CLOSED
CLOSED BEER
Hed : The 2021 Beer Growth Brands Awards
By Kyle Swartz
CLOSED
BEER
BEER
CLOSED
BEER
Presenting the most resilient brands from the past year
2021
BY KYLE SWARTZ
Our annual Beer Growth Brands Awards reflect the top beer trends from the past year while also looking ahead .
What can we learn from 2020 and 2021 as we move forwards ? The unusual severity of Covid-19 makes it difficult to derive too much from our recent past to inform our future . How can we draw hard lessons from a once-in-a-generation pandemic ?
Still , trends that emerged during the global health crisis do point to important consumer behaviors . These shopping patterns are a big part of how we calculate our annual Beer Growth Brands Awards .
As always , we polled beverage alcohol retailers , on-premise operators and other industry professionals about which beer brands sold best in the past year . Their responses shed light on what products consumers have recently preferred — and provide context in defining the current beer category as a whole .
HARD SELTZER REMAINS HOT The hard seltzer boom has certainly not gone the way of cider or boozy root beer . Rather than quickly level off or lose steam , these easy-drinking products continue to attract sales at a high level .
One reason why is that consumers have embraced premiumization in the category . For instance , the Growth Brand Award-winning High Noon , from E & J Gallo .
“ The key differentiator that has resonated with our High Noon consumers is the fact that we are the only brand to use real vodka and a splash of real juice in our hard seltzer ,” says Britt West , Gallo ’ s VP and GM for spirits . “ Doing so not only provides a clear separation between our premium product and the malt or sugar-based alternatives on the market , but also gives High Noon a distinctive and unique taste profile within the category . Above all it comes
12 Beverage Dynamics • September / October 2021 www . beveragedynamics . com