Bubbly And Spirited: 2016's Alcohol Review Overflowing With Good News

Trevor Stirling of Bernstein detailed in a research report on Wednesday an overview of the U.S. spirits and alcohol market throughout 2016.

Here are some of the highlights:

Industry volume growth rose 2.4 percent, fell short of the pre-recession average of 3.3 percent.
Irish whiskey was the fastest growing category by volume, followed by tequila and bourbon.
Volume of rum and scotch fell throughout the year.
The price-mix rose 2.1 percent in 2016, which marked an improvement from 2015 but short of the analyst's long-term estimate of 2.5 percent.
Price contributed 0.3 percent of value growth versus approximately 1.8 percent for mix.
In terms of mix, premium volumes grew at 5.5 percent and super-premium volumes rose 11 percent.
By volume, beer accounted for a 47.3 percent share, spirits accounted for 34.6 percent and wine accounted for 18.2 percent.
Compared to 2006's volume, beer accounted for 53.0 percent, spirits accounted for 30.8 percent and wine accounted for 16.2 percent.
By value, beer accounted for a 47.0 percent share, spirits accounted for 35.9 percent and wine accounted for 17.1 percent.
Compared to 2006's value, beer accounted for a 50.5 percent share, spirits accounted for 33.0 percent and wine accounted for 16.5 percent.

Related Link: A Look At How Well Sin Stocks Trade In Light Of José Cuervo IPO

Vodka was the largest category in volume with a 32 percent market share.
Vodka also makes up 24 percent of total spirits revenue given the abundance of bottles priced between $5 and $8.
Whiskey is the second largest volume category at 28 percent and the largest value category at 34 percent.
Canadian whiskey is the most popular import at 28 percent while Scotch accounted for 15 percent.
Irish whiskey was the fastest growing category but still accounted for just 6 percent of the total whiskey volume.