In this article, we are going to discuss the top 15 countries for US alcohol exports. You can skip our detailed analysis of the importance of the U.S. alcohol industry, the country’s balance of alcohol trade, the growth in the U.S. spirits exports, and the American craft beer exports, and go directly to US Alcohol Exports by Country: Top 5.
Since the time of the first European settlers, alcohol has been an integral part of the economy, culture, and history of the U.S. Unbeknownst to most people, alcohol played a huge role in the Revolutionary War, and it has been a major part of United States culture ever since.
The Importance of the U.S. Alcohol Industry:
Booze plays an enormous role in the American economy. As of 2021, the total share of the beverage alcohol market in the U.S. represented almost $250 billion and over 3.4 billion cases sold. Beer/FMB/hard seltzer accounted for 43.5% of value share, followed closely by spirits at 39.5%, and wine at a 17% share.
The U.S. alcohol beverage industry is responsible for sustaining more than 4 million jobs and generating almost $70 billion in annual tax revenue. And that doesn’t even scratch the surface of the economic benefits the industry provides to late night restaurants and pizza shops. Per the Beer Institute, the beer industry alone supports 1.75 million jobs.
From the farmers harvesting the barley in your beer, to the beer truck driver, to your local bartender, every aspect of your drink exists because of someone in the alcohol industry working hard behind the scenes. The positive economic impact of alcohol is something you seldom consider when having a drink, but, given the facts, maybe it’s time we all raise a glass to it.
The Balance of Alcohol Trade:
The United States exported $4.09 billion of alcoholic beverages in 2022. The distilled spirits category held the largest share at $2.07 billion, followed by wine and wine products at $1.47 billion, and last but not least, the U.S. beer exports amounted to $546.76 million last year. In 2021, America exported a total of $3.57 billion worth of alcohol, thus exhibiting a YoY growth of almost 14.6%. When compared to 2021, the U.S. exports of distilled spirits, largely Bourbon, have grown, while wine and beer exports have remained flat.
The United States is also the Country that Imports the Most Alcohol in the World, with imports of $26.6 billion in 2022. The total imports of distilled spirits, beer, and wine accounted for 14% of the overall U.S. agricultural imports. Distilled spirits were the largest and fastest growing segment of these products, accounting for almost half – $12 billion – of the country’s overall alcohol imports.
Thus, the U.S. is a net importer of alcoholic beverages, with a massive negative trade balance of $22.51 billion.
Growth in the U.S. Spirits Exports:
The U.S. distilled spirits exports grew 30% to a record $2.07 billion in 2022, according to a new report by the Distilled Spirits Council of the United States (DISCUS). The rise came despite exports of American whiskey to the U.K. having not yet returned to pre-tariff levels. The U.K. joined the E.U. in halting retaliatory tariffs imposed on American goods, including whiskey, in June last year. The analysis showed that U.S. spirits exports, driven by American whiskeys, have nearly quadrupled in two decades, rising from $551 million in 2002.
DISCUS cited the lifting of tariffs, ongoing premiumization trends in key export markets, the reopening of the hospitality sector, and an increase in the number of U.S. distilleries as factors behind the continued strength of spirits exports.
The E.U. remains the biggest market for American spirits exports, making up 34% of the total. Spirits exports to the trading bloc grew by 25% in 2022, following the E.U.’s decision to remove tariffs in January last year. At $703 million, U.S. spirits' exports to the European Union have now surpassed pre-tariff levels from 2017.
The removal of trade tariffs by the E.U. and the U.K. has restored a level playing field for American whiskey in Europe, and its impact was also reflected in the revenue of Brown-Forman Corporation (NYSE:BF-B) – the Largest Importer of American Whiskey in the World. The Jack Daniel’s maker sells its products in over 170 countries worldwide and 51% of its total sales occur outside the U.S. For its fiscal year ended April 30, 2023, the Brown-Forman Corporation (NYSE:BF-B) boasted a revenue of $4.23 billion, an increase of 8% from the previous year.
The Jack Daniel’s family of brands’ reported net sales growth of 4% was led by the increase of the Tennessee Whiskey sales in international markets and the Travel Retail channel. Higher pricing and an estimated net increase in distributor inventories in certain emerging and developed international markets positively impacted reported net sales.
