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www.IowaABD.com |
Lynn M. Walding, Administrator |
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e - NEWS |
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September 12, 2003 |
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1.
RTDs R.I.P.
2.
US: Diageo Launches New Look Smirnoff
3.
Liquor Ads to Take A Narrower
Focus
4.
Alcohol Back in Congress'
Sights
5.
US. Vodka Ad Battle Heats Up
6.
Spirits Firms Pour on TV Ad
Spending
7.
Recently Lowered
Blood-alcohol Level Hasn't Resulted in Increase of Arrests
8.
Insurers Lose Appetite for
Junk Food and Alcohol
9.
FTC Report Cites Improvements
in Alcohol Industry Self-Regulation
10. Study
On Underage Drinking Suggests Alcohol Tax
11. Bar Business Drops with More Arrests
1. RTDs R.I.P.
Source: Beernet Online
September 9, 2003
Diageo’s malternative volume in
the US and Canada was down 17%, representing a decline in Smirnoff Ice and the
removal of Captain Morgan Gold from the scene. Black Ice is picking up some of
the slack, but not enough to put SI in positive territory
2. US:
Diageo Launches New Look Smirnoff
Source: Chris Brook-Carter
September 8, 2003
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Diageo has unveiled a major
overhaul for its flagship vodka brand Smirnoff, which includes a packaging redesign
and a major ad campaign.
The company will launch the new
packaging in the US this month, where it will be backed by 50% increase on its
marketing budget of US$157m last year.
A global roll out will follow
early next year with a significant increase in the $250m global spend.
Andy Fennell, president of global
marketing for Smirnoff, said: "We updated our look to make a bold,
contemporary statement about our category leadership and quality product."
The redesign begins with the
relaunch of Smirnoff Red but will eventually be rolled out across the Smirnoff
product range, including the RTD brands Smirnoff Ice and Smirnoff Black Ice.
As well as the new advertising campaign, the relaunch will be backed by on- and off-trade activities, a PR campaign and the Smirnoff Experience, the series of dance events the brand sponsors globally.
The TV and print ad campaign will
begin in the US in October. Called "Neat", it depicts the Smirnoff bottle
with an olive twist and a shot glass, encouraging consumers to drink it neat.
3. Liquor Ads to Take A Narrower Focus
By John R. Wilke Staff Reporter - The
Wall Street Journal
September 9, 2003
Alcohol Makers' Aim
Is to Pare Audience To Below 30% Underage, From Current 50%
WASHINGTON -- Pushed by federal
regulators, beer, wine and liquor makers are expected to announce Tuesday that
they will narrow their target advertising audience in an effort to reach fewer
underage drinkers.
The new advertising standard,
which the nation's three largest brewers already are following, comes as the
Federal Trade Commission completes an investigation into industry advertising.
The FTC long has encouraged alcohol advertisers to narrow their target
audience, using only print and broadcast media whose readership or viewership
is less than 30% underage. The current standard is 50%.
The voluntary change means that
some magazines and television programs whose audiences exceed the new 30%
underage-audience mark will no longer be able to sell ads to beer, wine or
liquor makers. Industry executives said Monday, however, that the
practical effect in the ad industry will be small because major companies
already follow the standard.
The FTC investigation, which is to
be reported to Congress Tuesday, found that the industry's voluntary code
generally has been effective in avoiding underage viewers and that it is doing
a better job in avoiding ad content that appeals to underage drinkers. Beyond
advertising, it will encourage the industry to pay more attention to
restricting access to alcohol in retail and noncommercial venues such as home
and school.
The new advertising standards and
the FTC investigation come just ahead of a major report on underage drinking by
the National Academy of Sciences. That study, scheduled to be made public
Wednesday, is expected to call for even narrower youth-audience guidelines,
wider restrictions on youth access to alcohol and increased public-health
advertising targeting parents and other adults who are in a position to
influence youth drinking.
