Fizz and cocktails set to pop this Jubilee weekend as the less-but-better trend continues

By Jo Gilbert

Published: 31 May, 2022

Brits drink less alcohol than they did during the past two Jubilee celebrations – a trend which is likely to carry over this weekend as party planners fill shelves and ice boxes. However, wine and spirits have a greater share of that pie, as the two categories steal a march from the once all-powerful beer category.

The countdown for this week’s Platinum Jubilee celebrations is very much underway, with the sound of corks popping across the nation set to echo the growth in sparkling wine.

Data from the IWSR has helped to show how drinking habits have changed during that time, by benchmarking current behaviours against the Golden Jubilee in 2002 and Diamond Jubilee in 2012.

According to the IWSR, UK consumers drink far less alcohol now than during the time of the 2012 celebrations, and considerably less than 2002. However, while beer has dropped during that time, from approximately 70% of UK alcohol consumption to 60%, wine is on the rise, up from less than 15% in 2002 to nearly 20% twenty years later.

Spirits have also grown steadily from 3% in 2002 to 5% now.

“This is mainly due to a gradual change in attitude towards alcohol and an increasing desire to drink better-quality products, combined with increasing drive towards moderation and the ‘better-for-me’ lifestyle trend,” the IWSR report concluded.

“Another key factor is that alcohol plays a less important role in young people’s lives today than it did 20 years ago.”

The post Covid-19 drinker in 2022 is far more experimental than the drinker of 2002 and 2012, and this has helped to drive the demand for cocktails in the UK, the IWSR said. The Pornstar Martini for example, which was invented in the same year as the Golden Jubilee, is likely to see a major national outing this week, thanks largely to its accompaniment with a shot of Prosecco. In 2012 many drinkers would not even have heard of Prosecco. Since then, it has been one of the most high-profile forms of alcoholic refreshment – not just a celebratory drink.

English sparkling wine was also barely on the radar of drinkers during the previous two Jubilees. English sparklers are likely to be a popular option this week as consumers look to stock up on the best of British. The category has grown hugely in recent years, tripling its volume consumption in the UK since the Diamond Jubilee ten years ago.

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