American craft breweries have received help from the Brewers Association Export Development Program in shipping their ales and lagers to almost all of the world’s beer markets. According to the Brewers Association, 230,999 barrels (more than 7 million gallons) of beer, worth over $71 million, were exported by American craft breweries in 2022. The number of exporting American craft brewers has grown from just a handful of 10-15 companies twenty years ago, to more than 150 small and independent brewers now shipping beer overseas every year.
The Brewers Association and the Market Access Program of the Department of Agriculture’s Foreign Agricultural Service have joined forces to create the Export Development Program. Through the EDP, the Department of Agriculture and the Brewers Association split the expenses of international marketing and promotion initiatives that support the development of craft beer export markets on a commercial basis.
The American craft beer industry has witnessed massive growth over the last couple of decades, and now more than 9,500 small and independent craft brewers in the country are producing a range of beers that are of the highest quality and flavor available anywhere in the world. This gold rush has attracted the attention of several players in the market.
Tilray Brands, Inc. (NASDAQ:TLRY) – a craft beer and cannabis company that was among the first to be licensed for medical cannabis in Canada – announced last month that it has agreed to acquire eight beer and beverage brands from Anheuser-Busch InBev SA/NV (NYSE:BUD) for an undisclosed amount.
The deal includes the Shock Top, Blue Point, 10 Barrel, Breckenridge, Redhook, Widmer Brothers, Square Mile Cider, and HiBall Energy brands. Upon satisfaction of customary closing conditions, Tilray Brands, Inc. (NASDAQ:TLRY) will become the fifth-largest craft brewer in the U.S. with a 5% market share.
Stocks of Tilray were held by 15 out of 910 hedge funds in the Insider Monkey database at the end of Q2 2023, with Aristeia Capital holding the largest stake of almost 24.41 million shares, valued at over $24.28 million. Tilray Brands, Inc. (NASDAQ:TLRY) already owns multiple beverage brands and is also among the Biggest Marijuana Companies in the World.
The Belgium-based Anheuser-Busch InBev SA/NV (NYSE:BUD) is the Largest Alcoholic Beverage Company in America. However, the beer behemoth has been facing some headwinds in the U.S. market after the recent controversy regarding its best-selling brand Bud Light, which resulted in the iconic brand losing its crown as the Top-Selling Beer in America after nearly two decades.
“The largest detractors to performance over the quarter were First Horizon Corp (FHN), Anheuser-Busch InBev SA/NV (NYSE:BUD), and Bayer (BAYRY). Problems at Anheuser Busch InBev began on April 1 with Dylan Mulvaney’s social media post, which ignited a fiery backlash amongst Bud Light customers across ‘Merica. With volumes down sharply, and competitors gaining share at BUD’s expense, operational deleveraging is set to weigh heavily on US margins amid peak demand pressure in the second quarter. Despite severe US headwinds (second-quarter operating profit maybe half of last year’s levels), we still expect BUD to grow consolidated operating profit at a mid-single-digit rate for the full year. With current issues well understood and investor sentiment in the gutters, we see significant upside in a stock, which is approaching a double-digit FCF yield. With FX headwinds and rising input costs reversing course, increasing margins are likely to drive positive surprises into FY24 as continued deleveraging accrues more value to shareholders.”
With that said, here are the Countries that Import the Most Alcohol from America.
US Alcohol Exports by Country: Top 15
Natalya Okorokova/Shutterstock.com
Methodology:
To collect data for this article, we have referred to the USDA Foreign Agricultural Service, to determine the Top Destinations for U.S. Alcohol Exports. We calculated the sum of the total distilled spirits exports, wine exports, and beer exports to each country in 2022, and ranked it accordingly.
15. Honduras
Distilled Spirits Exports: $1.87 million
Wine Exports: $0.98 million
Beer Exports: $58.95 million
Total Alcohol Exports in 2022: $61.8 million
Beer is the most popular alcoholic drink in Honduras and the Central American country imports a large amount of light beers from the U.S. every year. Miller Lite and Miller Genuine Draft are some of the American beer brands popular in Honduras.
Honduras is counted among the Top Markets for American Alcohol.