The National Academy study's
greatest impact, though, could be in tax policy. The study's most contentious
finding is likely to be its support for higher excise taxes as an effective
means of curbing underage drinking. Cash-strapped states around the country
have debated raising excise taxes, and while most have not done so -- often
after intense industry lobbying -- the new federal research will fuel those
debates.
The FTC investigation looked
especially closely at new flavored malt beverages heavily marketed to younger
drinkers. But the FTC found no effort to target underage drinkers, and
widespread compliance with the current 50% youth-audience ad guidelines.
Nevertheless, "the 50% placement standard . . . permitted the ads to reach
a substantial youth audience," a summary of the report says. "This is
particularly significant where the products and some ad themes may be
attractive to minors."
The FTC also noted that while it
is probable that some teens are drinking the malt beverages, "teen
drinking continued to decline during the period when those beverages were being
aggressively marketed."
The FTC investigators found
greater attention by the industry to the issue of advertising content. Company
documents showed "many examples of ad content being rejected, and ad
content being modified, to reduce the likelihood of appeal to minors," the
FTC found. It noted, however, that a "visible minority" of ads
"feature concepts that risk appealing to those under 21." Unless
greater care is taken, ads targeting young drinkers risk also appealing to
those under 21, the FTC warns.
The FTC isn't expected to
recommend any advertising-content restrictions, however, because of
constitutional free-speech protections.
Public-health advocates welcomed
the narrower target advertising targets. "It's a small step forward, but
it doesn't go far enough," said George Hacker, director of alcohol policy
at the Center for Science in the Public Interest here.
Jeff Becker, president of the Beer
Institute trade group, said that brewers comply with the industry's advertising
code "not only to accommodate regulatory agencies, but to make sure that
there is no misperception about the focus of our members' advertising, which is
to adults of legal drinking age." He said the new revision to the code
"reflect current best practices among brewers, and some were made in
response to FTC suggestions over the last several years."
4. Alcohol Back in Congress' Sights
September 8, 2003
Two alcohol-marketing studies
expected to be released this week may call for ad restrictions and tax increases,
sources said. At the same time, the beer and liquor industries plan to reveal
changes in their codes to comply with one of the recommendations, according to
sources.
The Federal Trade Commission is
expected to release a report tomorrow that asks beer, wine and liquor marketers
to adopt guidelines that would restrict advertising to media where 70 percent
of the audience is 21 or older, sources said. The beer and liquor industries
are expected to comply; the wine industry's code already adheres to that
guideline.
The Beer Institute, the Distilled
Spirits Council of the U.S. and the FTC all declined comment.
Urban radio stations are likely to
be hit hardest by the FTC's recommendation, sources said. "The 70 percent
number will probably remove a fair number of ad placements," said one
source.
The National Academy of Sciences
(news - web sites) will likely release its report Wednesday, with
recommendations that may include a call for higher taxes and a national media
campaign to combat underage drinking.
"We are concerned that the
upcoming [NAS] report ... will not reflect the hundreds of programs that the
industry sponsors to fight underage drinking," said Michelle Semones, a
rep with the National Beer Wholesalers Association.
Rep. Frank Wolf, R-Va., who was
among the lawmakers calling for both reports, could use the studies as a basis
for hearings on the issue, sources said.
The FTC last issued a report on
alcoholic-beverage ads to Congress in 1999.
5. US. Vodka Ad Battle Heats Up
Source: just-drinks.com editorial
team
September 10, 2003
The US drinks importer, Millennium
Import Company, which imports the Belvedere and Chopin vodka brands, has filed
a federal lawsuit in the US District Court for the District of Minnesota
against Sidney Frank Importing Co. Inc., over the company's advertising for its
vodka brand, Grey Goose.
Millennium is accusing Sidney
Frank Importing of false advertising, consumer fraud, and trade libel.
Millennium has filed a motion for
a preliminary injunction against Sidney Frank to enjoin Sidney Frank's further
use of its current advertising campaign claiming to be the best tasting vodka
in the world.
The case follows Millennium's
complaint over Sidney Frank's advertising to the National Advertising Division
(NAD). The NAD ruled in Millennium's favour and Sidney Frank appealed to the
National Advertising Review Board (NARB) which upheld the NAD's decision,
saying that Sidney Frank's advertisements for Grey Goose are "inaccurate
and misleading".
