The on-premise sector continues to improve, and SipSource, which tracks trends for distributors, finds growth resumed in September after stalling in August. The September data shows spirits are performing much healthier (index of 94) on-premise than wine (index of just over 84).
When looking at the CSI data, regional discrepancies also continue to be visible. The SipSource on-premise CSI for both wine and spirits was the lowest in the Pacific region (with California as the largest state). On the positive side, in the South Central, where Texas is the largest state, spirits on-premise CSI is greater than 100 – indicating a full recovery when compared to pre-COVID dates. Likewise, the South Atlantic and Mountain division areas are both approaching 100.
While wine’s on-premise CSI remains under 100 everywhere, it did improve significantly in both the Northeast and West North Central parts of the U.S.
“When we go deeper into on-premise channels, the Recreation channel has bounced back the fastest over the longer term,” said industry analyst Danny Brager. “On the flip side, the Lodging and Transportation channels remain well behind where they were pre-COVID, indicating the travel-related business continues to suffer the impact the pandemic.”
The September SipSource on-premise channel-shifting index revealed some product segments continue to advance, most notably:
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The on-premise CSI for Ready-to-Drink cocktails (RTDs) is now well over 200 for the past three months, indicating that the on-premise share of this segment, compared to its total business, has now more than doubled since pre-COVID. The growth reinforces the growing popularity of pre-mixed cocktails and RTDs.
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Cordials, Rum, and Brandy categories all have an on-premise CSI exceeding 100.
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Within the Wine segment, Champagne (with an on-premise CSI of 108 for the past three months) continues to be an important element of the overall, very positive story for sparkling wine generally. This segment is well above table wine’s on-premise CSI of just 81.
An index above 100 indicates the channel referenced has a greater share of the market than it had pre-COVID; an index less than 100 indicates that the channel has a smaller share of the market than it had pre-COVID. I