14. Hong Kong
Distilled Spirits Exports: $2.6 million
Wine Exports: $59.78 million
Beer Exports: $0.34 million
Total Alcohol Exports in 2022: $62.72 million
Since the Hong Kong government has completely abolished import duties on wine (including alcoholic beverages with an alcohol content of less than 30%) in 2008, Hong Kong has therefore become the only free port among the major economies in the world, thus developing into an international market of primary importance in the wine sector.
Hong Kong is strategically positioned as one of Asia’s leading wine re-export centers, with most of these re-exports headed to mainland China. Hong Kong ranks among the 20 Countries that Import the Most Wine.
13. China
Distilled Spirits Exports: $23.48 million
Wine Exports: $33.47 million
Beer Exports: $13.87 million
Total Alcohol Exports in 2022: $70.82 million
Before the U.S-China trade dispute in 2017, American wine sales to China totalled about $80 million a year. That amount dropped by about $20 million each year between 2018-20 after China raised tariffs and taxes on U.S. wine from 48.2% to 93% per bottle. Wines that once cost $40 suddenly sold for $50 or more and importers stopped making new orders.
Since the initial salvoes of the trade war, many of California’s 4,200 wineries have recouped their losses by reselling domestically, expanding into other countries and capitalizing on Chinese tariffs placed on Australian wine, which has made their product more competitive.
China is among the Biggest Alcohol Producers in the World.
12. Dominican Republic
Distilled Spirits Exports: $48.01 million
Wine Exports: $20.61 million
Beer Exports: $12.08 million
Total Alcohol Exports in 2022: $80.7 million
The Dominican Republic is one of the most important markets for U.S. alcoholic beverages in the Western Hemisphere and the country imported a record $80.7 million of American alcohol products in 2022. With a share of 59.5%, distilled spirits continue to be the largest category of U.S. alcohol exports to the Caribbean nation.
11. France
Distilled Spirits Exports: $87.67 million
Wine Exports: $43.01 million
Beer Exports: $0.91 million
Total Alcohol Exports in 2022: $131.59 million
France is among the countries that drink the most whiskey per capita in the world, and French drinkers even drink more whiskey than they do Champagne or Cognac. Jack Daniel’s is the most popular whiskey in France, with over 3.5 million consumers in 2021.
France ranks among the Top Importers of American Alcohol in Europe.
10. Germany
Distilled Spirits Exports: $109.64 million
Wine Exports: $22.91 million
Beer Exports: $0.46 million
Total Alcohol Exports in 2022: $133.01 million
Quality Bourbon has definitely gained popularity in Germany over the last few years and brands like Woodford Reserve and Knob Creek can be found on shelves around the country. Jack Daniel's also entered the German market with Jack Daniel's Tennessee Apple in early 2020.
Beer has remained among the top five agricultural and related products exported from the United States to Chile for the last five years. In 2021, beer exports from the United States reached $116.78 million, their highest recorded level, making it the number one agricultural and related export product to the South American nation.
Chile is the Top Market for U.S. Beer Exports.
8. Spain
Distilled Spirits Exports: $145.08 million
Wine Exports: $2.93 million
Beer Exports: $0.53 million
Total Alcohol Exports in 2022: $148.54 million
Despite being a relevant producer of distilled spirits, Spain imports around 40% of its spirits consumed. The biggest category is whiskey, with tequila and gin still increasing in popularity. Spain was the top importer of Bourbon whiskey in 2018, with $88 million worth of the iconic American spirit imported.
Spain is counted among the Top 10 Importers of American Alcohol.
7. South Korea
Distilled Spirits Exports: $50.02 million
Wine Exports: $89.51 million
Beer Exports: $14.91 million
Total Alcohol Exports in 2022: $154.44 million
Interest in American wines has been growing in recent years, and cult wines from the U.S. are highly sought after by wine lovers in South Korea. Californian wines, and to a lesser extent Oregon and Washington, are well-regarded in the East Asian country’s market.
6. Australia
Distilled Spirits Exports: $141.52 million
Wine Exports: $15.33 million
Beer Exports: $1.72 million
Total Alcohol Exports in 2022: $158.57 million
Australia imported a record $141.52 million worth of American distilled spirits in 2022. The Land Down Under is the nation with the highest per capita consumption of U.S. whiskey in the world. Though Bourbon is not the only style of whiskey America has to offer, it is certainly the most popular in Australia. Australia ranks 6th in our List of Top Alcohol Importers from the U.S.