The NAD and NARB are
self-regulatory arms of the Council of Better Business Bureaus and are said to
be widely regarded as leaders in the field of self-regulation with a compliance
rate of nearly 100%. But so far Sidney Frank has refused to comply with the
NAD's and NARB's directive to discontinue or modify their advertising for Grey
Goose.
"The entire industry and
consumers have been misled by Grey Goose's deceptive and misleading advertising
campaign," said Millennium's president, Steve Gill. "It's a shame
that Sidney Frank insists on continuing their game of deception. Two well
respected organisations have now found their Grey Goose ads to be misleading
and we're looking forward to our day in court and to having the TTB and FTC enforce
the NARB and NAD's rulings."
Millennium's dispute Sidney Frank
is not its claim that it is the leading tasting vodka in the world but that in
the list of comparisons made in the advertising Belvedere comes out so badly.
Grey Goose's claims come from a
1998 taste test conducted by the Beverage Testing Institute (BTI), in which the
vodka was the winning brand scoring 96. Grey Goose's advertising not only uses
this fact but also lists scores of 31 competing vodkas that include a score of
74 for Belvedere Vodka.
The problem with this for
Belvedere is that in similar tests that have been conducted since 1998,
Belvedere has scored significantly better, including a 91 and a 92.
6. Spirits Firms Pour on TV Ad Spending
By Theresa Howard, USA Today
September 8, 2003
NEW YORK — Spirits marketers are
stepping up their TV ad spending to better battle brewers for a share of the
alcoholic beverage market.
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Spending for spirits brands is
expected to double to $20 million this year over 2002. Though that remains a
fraction of the $1.6 billion beer companies spent on ads in 2002, spirits
marketers are regrouping for another run at TV because they think the time is
right to steal market share from beermakers, who have 85% of the volume of
alcoholic beverages, says market researcher Impact's U.S. Wine & Spirits
Study.
"Beer is down this year, so
spirits are winning competitively vs. beer right now, and that had not been the
case for decades," says Benj Steinman, editor of newsletter Beer
Marketer's Insights.
Under a voluntary agreement from
the early days of television, the industry has not used network TV to market.
And while there is a belief that the deal is outmoded, the brands are cobbling
together a national media presence with ads bought on cable and local stations.
They want to avoid the kind of public outcry that met an ill-fated attempt to
get on network TV 18 months ago, which ended with NBC pulling the plug on a
deal to run ads from spirits giant Diageo.
But better cable programming
options and flat prices have made non-network TV a more viable option. And the
revenue potential is enticing network affiliate stations and cable to take on
spirits ads.
"The choice available to
marketers is really endless," says Monsell Darville, vice president and
group marketing director at Bacardi USA, which has doubled its TV budget for
three key brands this year. "Cable programming provides a wonderful
opportunity for us to target a special audience with very little waste."
Bellying up to TV:
• Allied Domecq. The
company that owns and markets Beefeater, Canadian Club, Kahlúa and Courvoisier
doubled its TV ad budget for the key fourth quarter. "It's such an
important season for us," says Janet Oak, vice president of strategic
planning and media. Oak says the ads are directed to distributors as much as to
consumers because distributors are more likely to give products better
placement if they are heavily promoted.
• Bacardi. For the first
time in three years, Bacardi Rum and sister brand Disaronno have ads on TV.
They join Bombay Sapphire, which begins a second round of 60-second ads as part
of its $2.5 million TV campaign. Disaronno, with a $5.5 million TV ad budget
vs. nothing last year, had a home run with an ad buy that includes Bravo's
surprise hit Queer Eye for the Straight Guy. "We're talking to an
audience that fits our consumers," says Darville. "It's not a shotgun
approach."
• Brown-Forman. An up to $5
million TV ad campaign will back the rollout of a revamped bottle for
Finlandia, in stores on Sept. 30. The redesign is a move to better compete
against the premium import vodka leader, Absolut.
