Australians, like many consumers around the world, are cutting back personal spending by shopping less often and switching to less expensive and private label brands.  But one area where they refuse to compromise is their drink: sales of premium brands of beer, spirits and bottled wine all showed strong volume sales performance in the first quarter of 2009.
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 …

While giving loved ones chocolate is synonymous with Valentine’s Day, far more chocolate is actually sold in the week leading up to Easter, according to Nielsen.  Consumers will buy almost a half billion dollars of candy during that time, with approximately 70 percent of that spent on chocolate.  Nearly 71 million pounds of chocolate candy is sold in the week leading up to Easter, compared to approximately 48 million pounds sold during Valentine’s week.  By comparison, nearly 90 million pounds of chocolate candy is sold during Halloween week.   Other key …

Despite the fact that many Americans have cut back discretionary spending, sales of 3 liter (3L) premium wine casks – better known to some as “boxed wine” – showed double digit growth in the fourth quarter of 2008, according to a new Nielsen study.
With a growth rate of 32 percent in the last 13 weeks of 2008, premium wine casks outpaced all other wine categories, and there remains room for significant growth going forward.
On a full year basis, premium wine casks grew 31 percent, compared to 4.4 growth for table …

A troubled economy doesn’t necessarily mean declining wine sales, Danny Brager, vice president, beverage alcohol, Nielsen, writes in a recent Progressive Grocer column. 
Brager cites Nielsen research showing that, while almost 50% of consumers have reduced their overall spending, wine sales remain healthy.
Growth of premium wines has declined slightly, but the category remains strong overall — perhaps because consumers tend to view wine as an affordable luxury, Brager notes. 
If the current trend continues, he concludes, wine may emerge as a ”recession-resistant” category.