Which beer and seltzer brands will win big holiday moments?

We know that holiday celebrations won’t be the same this year — and that has consequences for the beer and seltzer category. But there are some key — albeit limited — festive occasions that are still taking place this year and identifying where a beer brand is currently positioned during these events can help advertisers win those moments.

Previously, YouGov examined what consumers typically do during the holiday period, what they plan to do this year amid the pandemic, and on

which occasions they will be drinking beer

.

To start off, we looked at the holiday activities where people said they were most likely to be drinking beer, namely, while relaxing with immediate family (19%), attending holiday dinners (13%) and family holiday parties (11%), and watching sports (11%).

We’then see which beer brands are present — and preferred — during holiday occasions people plan to drink at.

Across the four key occasions for beer brands this holiday season, beer drinkers point to Corona as the brand they intend to drink most (21%). Bud Light narrowly trails the top brand at 18% followed by Heineken (16%). A group of brands vying to win the holiday moment are tied at 14% including Samuel Adams, Budweiser, Blue Moon, Coors Light, Modelo, and seltzer brand, White Claw.

Consumption of — and preference for — specific beer brands varies by occasion. The data reveals that while watching sports, for example, people are significantly more likely to say they’ll drink Bud Light, Coors Light, Does Equis, and Miller Light than any other occasion.

Guinness ranks in the middle of all surveyed beer brands across the four occasions, but over-indexes as a preferred brand among people who plan to spend time relaxing with immediate family this year.

And to round out 2020, roughly a fifth of those who plan to celebrate NYE and drink during the event say they’ll choose Bud Light (22%) or Corona (19%). But it’s seltzer brands that really sparkle among NYE revelers: large shares of this group say they plan on drinking White Claw, Bud Light Hard Seltzer, or Truly as they usher in the New Year.

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