"The vodka category is driven
by image, and TV is a very big driver of imagery," says Scott Reid, vice
president and global creative director. "For creating a personality for a
brand, TV is the most effective medium."
• Diageo. Smirnoff's $157
million rollout of a new bottle design next month includes a $10 million TV ad
campaign beginning on Oct. 20. The ads try to evoke a more premium feel for the
world's top-selling vodka, and Diageo has increased its cable presence this year
to 42 networks from 10.
7.
Recently Lowered Blood-alcohol Level Hasn't Resulted in Increase of
Arrests
By Jolene
Hull – Iowa State Daily
September 09, 2003
AMES - Although the legal blood alcohol concentration level limit for driving
was lowered in July, local law enforcement officials said they've seen minimal
changes in the number of operating while intoxicated charges issued.
Gov. Tom Vilsack signed into law
House File 65 on July 1. The law lowered the allowable blood alcohol
concentration limit for operating a motor vehicle from .10 to .08.
In order to reach .08 blood
alcohol content, a 170-pound male would have to consume four to five drinks in
one hour on an empty stomach and a 130-pound female would have to consume three
to four drinks.
Passage of the new .08 law means
Iowa is now eligible to receive $45.6 million in federal road money between
2004 and 2007. Iowa could receive up to $2.4 million in federal incentive
grants for passing the legislation.
ISU Police Capt. Gene Deisinger
said he's seen no change in the number of OWI charges issued that he would link
to the enactment of the new law.
"Off-hand, I've not seen any
significant difference that I would attribute directly to the .08 law," he
said. "Historically, the average blood alcohol content for OWIs in our
department is well over .10."
Deisinger
said his department has recently seen an increase in OWIs.
"We've seen an increase in
OWIs in the past month, but I would attribute that to the changes in our
community," he said. "There are more people around, and therefore,
there will be an increase in alcohol-related arrests."
Deisinger said many of the alcohol
violations can be attributed to underage possession charges, in which a blood
alcohol measure is not taken.
Deisinger
said he hopes people will be mindful of the changed law.
"I would expect and hope that
it causes more people to give careful consideration to their drinking
choices," he said.
Ames Police Patrol Cmdr. Randy
Kessel also said he hasn't seen any changes in the Ames Police Department's
arrest rate for OWIs since the legal limit was lowered. He said most of those
arrested for OWIs by the Ames Police Department have a blood alcohol content of
.13 or more.
Kessel
said he's seen an increase in designated drivers since the change.
"I've talked to more people
who say their spouses or friends are driving," he said. "The
education is certainly getting to the public."
Kessel said he believes the
recently enacted law has increased public awareness of the consequences of
drinking and driving.
"I think it has enhanced the
drinking responsibility," he said. "The lowering is making an impact
in some people's minds."
Lt. John Evans of the Story County
Sheriff's Office said his department also has not seen any changes since the
legal blood alcohol limit was lowered. He said the blood alcohol level the
sheriff's office usually sees exceeds .10.
Evans said he believes people are
aware they need to be more responsible when drinking.
"I think people are very much
more aware [of the lowered limit]," he said. "It's just a matter of
following through with that awareness."
Evans said
it's easy for one to neglect the law while drinking.
"I would advise people to use
extreme caution, because [a rising blood alcohol level] sneaks up on
them," he said. "They're having a good time, and they can be over the
legal limit when they have no idea they are."
"People
need to have a designated driver or not be in the situation at all," he
said.
8. Insurers Lose Appetite for Junk Food
and Alcohol
By Yvette
Essen - Money.Telegraph
September 1, 2003
Restaurants, fast-food chains,
bars and pubs are facing further insurance premium rises as customers make claims
for obesity and alcohol and smoking-related diseases.
Public liability insurance, which
covers companies against claims from members of the public, has already climbed
by around 30pc to 35pc over the past year. The food and drink industry has
traditionally been regarded as low risk by insurers, with the majority of
claims being linked to contamination.
