Liquor sales grow. Air quality suffers. Tourism grants announced. Register circulation drops.
1/3/2024The IABD (Iowa Alcoholic Beverages Division) released its annual report for the 2023 fiscal year. It reported a total revenue of $478,259,852, which is a 3.34% increase from 2022. Unsurprisingly, $445,830,313 of that came from liquor sales.
It appears many Iowans enjoy the Christmas spirits considering December had the highest liquor sales with $42,863,859. However, the most gallons of liquor were sold in August with 587,359.
Iowans cut back their consumption of wine and beer as the number of gallons sold for both dropped from last year to this year. The amount of native beer sold did increase 5.22%.
The state’s top five favorite liquor brands remained unchanged from 2022. Tito’s Handmade Vodka took the crown again in 2023, selling a total of 419,572 gallons in fiscal year 2023, up from the 393,280 sold the prior year. Black Velvet remained in second and increased its total gallons sold by more than 1,000, putting its total at 355,016. To round out the top five, in third, Captain Morgan Original Spiced Rum sold 273,955 gallons; in fourth, Fireball Cinnamon Whiskey sold 254,057 gallons; and, in fifth, Hawkeye Vodka sold 196,869 gallons. Despite their recent visits to local Hy-Vees, neither Mark Wahlberg’s nor Jason Mamoa’s liquors were able to crack the top 50.
A total of 195,027 gallons were sold from Iowa native distillers and manufacturers. The top three were Blue Ox Spirits, Inc., located in Des Moines, which sold 80,101 gallons in 2023; Dehner Distillery, located in Clive, 29,730 gallons; and Cedar Ridge Vineyards, found in Swisher, with 22,746 gallons.
The total in sales for Iowa native distillers and manufacturers was $11,714,796. Four companies crossed over the seven-figure mark in 2023, those being Cedar Ridge Vineyards, $3,446,790; Blue Ox Spirits, Inc., with $2,198,115 in sales; Revelton Distilling Company, located in Osceola, $1,270,845; and Mississippi River Distilling Company, in Le Claire, with $1,194,854 in sales.
The top four native Iowa liquor brands also remained unchanged, with three out of the top four being vodka. Blue Ox Vodka by far topped the list with 76,312 gallons sold. Gotcha Vodka came in second with 21,772 gallons sold. Cedar Ridge Bourbon sold 14,001 gallons to capture third. Swell Vodka was fourth with 7,128 gallons sold. The newcomer to the top five, State Vodka, jumped from 20th in 2022. It sold 7,052 gallons in 2023. …
Much like the rest of the country, Iowa’s air quality was greatly affected by the Canadian wildfires that took place in March. According to the Stanford Environmental Change and Human Outcomes Lab, the average American was exposed to 66% more air pollution than the previous record.
According to John Gering, a unit leader in Ambient Air Monitoring for the Iowa Department of Natural Resources, 122 reported ozone exceedances and 45 total PM 2.5 (particle matter) exceedances occurred between January and Dec. 8. These numbers are abnormally high, considering only 17 ozone exceedances and 11 PM 2.5 exceedances happened since 2018.
“It would probably be correct to say that almost all, if not all, of the exceedances in 2023 noted were at least influenced by wildfire smoke,” Gering said. …
Travel Iowa announced its tourism grant recipients for the 2024 fiscal year. All in all, 45 organizations across the state received tourism grants at a total of $398,800.
“Visitors spent more than $6.9 billion across Iowa’s economy in 2022, an increase of 13% over 2021 spending. This direct visitor spending sustained over 68,600 jobs and generated $1.1 billion in state and local tax revenues in 2022,” according to Travel Iowa.
Tourism grants must be applied for and applicants are “scored by a committee of industry peers,” Jessica O’Riley, tourism communications manager, told CITYVIEW.
“Funds are allocated from the legislature as part of our overall budget,” said O’Riley. “There is a close-out procedure where recipients must show deliverable results.”
When asked what would be considered “deliverable results,” O’Riley replied, “It depends entirely on the project. Some measure results by media campaign metrics (impressions, clicks, web traffic), some through ticket sales or event attendance, some through growth of visitation from the targeted audience. They are required to outline how they will measure results prior to an award.”
The highest grant amount awarded was $10,000 to 26 entities. The smallest amount awarded was $2,500, given to “Summer of the Arts” for 2024 Iowa City Jazz Festival advertising.
Some recipients of note receiving the $10,000 grants were the Science Center of Iowa for podcast targeted marketing, the Iowa Driftless Chapter of Trout Unlimited for the Iowa Driftless Trout fishing tournament, the Le Mars Area Chamber of Commerce for the Le Mars Ice Cream Days, and the Island City Harbor Jackson County Welcome Center for signage and social media. …
The paid circulation of The Des Moines Register continues the downward trajectory it’s been on for years.
CITYVIEW reported on the Register’s circulation numbers in 2019 when the Monday-to-Friday circulation of the print edition of the daily newspaper averaged 45,633 with the Sunday print circulation averaging 80,713.
According to the 2023 audit filed with the Alliance for Audited Media, a trade group, the average Monday-to-Friday print circulation has fallen to 23,411, a 6% decrease from 2022. The Sunday print circulation dropped to an average of 31,184, a 20% decrease from the year before. This is a far cry from the days when the Register touted reaching three out of five Iowans. The continual decline has those in the know wondering how this Gannett newspaper, and the others it owns, can continue to operate. . …
The Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission held a special meeting on Dec. 19 in order to address the resignation of longtime director, Brian Ohorilko, who accepted a position as a senior vice president at Prairie Meadows, overseeing racing, human resources and food and beverage at the Polk County owned casino. This hire leaves some wondering if Ohorilko will be the replacement for the 77-year-old Prairie Meadows CEO Gary Palmer.
Ohorilko took over as director for Jack Ketterer in 2012. Ketterer had been with the commission for 24 years before passing the torch. This came shortly after Ohorilko authored a massive bill that allowed people to use their phones to bet on horse racing.
As reported by The Gazette, Ohorilko’s salary started at the minimum for the position, $125,000. In his time as director, his pay increased to $196,000, according to the State of Iowa Salary Database. Ohorilko will be replaced in the interim by Tina Eick, the Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission operations director. In the meeting, it was announced that applications will be open for the position as of Dec. 31, and the board expects to have someone hired by the next meeting on Jan. 25. ♦
