Leader in technology solutions and intelligence releases its annual report on alcohol performance surrounding the Day o’ the Green
SYRACUSE, NY (March 19, 2024) — BeerBoard, the leader in technology solutions and automated intelligence for the on-premise hospitality industry, today released its 2024 St. Patrick’s Weekend Report, a review of insights and performance data for on-premise alcohol performance on the weekend that everyone in America is at least a little bit Irish.
Unless otherwise noted, all comparisons are the 2024 holiday weekend (3/14-17/24) vs the 2023 holiday weekend (3/17-20/23).
BeerBoard’s robust client list features local bars and restaurants, high-profile regional groups and major chain operators across North America including Buffalo Wild Wings, Hooters, Twin Peaks, Winking Lizard and Hickory Tavern.
And without further ado, let’s see if any Leprechauns had an impact on alcohol performance:
Draft Beer Volume Down on the Holiday Weekend
On what is traditionally one of the biggest party weekends of the year, Draft volume was down -20% when comparing St. Patrick’s Day Weekend 2024 (Thurs – Sun) to St Patrick’s Day Weekend 2023 (Thurs – Sun).
At first glance, the decline can be attributed to a few factors:
- St. Patrick’s Day fell on a Friday in 2023 (it was on a Sunday this year), meaning revelers were more apt to celebrate all weekend long
- The NCAA Basketball Tournament was underway in 2023. This year’s tournament has not yet started, meaning on-premise retailers haven’t seen the lift from fans enjoying that first weekend of wall-to-wall college basketball coverage.
When taking a deeper look at on-premise trends, we found that Draft volume month-to-date (3/1 thru 3/17) is down -34% when compared to the same period in 2023. This means retailers actually saw a spike in draft volume for the holiday weekend.
We’ll continue to monitor the rest of the month and see if the NCAA Tournament leads to a spike in draft volume.
Draft Style and Brand Performance: Light Lagers Volume Down Significantly
Light Lagers were surprisingly down -3.7% in share points at the taps for the holiday weekend. Consumers were choosing a higher-priced, higher-margin product, leading to more revenue for the retailers: Lagers were +1.40%, Stouts/Porters grew +0.82% and Wheat/Hefeweizen saw a +0.60% lift.
Coors Light saw the most growth year-over-year (same weekend) among top brands, climbing 2.17% on the weekend. Modelo Especiál grew +1.01% and Guinness was +0.73%.
Stouts / Guinness Outperform Average Returns
As they typically do on St. Patrick’s Day, Stouts outperformed their return on a “normal” day. Ranked #10 on the list of Top Styles (year-to-date), Stouts checked in at #7 for the Holiday Weekend and realized a 101% increase in share. Guinness, the top-poured stout, and typically sitting outside the Top 10 brands at #14, climbed to the #9 brand for the day. It outperformed its year-to-date returns by 125% for the weekend, climbing to a 2.92% share (up from 1.30%).
Packaged Products Performance
- Top 3 Styles (Share):
1. Lagers: 38.40%
2. Light Lagers: 34.69%
3. Hard Seltzers & RTD Cocktails: 7.67%
- Top 3 Brands (Share):
1. Corona Extra: 17.95%
2. Michelob Ultra: 12.42%
3. Miller Lite: 8.15%
Spirits Performance
- Top 3 Styles (Share):
1. Bourbon / Whiskey: 26.04%
2. Tequila / Mezcal: 17.10%
3. Vodka: 17.08%
- Top 3 Brands (Share):
1. Titos Vodka: 8.14%
2. Jameson Irish Whiskey: 5.72%
3. Patron Silver: 3.97%
What was going on in The ‘Cuse?
It wouldn’t be St. Patrick’s Day without reporting on what happened in our home base of Syracuse, NY. Guinness was again the #1 beer poured in “The ’Cuse” on the holiday (typically it is #9). The brand had an 11.1% share (up from 3.79%), realizing a 192% increase when looking at St. Patrick’s Weekend vs year-to-date (01/01 – 03/17).
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About BeerBoard
BeerBoard is the leading technology solutions provider for the hospitality industry, enabling retailers, distributors and suppliers to make fact-based decisions about their complete alcohol management. The company manages more than $1 billion in alcohol sales and 100,000 products through its industry-leading solutions. Its patented digital platform captures, analyzes, and reports real-time data related to alcohol ordering, inventory and payments. Versatile and easily operated from a single dashboard, it has streamlined operations, efficiency and improved revenue across the United States. Find out more about how BeerBoard is changing the alcohol industry at beerboard.com.