However, following a number of
high profile cases, insurers fear the sector will face more claims. In June,
class-action lawyer John Banzhaf wrote
to fast-food restaurants, including McDonald's, Burger King, Kentucky Fried
Chicken and Pizza Hut, telling them to warn customers scientific studies show
fast food can be addictive or they may face litigation.
Zurich London, which insures
restaurants, hotels, clubs, pubs and off licences, said if underwriters fear
there may be a rise in claims, they will increase premiums further and may
apply exclusions to withdraw cover for known risks.
Head of public liability John
Inwood said: "We are urging the food and drink sector to revisit their risk
management policies, as insurers will be looking more closely than ever before
at what the food and drink sector is doing to demonstrate that they are being
socially responsible."
A host of companies are now
becoming more health conscious. McDonald's stocks fruit and salads, while
America's biggest food company Kraft is shrinking its ready-made meals and
snacks to help combat the obesity epidemic. Pizza Hut also recently announced
it will ban smoking in its restaurants.
According to the National Audit
Office, obesity levels in England have trebled in the last 20 years with around
one in five adults seriously overweight. Common problems related to obesity are
heart disease, diabetes and high blood pressure.
Insurers are also worried that
food and drink establishments may face claims for smoking- and drinking-related
diseases. Mr Inwood said: "In the US, alcoholic drinks carry health
warnings. I think there is a strong potential for something similar to happen
in the UK.
"At a time when campaigners
are calling for tighter controls on responsible drinking and mandatory
labelling of alcohol content, we have seen an increase in the promotion of
alcohol, be it larger measures, two-for-one shots and 'alcopops' are also on
the increase, so is the message coming through?"
Phil Grace, liability risk manager
at the UK's largest general insurer Norwich Union, said his company was aware
of the issue and "concerned it might be a problem in the future. This is
the latest step in the growth of the compensation culture and if there is one
claim, more will follow like a domino effect."
9.
FTC Report Cites Improvements in Alcohol Industry Self-Regulation
Press
Release - Federal Trade Commission
September 9, 2003
WASHINGTON - In response to a
request from the House and Senate Appropriations Committees and hearings by
House Appropriations Subcommittee Chairman Frank R. Wolf, the Federal Trade
Commission today issued a Report on Alcohol Marketing and Advertising. The
Report examines whether advertising for flavored malt beverages (FMBs) --
beverages that combine characteristics of beer and distilled spirits -- is
targeted to underage consumers, as well as whether the alcohol industry has
implemented self-regulatory recommendations made in the FTC's 1999 Alcohol Report
to Congress. The FTC conducted an investigation of nine major alcohol
advertisers, analyzing their advertisements, marketing plans, and consumer
research. The Report's analysis indicates significant improvement in standards
for the placement of alcohol ads, as well as improvement in the adoption of
external advertising review mechanisms. The Report also found no evidence of
targeting underage consumers in the FMB market. The FTC's Report concludes that
while advertising self-regulation is designed to reduce the number of ads seen
by minors, a comprehensive alcohol policy also must address underage access to
alcohol.
In 1999, the FTC issued a series
of recommendations to Congress regarding alcohol industry self-regulation. The 2003
Report examines whether the alcohol industry has implemented these
recommendations and what actions marketers are currently taking to prevent
advertising to minors. Until recently, voluntary alcohol codes generally
required that at least 50 percent of the audience for alcohol ads consist of
adult consumers aged 21 and over. The 1999 Report criticized both this standard
and the low level of effort to ensure compliance with it, and identified
several best practices in alcohol advertising placement to minimize underage
exposure.
The FTC's recent investigation
indicates that although FMBs have become increasingly popular, FMB marketers
for the most part have complied with 2002 voluntary alcohol codes regarding ad
placement. In 2002, for example, over 99 percent of the FMB advertising budget
for television, radio, and print media was spent in compliance with the 50
percent placement standard. Documents produced by the companies also show that
the intended targets for FMBs were above the legal drinking age. Moreover, in
response
to concerns raised about teen
exposure to alcohol ads, the industry now has committed to adhere to a 70
percent placement standard and to implement post-placement audits. The Report
notes that FMB advertising may have a "spillover" effect on teens,
because themes that appeal to younger, of-age consumers also appeal to underage
consumers. The Report urges strong caution when introducing new alcohol
products to ensure that they are not directed to an underage audience.
