Photo: Rob Klute/BIV
In the three months to September 30, wine wholesale volumes barely decreased compared to the same period last year.
Wine has surpassed beer as British Columbia drinkers’ preferred summer beverage purchase, according to new data from the British Columbia Liquor Distribution Branch (BCLDB).
B.C. drinkers shifted their spending from beer to wine, spirits and coolers in the three months ending Sept. 30, according to BCLDB’s latest quarterly statistics.
Liquor distributors in the state publish data on how much pre-tax revenue they make selling their products to liquor stores, mom-and-pop stores, restaurants and bars. Data is not available on how much is spent on alcohol in British Columbia after buyers mark up the price of the product to make a profit.
All B.C. alcohol buyers spent $984,789,974 on inventory in the quarter ending Sept. 30, a 2.4 per cent increase over the same quarter in 2022, according to the latest quarterly report.
Beer wholesales for the quarter decreased by 4.35% to $298,840,413, while wine wholesales increased by 4.45% year-on-year to $305,072,495. In the same quarter of 2022, the $312,426,833 spent on wholesale beer orders in B.C. was nearly 7 per cent more than the $292,084,996 spent on wine inventory orders.
Wholesale beer volume in British Columbia fell 7.7 per cent year-on-year to 71,399,772 liters in the three months ending September 30. Wine wholesale also decreased in terms of volume, but the decline was very small at 8,061 liters, or 17,636,631 liters, less than one-tenth of 1 percent.
The category that received the most attention for wholesale growth was coolers. Spending in this category increased 12.39% to $119,038,322 in the quarter ending Sept. 30. On a volume basis, cooler wholesale increased by 5.56%. This increase drove the overall refreshment category, which also includes cider, up 8.44% to $143,788,373, and 2.34% on a volume basis.
Distilled spirits are becoming increasingly popular, with wholesale sales increasing 5.58% to $237,088,693 in the three months to 30 September. Wholesale volume of distilled spirits increased by 2.33% to 7,477,217 liters in the same quarter.
While the amount spent on gin decreased by 4.43% to $18,133,243, wholesale value for most spirits increased.
Vodka remained British Columbia’s most popular spirit, both in wholesale value and sales volume.
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