New Study Sheds Light On How Americans Select Beer, Wine, Or Spirits As Preferred Alcohol Beverage

Did you know that most Americans continue to prefer their exact first alcoholic drink or some variation of it? This is even more true if it was a sweet tasting beverage, such as a sweet wine or cocktail. However, beer and red wine are nearly tied as the top-consumed alcoholic beverages in the U.S. today. All of these findings are part of a new study of 2400 Americans conducted by Datassential earlier this year.

“It is interesting, but not surprising that sweeter style first drinks tend to be the ones consumers do not abandon,” states Colleen McClellan, Vice-President of Customer Experience at Datassential, in an online interview.

In fact, over 80% of Americans report that they still drink the exact same beverage as their first drink, or a similar one from the same category. The study shows the first three preferred categories were hard seltzers (89%), white wine (88%), and tequila (85%), with the preference set by sweet or semi-sweet styles, such as tequila in a sweet cocktail. These were followed by beer (83%) and red wine (81%).

The implications of these findings to wine marketers are quite important, since alcoholic preferences are shaped for most consumers in their 20’s. McClellan advises: “Targeting the age appropriate, younger demographic with fun wine options can really help to bring them into the fold early, and potentially capture them long-term versus viewing wine as a beverage just for special occasions, or romantic ones.”

Fun wine options, according to McClellan include both attractive packaging and inexpensive sampling opportunities: “We see options such as wines on tap, fancy cans, and the beautiful boxes now available,” she states. “These ease the pressure of having to “know wine” before you can really shop/order it.”

A caveat to the study, however, is that even though alcoholic beverage preferences are set early, consumers will still experiment with other drink categories later in life. Some beer drinkers, however, never venture outside the beer category.

The Drinker’s Journey – Becoming a Connoisseurs in a Specific Alcohol Category

According to the study, all drinkers fall into one of three categories: Novices (45%), Enthusiasts (41%), and Connoisseurs (14%). Novices are obviously those who are new to a category, but they also are not that interested in learning too much about it. Enthusiasts, on the other hand, find it exciting to learn more about an alcohol category, but don’t label themselves as experts.

The small percentage of people who become Connoisseurs (14%) actively try to learn everything they can about a specific category – whether it be beer, whiskey, wine, tequila, or something else. They take pride in their knowledge and are happy to share it with others.

Unexpectedly, more beer drinkers consider themselves to be connoisseurs at 24% of the sample, compared to other beverages. Whiskey came in second with 18% connoisseurs, and red wine was in third place at 17% of the sample. The results show that people are much more likely to become a connoisseur in their first drink category.

Perhaps, not surprisingly, 66% of consumers who had a negative experience with their first drink category, such as getting sick from drinking too much of it, do not return to it or become a connoisseur in that category.

American Alcohol Preferences Differ by Generation

The study also illustrates that alcoholic preferences can differ by generation. For example, results show that Gen X was more likely to start with a wine cooler, Boomers with wine, and Gen Z with hard seltzer. This suggests that the preference for a specific beverage later in life is also driven by what is popular and advertised during the first drinking experiences of consumers.

However, Millennials may not fit this notion perfectly, because they are considered to be variety-seeking consumers and have always enjoyed trying different types of drinks. But their preferred drink category, like the other generations, is more likely to be the first drink they tried.

This notion of generational preferences is supported by social cohort theory, because first drinks are almost always social occasions, with 49% being with friends, 36% with family, and 8% with a crowd. Other research shows that in addition to these occasions, introduction to wine may also occur via a cooking interest or on a trip abroad.

The study sample of 2400 American consumers of legal drinking age included 665 Boomers, 747 Gen Xers, 704 Millennials, and 284 Gen Zers. Gender was split evenly between 50% men and 50% women. The survey was conducted between 2021 and January of 2022.