The FTC's 1999 Report also
recommended that the alcohol industry use independent, third-party reviewers to
determine whether ads complied with industry code standards, particularly to
address complaints about underage appeal. The new Report finds that, since
issuance of the 1999 Report, there has been modest but important movement
toward external review. One company has adopted a third-party review system,
and one trade association has improved the operation of its own external review
mechanisms. Other companies also are considering adopting alternative external
review systems.
The FTC's Report concludes that
while advertising self-regulation is designed to prevent advertising and
marketing practices that target underage consumers and reduce the number of ads
seen by minors, a comprehensive alcohol policy also must address the means by
which teens actually obtain alcohol for consumption. The FTC will continue to
monitor alcohol industry self-regulation. In particular, the FTC will monitor
the new placement standard requiring that adults constitute 70 percent of the
audience for advertising. Additionally, the FTC will monitor the effectiveness
of third-party and other external review programs and will continue to evaluate
new advertising programs that may have undue appeal to underage consumers.
The Commission's vote to approve
the 2003 Report on Alcohol Marketing and Advertising was 4-0-1, with
Commissioner Pamela Jones Harbour not participating.
10. Study On Underage Drinking Suggests Alcohol Tax
ChannelOklahoma.com
September 10, 2003
Report:
Underage Drinking A $53 Billion Problem In America
WASHINGTON -- A national
research group is calling for a broad new attack on teenage drinking.
A report by the Institute of Medicine
and the National Research Council says underage drinking has become a $53
billion problem in America. That includes the cost of traffic fatalities,
suicides, violent crimes and academic failure.
More than two-thirds of high
school seniors admit they have done at least some drinking, and so do more than
one-third of eighth-graders.
Richard Bonnie, the head of the
committee that prepared the report, said alcohol use is deeply rooted in
American society and adults need to avoid behavior that tends to encourage
drinking by kids.
"All segments of U.S. society
should address underage drinking in a serious, coordinated, and sustained
manner," said Bonnie, director of the Institute of Law, Psychiatry, and
Public Policy at the University of Virginia, Charlottesville. "We have to
find effective ways to protect our nation's youth while we respect the
interests of responsible adult consumers of alcohol. The recommendations in
this report attempt to strike the right balance."
The report calls for the federal
government to educate adults on existing laws and the consequences of underage
drinking and for federal aid to communities in fighting the battle.
The authors also say alcohol and entertainment
industries should take stronger steps to shield young people from unsuitable
messages about alcohol consumption.
Among its recommendations is a
higher tax on alcohol, particularly on beer, which studies show is the
alcoholic beverage that most young people prefer. Alcohol is much cheaper
today, after adjusting for inflation, than it was 30 to 40 years ago, the
authors said.
Taxing alcohol is an idea that
doesn't go down well with Jeff Becker of the Beer Institute. He said that would
just mean lost jobs for the industry and higher prices for responsible adult
drinkers.
11. Bar
Business Drops with More Arrests
By: Vanessa Miller - Iowa
City Press-Citizen
September 11, 2003
Bar owners claim increase in house parties
The lights were low, the music was
loud, and the alcohol was flowing.
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When Jackie Larue went out earlier this year, she
found herself standing shoulder to shoulder in a crowded room - and it wasn't a
bar.
"I've been going to more house parties than I
did last year because I don't want to be in downtown as much," said Larue,
19, a University of Iowa sophomore from Mount Prospect, Ill. "I've been trying
to stay away from the bars because I got two tickets last year, and the police
are everywhere."
That was what some bar owners feared.
With the city's new law banning those under age 19
from entering bars after 10 p.m., and with the recent jump in underage drinking
citations, many bar owners claim their business is dropping while off-premises
alcohol sales are rising.
