It's official: Gen Z is in their alcohol era

Well, well, well, it turns out Gen Z isn't so special after all.

Endless ink has been spilled — or, since we're in the digital era, pixels rendered— about Gen Z's aversion to alcohol. The online narrative has been that the youngs are teetotalers, recusing themselves from America's big bad drinking culture and having all sorts of booze-free fun. Millennials are the real drunks, the story goes, and the generational up-and-comers are taking the high road. Turns out, though, that Gen Z is not that different. They've just taken their time to get to the bar.

Seventy-four percent of Gen Zers report having had a drink over the past six months, up from 66% three years ago, according to IWSR, which researches the global beverage industry. That's in line with the 76% drinking rate of the total adult population, which has remained essentially stable from where it was three years ago. They've taken a particular interest in cocktails, drinking them more than any other generation, and they're also consuming in groups more than the other age cohorts, too.

"They're late to the party, they're not skipping the party," says Marten Lodewijks, the president and managing director of IWSR.

Millennials and Gen Xers are still slightly heavier drinkers than the younger cohort, at 81% and 77%, respectively, while boomers are finally slowing down and moderating as they age: just 71% had a drink in the past half-year.

Part of the explanation for Gen Z's delayed adoption of alcohol isn't that they're particularly weird — it's that they experienced a very weird scenario right as they hit the years people typically start drinking. Instead of going to a college keg party or hitting up happy hour after a summer internship, the pandemic trapped them at home.

They're late to the party, they're not skipping the party.

"They were literally coming of age at a point in which everything got shut down," Lodewijks says.

There is also a grab-bag of other reasons Gen Z earned the booze-free reputation. They've been pretty broke, as young people historically are, and reluctant to put their limited dollars toward 12-packs or nights out. They are the product of a yearslong decline in underage drinking, so the post-21 ramp-up was slower. And health warnings and social media seem to have made them extra conscientious about what alcohol might do to their bodies and their reputations. Dave Williams, an alcohol industry analyst and consultant, tells me their surveys have found young people are extra-concerned about feeling out of control or having a video of them intoxicated show up online.

"There's just a lot of fear, unfamiliarity, or uncertainty around the category that leads to delayed entry," Williams says.

Whatever their qualms, Gen Zers appear to be getting over it. The pandemic is firmly in the rearview mirror, and more 20-somethings are having "normal" experiences in college and at work. Older members of Gen Z are getting deeper into their careers and, therefore, are more economically flush. And while they're still pretty glued to their phones, many are also trying to prioritize more in-person experiences, including those that might involve booze.

That doesn't mean Gen Z is completely lacking in distinct traits — analysts say they are still breaking some patterns. For one thing, they're entering into an alcohol market with a lot more options, and their palettes are shifting accordingly. Long gone are the days when your first sip of alcohol meant choking down a warm beer and trying to play it cool. People can instead grab a ready-to-drink cocktail with a more approachable taste profile.

Clement Pappas, the CEO and cofounder of Stateside Brands, tells me part of what he thinks draws younger people to his company's products, which include Surfside and Super Lyte, is that they're familiar drinks — iced tea, lemonade, and a Gatorade-like concoction — mixed with vodka. "It has alcohol in it, but it's not a foreign flavor," he says. "We see a lot of opportunity with this generation because it's a much more easy, accessible flavor profile." I took my millennial self to a Gen Z birthday party the other weekend, and Surfside was, indeed, the kids' drink of choice.

Besides his own numbers, Pappas heard other anecdotes that Gen Z's drinking is on the rise. A friend who owns multiple bars in California recently told him he's never confiscated more fake IDs.

When they do shop for alcohol, they tend to spend on higher-end, higher quality, more expensive products.

Gen Z has an enormous range of options for consuming alcohol, whether it be with a high-alcohol BeatBox, Cutwater, or BuzzBallz, or a less boozy White Claw or High Noon. Some of these drinks, with bright colors and fruity flavors, are directly aimed at young adults. Apart from the canned stuff, Gen Z tends to choose higher-priced mixed cocktails, too. They're still drinking less, volume-wise, but they're OK springing for a pricier (and generally stronger) drink if they plan on having two instead of five.

"They're much more kind of thoughtful about what they drink relative to the occasion. If it fits, they'll pay for it," Lodewijks says.

Williams echoes the point: "When they do shop for alcohol, they tend to spend on higher-end, higher quality, more expensive products."

Gen Z does seem to have a somewhat healthier relationship with alcohol than their millennial older siblings, who wax poetic about their days of pregaming with friends passing around a bottle of vodka before marching down the snow-covered sidewalk to the club in four-inch heels. The millennial way may have been fun at the time, but it was risky and dangerous. It may have taken a little extra time, but the kids appear to be on a better, if still boozy, path.

Emily Stewart is a senior correspondent at Business Insider, writing about business and the economy.