Agave content ‘very important’ to US millennials

New data from CGA Nielsen has found that 35% of Tequila-drinking millennials consider agave content “very important” when selecting a brand to drink in the on-trade.

The research was released as part of the analyst’s US On Premise Measurement Report, which examined the industry’s performance for the 52 weeks to mid-September.

Tequila posted 8.0% volume grains and 9.7% value growth over the period, with the analyst attributing a large proportion of sales to the ongoing popularity of the Margarita serve.

However premiumisation was also cited as a continuing driver of on-trade growth, with the 52-week price/mix of 1.7% indicating the importance of the segment.

With sipping Tequilas growing in popularity, the analyst found that 35% of millennials questioned cited a 100% agave claim “very important” when selecting a Tequila brand, compared to 29% of all consumers.

The Tequila trend is also fuelling interest in mezcal, with the category posting volume and value gains of 30.4% and 30.6% over the 52 weeks.

According to preliminary results from the latest Nielsen CGA On Premise Consumer Survey, 16% of Tequila drinkers are aware of mezcal, and 10% said they would be likely to try the spirit if it was available.

Nielsen CGA says the results suggest mezcal’s momentum is still building, with the category a trend to watch in the on-trade.

More widely, the analyst found that spirits continued to take share from beer and wine in the 52 weeks to mid-September. Spirits volumes saw 1.7% volume gains and 2.8% dollar sales growth, compared to -2.9%/-1.2% for beer and -1.0%/-0.1% for wine.

According to Euromonitor, Tequila and mezcal grew 30% by volume in the US from 2010 and 2015 – faster than any other alcohol category bar Cognac, and more than the global average, which sits at 22%.