bars on the whole, though, they’re displaying more of a treat-yourself mentality, opting to upgrade their calls because after the past two years, they feel as if they deserve it. “Vodka has been the top seller in bars for quite some time now-even with the rise of other spirit categories, such as American whiskey and agave spirits specifically,” says Tyson Buhler, the national beverage director at Death & Co. It’s also no secret that vodka has long been a key driver of revenue for many on-premise establishments. However, vodka still accounts for an enormous slice of the pie: In 2021, vodka delivered $7.3 billion in revenue with 78.1 million nine-liter cases sold, according to DISCUS. by the end of the year, which would mark the end of vodka’s two-decade streak as the number one spirits category in the U.S. In a June press briefing, IWSR Drinks Market Analysis projected that whiskey sales by volume would surpass those of vodka in the U.S. The buzz for vodka in restaurants and bars might seem contradictory to recent reports of other spirits categories cannibalizing the category’s share. But with consumers’ long-awaited return to the bars after the pandemic-era interruption, vodka’s on-premise positioning has only been further padded, and looks set to continue. In 2019, total vodka sales on-premise were up 5.9 percent in the U.S., according to IWSR Drinks Market Analysis. “Our sales are surpassing pre-pandemic levels.”Īn ever-increasing push for premiumization has occurred across the spirits industry, but vodka, more than any other category, saw a drop off in sales of cheaper price segments in 2021 compared to gains in the premium categories, according to the Distilled Spirits Council of the United States (DISCUS), losing 1.68 million nine-liter cases of sales in the lowest two price tiers, while gaining 3.6 million cases in the highest two tiers.Įven ahead of the pandemic, numbers were indicating a bump to vodka’s already lofty status. “We have seen considerable growth in sales in on-premise establishments recently,” says Estelle Horysa-Hubert, Absolut Elyx ‘s brand manager. The types of consumers who previously wouldn’t consider ordering a vodka cocktail are now doing so in droves, specifically naming the top-shelf brand they prefer, and the bartenders who came up in an industry which labeled vodka the black sheep of the backbar are now innovating in the category with nostalgic recreations flooding the pages of the consumer press. It may be subtle, and long in the coming, but it’s gaining momentum nonetheless. You may have to select a menu option or click a button.There’s a change happening in the world of vodka. ![]()
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