Tequila could surpass vodka as America’s favorite alcohol as sales bang
Key takeaways:
- Tequila and mezcal was the second-fastest-growing alcohol type in 2021, according to the Distilled Spirits Council of the U.S.
- Agave-based alcohol is the second-best-selling type, following only vodka, and if its increase rate persists in skyrocketing, it could be No. 1 in just a few years.
- Buyers are increasingly consuming high-end tequila and mezcal like scotch or cognac.
Tequilla could become No. 1 in America:
Tequila could soon surpass vodka as America’s favorite alcohol, fueled by customers’ want for pricey bottles of agave-based spirits.
Tequila and mezcal was the second-fastest-growing spirits class in 2021, following only premixed cocktails. Agave-based spirits saw sales rise 30.1%, likened with the previous year to $5.2 billion, according to the Distilled Spirits Council of the U.S.
It was also the second-largest class by income behind No. 1 vodka, the top-selling alcohol in the U.S. since the 1970s. At $7.3 billion in earnings, vodka is still selling around $2 billion more yearly than tequila and mezcal, but agave-based spirits could be on their way to outstrip it in just a few years.
For more proof of the trend, look no other than casinos. Julian Cox, the famous bartender and executive director of drink and corporate mixologist for MGM Resorts International, stated entire sales of vodka and tequila are racing neck and neck at the hospitality giant.
“Nobody could feel it,” he stated.
Using volume as a standard, vodka stays king. According to DISCUS, the alcohol sold 78.1 million cases in 2021, almost double the importance of the following category: premixed cocktails. Tequila and mezcal scored a distant fourth at 26.8 million cases.
According to Christine LoCascio, DISCUS chief of public policy, high-end tequilas support drive expansion for the category.
“It’s not just for margaritas,” LoCascio stated at the trade group’s annual economic briefing on Thursday. “There are so many high-end tequilas that you can consume and savor like multiple other high-end products, like whiskeys and cognacs and bourbons and high-end rums as well.”