Overall consumption of beer was up 7.2% over Opening Day a year earlier.
Domestics were the winner on the day, claiming 50.5% of the share and up 12.4% over the previous Sunday. As compared to 2016 Opening Sunday, Domestics were down 6.3%, while Imports and Crafts were up 12.2 and 4.6%, respectively.
Something’s Gotta Give
With the one-day lift in Domestics, the increase in share had to come from somewhere. Craft Beer took a slight downturn, realizing a 17% decline. IPA took the biggest hit for the day, down 18.9%. Digging a little deeper though, IPAs were still up 15.3% over 2016 Opening Sunday.
Miller Lite, Light Lager Drive Domestic Bump
Miller Lite led the Domestic lift, climbing a healthy 19.1%, tops among Light Lagers. Bud Light was right there as well, up 12.6%, – exactly mirroring the bump for Light Lager on the day.
Lagers
As a style, Lagers were up on the day, seeing a 13.1% lift over the previous Sunday. This is a two-week climb for the style, coming off a downturn (-12.7%) from the Mayweather-McGregor Report. Dos Equis, currently #1 in the category, was up 19.4%. ZiegenBock Amber was up a healthy 37.6%, the biggest mover in the category and one of the largest of any brand.