REFERENCE

Beverage alcohol sales glossary

Beverage alcohol (bev alc) is beer, wine, spirits and alcoholic ready-to-drink products, and the businesses that make, distribute and sell them. In the U.S. three-tier system, shipments are supplier-to-distributor sales, depletions are distributor-to-account sales, and sell-through is retailer-to-consumer sales. Beer volume is counted in case equivalents; wine and spirits in 9-liter cases.

Last updated September 29, 2026

Where each sales measure sits

In the U.S. three-tier system, the same product is sold three times on its way to a consumer. Each sale has its own name and its own record.

For the same product, period and unit (for example CE): shipments − depletions ≈ change in distributor inventory. A positive result means distributors are likely building inventory; a negative result means they are likely drawing it down. It is an estimate, because breakage, samples, transfers, supplier returns and product in transit also move inventory. In full: ending inventory = beginning inventory + receipts − depletions − other adjustments.

Definitions

Bev alc (beverage alcohol)

Industry shorthand for beverage alcohol: beer, wine, spirits and alcoholic ready-to-drink (RTD) products, and the businesses that make, distribute and sell them. Also written BevAlc or bev-alc. “Bev alc tech” means software built for companies in that industry.

Supplier (brand owner or importer)

The brewery, winery, distillery or importer that sells a brand to distributors. Suppliers are the top tier of the three-tier system. Most state models bar one company from more than one tier, with exceptions; some states allow a brewery to sell directly to retailers (dock sales).

Distributor (wholesaler)

The licensed middle tier. A distributor buys from suppliers, holds the inventory and sells it to retail and on-premise accounts in its territory. It reports those sales back to suppliers as depletions.

Three-tier system

The U.S. structure in which suppliers generally sell to licensed distributors, who sell to licensed retailers, who sell to consumers. Each tier is licensed separately, and each state sets its own rules. In control states, a state agency is the wholesaler for distilled spirits, sometimes wine and beer too; some also control off-premise retail through state stores or agents.

Account

A licensed retail or on-premise location that buys from a distributor, such as a bar, restaurant, liquor store or grocery store. Accounts are the unit behind placements, points of distribution and velocity.

On-premise

Accounts that sell alcohol for consumption where it is bought, by the glass or bottle, such as bars, restaurants, taverns and hotels. Also written on-premises or on-prem.

Off-premise

Accounts that sell packaged alcohol to take away, such as liquor, wine, grocery, convenience and drug stores. Also written off-premises or off-prem. NBWA estimates that about 85% of U.S. beer is sold through off-premise establishments.

Depletion

A distributor’s sale from its inventory, usually to a retail or on-premise account; some suppliers also count a distributor’s sales to other wholesalers. Depletions sit one step closer to the consumer than shipments, so suppliers use them to track demand. Breakage, samples and transfers between warehouses are usually recorded as separate transaction types and left out of reported depletions; returns and credits reduce them. Check how each distributor counts them.

Depletion report

A distributor’s monthly report of depletions by product and package, often broken out by account and date. Many also show beginning inventory, purchases and ending inventory. See how to read a depletion report.

Shipments (sell-in)

Sales from a supplier to a distributor. For the same product, period and unit, shipments − depletions ≈ the change in distributor inventory for the period, before breakage, samples, transfers, supplier returns and in-transit timing. A strong shipment month can mean distributors are stocking up rather than selling more.

Sell-through

Sales from a retailer to consumers, also called consumer takeaway. It is usually measured with retail scan data bought from outside providers, not with depletion reports. BevBeacon does not provide scan data and has no direct connection to retail scan data.

Case equivalent (CE)

The standard case unit for beer sold through wholesalers: 24 × 12 fl oz = 288 fl oz = 2.25 US gal (about 8.52 L). Beer CE = total fl oz ÷ 288. Also written 24/12 CE. Brewery production and federal excise tax use barrels. Full tables: case equivalents.

9-liter case (9LE)

The wine and spirits standard: 12 × 750 mL = 9 L (about 2.38 US gal). 9LE = total mL ÷ 9,000. One beer CE is about 0.95 9LE, so convert before adding beer to wine or spirits volume.

Physical case

The case actually shipped, whatever its size. A 12/16 case is one physical case but 0.67 CE; a 30-pack of 12 oz cans is 1.25 CE. Report columns labeled Cases or CS usually mean physical cases, so convert them before comparing volume.

