As Cinco de Mayo Approaches, Consumption of Agave-Based Spirits and Mexican Beer Continues to Show Impressive Growth…
Though Cinco de Mayo is not generally recognised in Mexico as a major holiday, it has become quite a popular occasion in the U.S., helping drive the growth of tequila, mezcal and Mexican beer. According to research from IWSR Drinks Market Analysis, the leading source of data and intelligence on the alcoholic beverage market, consumption of agave-based spirits was up about 9% in the U.S. last year, and the leading eight brands of Mexican beer posted a combined CAGR of more than 10% over the past five years. And as May 5 falls during a weekend this year, that will only help fuel this upward trend.
The U.S. is the top market in the world for tequila, and agave-based spirits are one of the fastest-growing drinks categories in the country. Mezcal consumption in the U.S. was up 32.4% last year, posting the largest gain among all spirits (albeit up from a relatively small base, to 261,000 nine-liter cases in 2018). Tequila was up 8.5%. Collectively, the agave-based spirits category is forecasted to grow by 4% CAGR through 2022, which places it within close striking distance to soon overtake rum volume in the U.S.
The picture is similar with Mexican imported beer, which outperformed all other segments within the beer industry in 2018. The top eight Mexican beer brands collectively added 11.3m hectoliters to the beer market last year and are quickly gaining on their domestic competitors.
“Beer brands such as Modelo and Corona have shown impressive growth over the past several years, and are quickly gaining on their domestic competitors. And of course, the margarita – always a favourite on Cinco de Mayo – has long dominated as one of the most popular cocktails in America,” Brandy Rand, U.S. president of IWSR Drinks Market Analysis.
Globally, tequila is forecasted to grow 2.5% CAGR from 2018 to 2022. In addition to the U.S., the largest gains are expected in Australia, China, the UK, Russia, and the U.S.
Note: This is a copy of the press release issued by the IWSR.
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