Alcohol occasions are up for grabs, and a new generation of beverages is showing up to fill the gaps — and creating occasions of their own.

At Listen, we've spent years obsessing over the shifting consumer relationship with alcohol and the rituals of drinking — a curiosity that led us to launch So Curious, a first-of-its-kind conference bringing the consumer to the center of the conversation about drinking. That relationship is now coming apart and reforming in real time: 45% of Americans say even moderate alcohol consumption is bad for their health, up from 28% just six years ago. A new wave of alternatives has rushed to meet them, and hemp-derived THC beverages have become one of the fastest-growing (and most “feelable”) of the bunch.

But in our view, the social beverage industry keeps getting stuck on the wrong things: launching functional products instead of building emotional brands, finding consumers instead of designing for them, backing into occasions instead of building around them.

And while demand surges, even as a looming federal ban threatens the category's future, the consumers driving that demand are largely absent from the conversation.

So, this work started where our listening always does: with the consumer. As the category heated up last year, we set out to understand the people reaching for these drinks — not just their demographics, but also their lives and rituals and the ‘why’ behind their choice to reach for one. We surveyed nearly 600 THC drinkers and sat down with dozens more. We met mindful parents and night owls, veterans and wellness seekers — and we learned that each of these groups is reaching for the same drinks but with very different ends in mind. And the brands that win this next era will be the ones that understand the occasion and design for the human within it. We call these Ownable Occasions.

In the full report, we tap into the perspectives of experts, founders, and most importantly, consumers themselves to unpack the six Ownable Occasions defining this category, the consumer truths driving behavior, and a framework for building and investing in the next generation of drinking.

While this work began with hemp THC drinkers, the occasions we uncovered belong to no single ingredient. Some belong to occasions alcohol used to own; others, to ones it never could. The opportunity isn't just to replace alcohol, but to serve moments it was never right for in the first place.

Interested in learning more? Download the full report — and sign up to receive our quarterly(ish) consumer insights direct to your inbox.

About this series: Consumer-Obsessed is a series of research deep dives on behavior shifts we believe are at a tipping point — and that we, as Listen, feel particularly inspired to invest against. Through this work, we tap into the perspectives of experts, founders, and most importantly, consumers themselves to sharpen our point of view and turn our intellectual curiosities into investment conviction. Previous volumes can be found here.