While the majority of alcohol categories saw a slight decline this Christmas period compared to last, there were a few notable exceptions, found Worldpanel. 

In data provided to Drinks Retailing, Worldpanel explained that in the four weeks to 28 December, the RTD sector grew to £1.7m, up 4.5% from the same period last year. 

At the same time, shoppers spent nearly £5m more this year on low & no alcohol options, totalling £35m in the same time frame. 

Despite the 14% rise in low & no spending, however, the proportion of households choosing these drinks edged down slightly from 9.6% to 9.5%. The insight company suggested this signalled a maturation of the category. 

Stout and porters continue to grow in popularity among British shoppers, with sales up almost 25% compared to last year. 

Unsurprisingly, sparkling wine also experienced a boost, with shoppers spending £9m more this year, with Champagne as a particular driver. 

More generally, take-home sales at grocers reached a record £13.8bn in the four weeks, up 3.8% year-on-year. 

Within this, however, there was a 4.1% decline in spending on take-home alcohol, which totalled £1.9bn. 

Spending on promotions and deals was generally high, reaching 33.3%, up from 32% last year. 

Meanwhile, in line with the year at large, premium-own-label continued to thrive, up by 9% across food and beverage. 

Worldpanel said that for the first time, supermarkets’ premium own-label lines exceeded the £1bn milestone in December, with these products being found in 92% of shoppers’ bags. 

On the overall trend, Fraser McKevitt, head of retail and consumer Insight at Worldpanel by Numerator, said: “Easing inflation helped to take the edge off the cost of Christmas this year, giving households a little more room to spend. It was a Christmas of smart savings and considered choices – almost every household bought into supermarkets’ premium ranges, while price remained front of mind.”