Why We Drink Less Outside the Home

bardrinkDrinking in bars and restaurants was down 2.5% in 2015, the third year in a row that alcohol consumption outside the home declined, said the Beverage Information Group in a new report. Gentlemen, we have a trend.

But what this information made me think about is just what the trend would look like if the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) got its way.

The NTSB has, for the last three years, recommended that the legal blood alcohol content limit for driving be reduced from .08 to .05.

Try to imagine what kind of impact that would have on restaurants and bars. For a 100 lb. woman, she would be legally impaired (at the .05 limit) at one drink. AT ONE DRINK!  A 160 lb. man would be legally impaired after 2 drinks.

Now, it has to be said that the NTSB’s recommendation to lower the legal BAC hasn’t really been taken seriously since they recommended the change three years ago. No state has adopted the recommendation and the federal government has done nothing to motivate states to adopt the suggested standard.

As for the current trend of lower consumption of alcohol in restaurants and bars, I expect it to continue into the future. Folks don’t want to risk the huge impact of getting a DWI conviction.

On the other hand, Donald Trump may in fact be our President in six months. So who knows, that trend might be radically reversed.

 

 

Posted In: Culture and Wine

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One Response

  1. Joe R. - July 13, 2016

    I totally agree; other writers who have wriiten articles on the decline of “on-premise” alcohol consumption seem to ignore this completely ignore the fact that, as more and more peeps get busted for DUI/DWI, they (and the rest of us) simply will not risk it. The on-premise industry should probably invest in self-driving cars…


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