"The number of people in bars has been
plummeting," said Mike Porter, owner of the Summit Restaurant & Bar
and One-Eyed Jake's in downtown Iowa City. "We've had two football
weekends in a row, and you don't see the numbers you did last year."
Porter said he thinks those skipping the bars to
avoid tickets are landing at house parties in the residential neighborhoods.
"With all the increased enforcement they've
done, what have they accomplished?" Porter said. "They've pushed kids
into the neighborhoods ... but they haven't stopped underage drinking."
During the weekend of UI's first home football game
Aug. 30, police issued 204 tickets for possession of alcohol under the legal
age. That is more than double the 92 tickets issued during the first football
weekend last year.
Last weekend, UI's second home football weekend,
officers issued 195 tickets for possession of alcohol under the legal age. Last
year, during the weekend of UI's second home football game in which the
Hawkeyes battled Iowa State University, officers issued 76 tickets.
Police Capt. Tom Widmer said that while officers are
finding more underage drinkers per bar visit this year, it's normal procedure
to send extra officers downtown on a home football weekend.
"What are the bar owners doing differently to
stop 200 tickets from being written?" Police Sgt. Brian Krei said, adding
that officers haven't noticed an increase in house parties this year.
"There have always been large house parties on the weekends. It's that
time of year. It's nice and hot, and there are home football games."
Krei said after the Iowa football game last weekend against
Buffalo, police received 66 residential noise complaints. Last year after the
Utah State game, a game of similar significance, officers received 54 noise
complaints.
"That's 12 complaints, which is not a
significant difference," Krei said.
During the first home football weekend, in addition
to the underage possession of alcohol tickets, officers issued seven disorderly
house tickets for unruly parties. That number jumped to 18 disorderly house
tickets last weekend.
"People are going to figure out how to get what
they want," Porter said, adding that he thinks many of those attending
house parties are of-age patrons that used to frequent the bars. "You've
got to assume that half of those are legal people that used to come downtown. I
just want the legal ones back that are consuming half of the alcohol sold
off-premises."
At John's Grocery, 401 E. Market St., employees said
they have noticed an upsurge in keg sales.
"They have increased this year, and that may be
due to kids getting kicked out of bars, but we've been more aggressive in our
pricing, too," said Doug Alberhasky, the beer guy at John's Grocery.
"We are the cheapest place in town. And we are moving a whole lot more
eight- and five-gallon kegs as opposed to the 16-gallon kegs."
Alberhasky said they also have seen an increase in
demand for non-alcoholic root beer kegs, which used to be exclusively popular
for children's birthday parties.
At Regal Liquor in the Hy-Vee Food Store
at 1720 Waterfront Drive, officials confirmed a slight rise in alcohol sales.
"We have a small increase in keg sales,"
store director Al Dix said. "But the weather might have something to do
with that."
Jim Clayton, co-director of the Stepping-Up project,
a UI-led coalition against underage drinking, said no one has proven that house
parties increase when bar business decreases.
"There is no evidence that says when you limit
access to bars, you then increase those at house parties," he said.
"If business is down, where is the income loss? It's the law that's taking
their dollars not the house parties."
But Don Stalkfleet, owner of the Sport's Column and
Joe's Place in downtown Iowa City, disagrees.
"Twelve-thousand to 17,000 kegs this year will
go to off-premises sales," he said, claiming to have gotten the number
from beer distributors. "That is at least 1,000 kegs a month. Either a lot
more people are getting married or a lot more people are drinking off
premises."
Stalkfleet said house parties are dangerous because
they are unsupervised, uninsured, and they put drinkers behind the wheel.
"People tend to walk to downtown Iowa
City," he said. "They are putting people back on the streets. Their
solution to me is ludicrous."
Sheila Patel, 20, said she has noticed a lot more
house parties this year than in the past.
"Oh, big time," said the UI junior from
Glendale Heights, Ill. "All the freshman are scattering around trying to
find the house parties. They used to go to house parties after the bars, now
they go instead of the bars. I think it is a bad thing because it is not safe
to go walking around town at night. At least at bars, there are buses and a lot
of people around."
