beers (those costing more than about $22 per case) are beating crafts
and import beers in supermarket sales, SymphonyIRI Group said in its
recent 2012 Mid-Year Beer Category & Craft Segment Review webinar,
says Supermarket News.
Sales in the categories are up $93.1
million, $67.2 million and $32.2 million, respectively. Super-premium
brands include Bud Light Platinum, Michelob Ultra, Leinenkugel, Blue
Moon, and Land Shark. The best selling new beer in supermarkets is Bud
Light Platinum Lager, with Bud Light Lime A Rita and Shock Top Wheat IPA
rounding out the top three.
While beer volume was up across all
retail channels, supermarkets still lag other channels of trade, the
report said. Drug stores, mass merchants, supercenters, club stores, and
specialty retailers all showed gains in share.
Craft beer
represents 11% of supermarket dollar sales year-to-date in 2012, up from
9.5% in all of 2011. Newcomers to this category are Deschutes
Chainbreaker White IPA, Pyramid Outburst Imperial IPA, and New Belgium
Shift Pale Lager.
Private-label beer sales, which more than
doubled in the supermarket and drug channels in 2011, to just over 2
million cases, are on pace to surpass that level in 2012 with 1.1
million in case volume year-to-date. (Supermarket News:
www.supermarketnews.com)