Barrel (BBL)

The U.S. beer barrel: 31 US gal (27 CFR 25.11). One barrel = 31 ÷ 2.25 ≈ 13.78 CE, the figure NBWA uses. A 1/2-barrel keg holds 15.5 gal, or about 6.89 CE.

Sixtel

A 1/6-barrel keg: 31 ÷ 6 ≈ 5.17 US gal, or about 2.30 CE. Sources quote 5.16 or 5.17 gal; a report using 5.16 gal gives 2.29 CE. On invoices, “1/6” next to BBL, KEG or a keg deposit means a sixtel, not a six-pack.

Pack notation

Shorthand for case configuration. 24/12 means 24 units of 12 oz (1.00 CE). 4/6/12oz means four 6-packs of 12 oz, also 24 units. 12PK is a count and 12OZ is a size. CE per case = units × oz ÷ 288.

Point of distribution (POD) and placement

A POD is one product carried at one account; a placement is the sale that creates a new POD. PODs count the product-and-account pairs currently carried: ten accounts each carrying two of your products is 20 PODs.

Lost placement

A product an account stopped carrying: the reverse of a placement. In depletion data it appears as an account that bought a product in earlier periods but not recently. How long a gap counts as lost is a business rule each team sets.

Velocity

Rate of sale per point of distribution over a period, for example CE per POD per month: volume in CE ÷ PODs ÷ months. For a single product, PODs equal the accounts carrying it. Retail scan data providers also report it per weighted distribution point (for example, NielsenIQ’s $/TDP). Availability data doesn’t measure velocity; sales or depletion data does.

Product availability vs. sales

Availability shows where a product is listed as available, not what sold, how much or when. Sales and depletion data show what moved. BevBeacon’s availability data (U.S. listings for the brands it tracks, currently mostly beer) is kept as a separate source from your sales data, and its analysis is instructed not to treat availability as sales.

Volume conversions

Beer CE = total fl oz ÷ 288 = US gal ÷ 2.25 = barrels × 31 ÷ 2.25 (≈ barrels × 13.78, the NBWA figure). 9LE = total mL ÷ 9,000.

Sources

1. 27 CFR 25.11, Meaning of terms (barrel = 31 US gallons; gallon = 231 cubic inches).
2. 27 CFR 25.156, Determination of tax on keg beer (authorized fractional barrels, including sixths).
3. NBWA, Industry Fast Facts (one barrel = 31 gallons or 13.78 24/12 case equivalents; about 85% of beer sold off-premise).
4. Small Batch Standard, Case Equivalents (a CE is a standard unit of measure for a beer wholesaler, 24 12 oz servings; 1 BBL = 13.78 CE; 1/2 BBL = 6.89 CE).
5. Yours for Good Fermentables, “What’s a CE?” (CE and keg conversions; sixtel quoted as 5.16 gallons).
6. Wikipedia, Keg (1/6 barrels of 5.17 gallons).
7. NABCA, The Three-Tier System: A Modern View (manufacturers, wholesalers and retailers; each tier licensed separately; state authority after the 21st Amendment).
8. NABCA, Control State Directory and Info (control jurisdictions at the wholesale level and in off-premise retail).
9. New York State Liquor Authority, Get a License (on-premises and off-premises license groups, with examples).
10. ProBrewer, Distribution Glossary (depletions, depletion report, placement, on- and off-premises accounts, dock sales).
11. Brown-Forman Corporation, Form 8-K earnings release, September 2, 2026 (definitions of depletions, including sales to retailers and wholesalers, and consumer takeaway; shipments increase distributor inventories and depletions reduce them).
12. Aptean Apprise help, Vermont Information Processing Export Format (VIP sales transaction types for retail sales, samples, breakage and transfers; signed quantities for returns; inventory codes for receipts, transfers, supplier returns, breakage, samples and other adjustments).
13. NielsenIQ CPG Dictionary, Velocity ($/TDP), archived June 18, 2025 (velocity as sales per distribution point; a distribution point is an item selling in 1% of the market).
14. NielsenIQ, Total Distribution Points (TDP) & CPG Brands (distribution points combine the number of retailers carrying your products and the number of your products in each; TDP sums %ACV across items).
15. Wine Spectator, production volume in 9-liter cases (12 × 750 mL).
16. American Craft Spirits Association, Proof gallons to cases (a case is 12 750 mL bottles, 9 liters).
17. Wiktionary, bev-alc (the beverage alcohol industry segment).