Wine has hogged the alcoholic beverage headlines for many months – even years. But there has been a lot of frenetic, if unsung, activity in the hard liquor world, too. We present a snapshot of the Canadian Liquor and Spirits industry…
Spirits Manufacturing in Canada in 2022: Ranked by type
Most recent figures
The University of British Columbia has produced a detailed analysis of the Canadian distillery scene. It’s based on the last full calendar year for which figures are available – 2022. But it’s entirely representative of where the industry has been going. And the operative word there is ‘UP’…
Key revelations…
- The number of beverage alcohol distilleries in Canad shot up from 94 establishments in 2015 to over 170 between 2017 and 2022
- Retail sales in the liquor and distilleries industry grew from (US)$991 million to (US)$1.02 billion over the same period
- Canadian per capita liquor and Spirits consumption fell slightly over the period, from 102 L/yr to 99.1 L/yr
- Cultural changes, including the rise of a cocktail culture favoring clear spirits, has led to a shift in Canadian consumer taste toward craft distillery products
- Whiskey remained the most popular hard spirit among Canadians, with Vodka coming in a strong second
- Beer remains, by far, the most popular quencher in all 13 provinces and territories
What are they drinking where?
Beer is the overall most popular tipple in all parts of the country. Second place goes to red wine, but light beer also makes its presence felt. Third spot is shared by whiskey, white wine and spirit-based ‘coolers’.
My take
It’s no surprise that hard liquor manufacturing and consumption soared during the COVID Crisis. We heard, many times during the lockdown and the following months, that folks who had to hunker at home were turning to booze as a comfort. I wonder if drinkers in general will keep up the ‘pace’?
I wasn’t at all surprised to see beer overshadowing all other alcoholic beverages in popularity. And red wine was a natural to dominate second place. But I was surprised to see that certain ‘other spirits’ didn’t show up in the top 5. Especially Tequila, which has been touted as the new mainstream hard liquor since Queen of the South hit the NETFLIX rotation…
~ Maggie J.