Chris and Drew welcome Ailis Peplau of Sacred Thirst Selections onto the pod. Ailis brings her special knowledge of distribution logistics and her wine expertise, to elaborate on yet another consolidation/partnership between libDib and RNDC, as well as the ever growing canned booze phenom. 

Drinks: Charanda Uruapan Anejo - Drew, Taken From Granite Cabernet - Ailis, Basa Lore Txakoli Rose - Chris

Dope Follows: Podcast - Grown-Ups Read Things They Wrote As Kids 

Instagram - @Stuffthatlookslikestuff @AEWwrestling @sdanch.photography

Stories: https://blog.libdib.com/the-evolution-of-three-tier-is-here-liberation-distribution-libdib-and-republic-national-distributing-company-rndc-form-a-new-partnership

Long Form - What's Still Growing Up Against Tough Comps YTD

Source: Wine & Spirits Daily September 2, 2021

Total off-premise alcohol sales are down 1.7% year-to-date compared to the same period in 2020, according to NielsenIQ. Indeed, off-premise sales have been declining since March 2021 (which was to be expected as we lapped record-breaking growth rates from 2020). But not all categories are struggling against 2020 comps this year. Ready-to-drink cocktails and hard seltzers are still up double digits over 2020, up 14% and 18.7%, respectively. The non-alcoholic category is also doing well, up 35% year-to-date across beer, wine and spirits. Looking at the 26-week period through August 14, there were a few other bright spots in NielsenIQ-measured channels: . Single malt Scotch sales up 11% . Japanese whiskey sales up 9.5% . Moonshine sales up 12.2% . Tequila sales up 9.8% . Sparkling wine sales up 7% . Wine-based cocktails sales up nearly 52%

NielsenIQ client manager Kaleigh Theriault expects the movement towards ready-to-drink cocktails will stick around for the remainder of the year. "In addition, RTD sales are going to start gaining traction within on-premise as consumers view these to be 'safer' beverage options," she says, adding "The winter holiday will pose a prime opportunity for spirit and wine-based cocktails as additional buyers enter the segment and make repeat purchases." Compared to 2019, off-premise sales are still way up. Year-to-date spirits sales are up 32% compared to the same period in 2019, wine sales are up 17%, and beer/FMB/cider are up 14%. A LOOK AT ONLINE SALES. Similar to off-premise growth, online bev alc sales are down 5.4% year-to-date vs the same period in 2020. Breaking it down by month, in January and February online alcohol sales were up 175%; sales were up 15% in March; down 39% in April; down 46% in May; and down 27% in June. By category, online spirits sales are down 6.2% year-to-date and wine sales are down 8.7%. Meanwhile, online beer sales are actually up 7.5% year-to-date. Wine still accounts for the majority of online alcohol sales at 65%. A drop in the number of orders is the biggest driver of online bev alc sales declines, according to NielsenIQ, along with tough comps and smaller basket sizes in recent months. Kaleigh notes that "although e-commerce sales are starting to slow across segments, this will continue to be a highly important channel for the industry and online shoppers will continue to rely on the channel given its convenience, product comparison capabilities and seamlessness." Moreover, 78% of searches on Amazon are unbranded, "meaning today's shoppers are searching for products based on individual needs (i.e. low calorie, gluten-free, etc.) and retailers need to further develop their product descriptions and discoverability in order to cater to the growing segment of health-conscious consumers looking for personalization."