Briefly, here are a few of the most notable highlights of what the year 2019 can teach us, based on sales data from various sources.
Seltzer
Multiple outlets have cited IWSR data on the growth of hard seltzer—not that anyone needs data to tell them it's exploding, since Bud Light Hard Seltzer is now a thing. In 2018 it accounted for less than 1 percent of alcoholic drinks sold; last year it was 2.6 percent. IWSR estimates that sales could triple by 2023. One borderline-dubious stat from the IWSR report: half of U.S. drinkers have at least one hard seltzer per week. But hey, maybe it's a fad.
Cans
Barring some sudden, tidal shift in consumer preference, 2020 will be the year that craft beer in cans outsells bottles, according to Brewers Association Economist Bart Watson, citing IRI scan data. That symbolic moment, when cans officially pull ahead, may happen as early as February. "What the data suggest is that early in 2020 we’ll see the can/bottle lines cross for craft and that they won’t cross back during the year, making 2020 the first year where cans have outsold bottles in distributed craft," Watson says, in an analysis for BA members published earlier this week.