Imported and domestic premium beers posted growth of 15.3 and 18.6 percent, respectively, over the same period last year, while sales of premium spirits rose 21.3 percent.  Cheaper beer and spirit segments also showed growth, but not at the strong levels posted by their more expensive counterparts.

Overall, wine continued to experience volume losses, although increased demand for bottles costing $10-$20 was up 5.6 percent while bottles costing more than $20 showed growth of 4.1 percent.

“Instead of trading down when it comes to buying liquor, Australian consumers are becoming more sophisticated and are choosing high quality spirits, premium wines and a growing variety of premium or artisan-style beers,” said Michael Walton, executive director of Nielsen Australia’s Liquor Services Group.

Read the full press release here.

Beermakers like Coors and Diageo, which owns Guinness, are hoping women, a largely untapped group of potential beer customers, will be drawn to sweeter, lighter new beers they’ve introduced. 

But that strategy alone may not be enough to boost beer sales, Graham Page of Nielsen told the Journal. 

“[Women] don’t consume the volume [of beer] — and that is crucial — that men do,” Page noted.