Women and elders—according to TrendSource’s recently-released 2019 Alcohol Industry Report—are among the most frequent drinkers in the country, with women outpacing men in nearly every drinking category and the silent generation lapping younger cohorts in terms of drinking frequency.
The study, which examines consumers’ brand preferences, drinking patterns, and priorities, contains several surprises, most notably related to gender and generation. First, women, according to the data, are out-drinking men. Across the board, in fact, women outpaced men in terms of drinking frequency and volume: they drink more often than men, and when they do, they drink more.
Obviously these findings contradict many of our cultural notions of gender and drinking, and, while it may be tempting to ascribe these numbers to things like wine night and book club, the data further indicates women are likelier to drink in nearly every imaginable social situation.
Like women, the silent generation’s drinking habits are a bit surprising. They are, by roughly a 17% gap, the likeliest age demographic to drink every day. It seems cocktail hour is alive and well among our oldest respondents, but the vast majority of them only drink 1-2 drinks per sitting. This means that, while members of the silent generation are likelier to drink more often, when they do drink they drink relatively less than every other generation.
Income also bears on drinking frequency and quantity, with wealthier respondents proving likelier to drink in nearly every social situation and to consume more in each. Whether this has to do with affordability, cultural norms, or access, the fact remains that individuals in households earning more than $100,000/year outdrink their lower-income counterparts.
Beyond segmented drinking patterns, the study offers a bounty of useful information for manufacturers and retailers. For example, nearly 30% of respondents are interested in the idea of on-demand beer delivery—they want to get their beers the same way they get their food and batteries, on-demand on their doorstep.