Tequila and American whiskey are vying for the lead in the ‘Luxury Brand Index’, the spirits performance measurement platform from the Distilled Spirits Council of the United States (DISCUS).
The tool, launched by the trade association in late 2021, pulls together volume sales for spirits priced at US$50+ per 75cl bottle in the US. The figures for the first three months of this year, released yesterday, indicate the ongoing “consumer fascination with Tequila” in the market, thanks to the pandemic-driven trend towards cocktails at home.
The American whiskey segment also showed strongly in the quarter, while Scotch benefitted from the removal in June last year of the tariffs on single malt. Overall, 'premium' spirits volumes in the country were up by over a third - 37% - in the three months to the end of March on a year-on-year basis.
Over the last five years, meanwhile, Tequila's acceleration during the worst of the pandemic has seen the segment approach the same levels as American whiskey. On an annual basis between the first quarters of 2017 and 2022, both segments are hovering around the +45% mark for volumes at $50-and-above per bottle.
DISCUS reports the results of the Luxury Brand Index on a quarterly basis.
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