Spring is in the air, which means more at-home experimentation with diverse brown and white spirits, like mixing up a fruity Malibu Sunset, a tart and tangy Margarita or a spirit-forward Old Fashioned or Martini. In the “spirit” of the season, the spirits industry has plenty of reasons to celebrate. For the 12th straight year, the spirits category, driven by premiumization, experienced accelerated growth. Supplier sales rose 12% in 2021 to a total of $35.8 billion, while volumes rose 9.3% to 291.1 million 9-liter cases, according to the Washington, D.C.-based Distilled Spirits Council of the United States (DISCUS).
At the Distilled Spirits Council Annual Economic Briefing on Feb. 3, DISCUS President and CEO Chris Swonger reported that spirits gained market share of the total U.S. beverage alcohol market in 2021, with sales rising 1.7 share points to 41.3%. Spirits growth was supported by hospitality industry recovery, but more help still is needed for restaurants and bars, he noted.