According to one industry analyst, beverage alcohol shouldn’t be divided into three separate categories—beer, wine, and spirits—anymore, but rather, four. “The flavor category has established itself as a standalone fourth category in beverage alcohol,” says Bump Williams, president and CEO of Bump Williams Consulting, which advises suppliers, wholesalers, and retailers, and he notes that the category—which he says encompasses products like flavored malt beverages (FMBs), RTD spirits-based products, hard seltzers, and ciders—continues to lead beverage alcohol in sales growth and innovation year after year and has gained the most share of total beverage dollar sales from 2019 to 2022.
Indeed, flavors are driving much of the excitement in the beer category today, whether it’s through line extensions of traditional beer products or the exploding FMB segment. The emergence of hard…
