Alternative Indicators: What Pinched Consumers Are Buying at the Liquor Store

WSJ What’s News

The Wall Street Journal

Daily News, News

4.1 • 4.2K Ratings

🗓️ 19 November 2025

⏱️ 13 minutes

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Summary

We all want a little treat—even if we’re on a budget. That desire may be part of what’s shaping U.S. liquor sales; big spirits companies are seeing growth in the sales of their smaller bottles of liquor, while sales of the pricier larger sizes decline. What does that tell us about how consumers are feeling about their wallets? Host Alex Ossola discusses with Nadine Sarwat, director and equity research analyst at brokerage firm Bernstein. And finally, in this last episode of our alternative economic indicator series, WSJ investing columnist Spencer Jakab joins Alex to take stock of all four indicators in this series—Nevada employment, copper, heavy trucks and liquor—and the picture they paint about the broader U.S. economy. Sign up for the WSJ's free What's News newsletter. Further Listening Alternative Indicators: Can Nevada Employment Predict Where the Economy is Headed? Alternative Indicators: What’s Dr. Copper’s Prognosis for the U.S. Economy? Alternative Indicators: What Big-Rig Truck Sales Reveal About the U.S. Economy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	Hey Harry.
0:00.7	Hello mate.
0:01.5	Got any tips for the football?
0:02.8	Your best bet is to head over to Bet Victor.
0:04.9	They're giving new customers a terrific welcome offer. If you bet a minimum of £10, they'll give you £30 in three bets. Four, that's a steel of a deal. It's a good darn deal that'll make your squirrel for real. Neil? My name's not Neil. I know, bet it rhymes. Listen to Harry and make your best bet on the football at Betvictor.
0:23.4	18 plus opt in and bet on any football marketing at odds of evens or greater no, cash out seven-day expiry terms and conditions apply. Gamblerware.org. There's nothing that brings out my inner bargain hunter quite like a trip to the liquor store. Hi there. Just those two. Oh, no, I got one, thanks.
0:40.5	I'm always tempted to buy those big bottles of liquor.
0:44.0	Less money per ounce, right?
0:45.8	In some ways, it's the thrifty choice.
0:48.1	But even so, I usually don't get them because I get sticker shock.
0:52.5	$60 for a bottle of gin.
0:56.2	Why not get the same gin in a smaller bottle for less money? Turns out I'm not alone in thinking this. Some of the biggest
1:03.4	liquor companies in the world are reporting a rise in the sales of their smallest bottles.
1:08.4	Here's the CEO of Diageo, the company behind brands like Johnny Walker, Smyranoff, and Don
1:13.3	Julio Tequila, on the company's fiscal 2025 earnings call in August.
1:18.1	I think the small formats that we have of the 50-CL in, you know, the Don Julio 1942,
1:26.0	has been doing amazingly well because you might not see that in the
1:29.3	volume numbers, but you see that in the transactions, because people really are able to use
1:34.6	that from an affordability play or a cash outlay play, but still will be able to enjoy what is
1:41.3	great liquid.
1:42.9	And the CEO of Jack Daniels' parent, Brown Foreman, on the company's third quarter
1:47.2	and year-to-date earnings call back in March.
	...

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