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The week's question
In December 2024, in the thread "Re: BRK: Why Not XOM?", BreckHutHigh asked the members: "What about the long road trips with kids?" This week it is put to everyone again. The button below opens the small thread re-asking it - read what others have said so far, then give your own answer as an ordinary reply.
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Stocks A to Z / Stocks B / Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A)
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Author: mungofitch 🐝🐝🐝 GOLD
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Number: of 21937 
Subject: Re: What recent Berkshire security do you like best_QM
Date: 09/14/25 9:42 AM
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I think the reduction in alcohol consumption may be an enduring long term phenomenon.

Enduring could mean a few things. I think that in the grand sweep of history, it's more likely to be cyclical.

Ignoring the stretch around and just after prohibition up to the war, the low stretch in pure ethanol consumption in the US for the last century or two was 1947-1961 at around 7.6 litres/year. It rose sharply for a while and was over 10 litres/year around 1973-1983. The most recent figures seem to be around 9.5 litres. A lot of the changes can be explained by changes in the shape of the population pyramid, less by changes in human nature.

So, offhand, I would consider the scale of a major lasting generational drop in consumption levels, if we see it as you suggest, to be equivalent to a fall of maybe ~20% back to the figures seen in the prior postwar low stretch. Real dollar value of consumption might fall less, as people are on average richer than they were before. My investment thesis is that the better companies might have a slowdown or one time shrinkage, but will still be formidable businesses with extremely resilient and long-lasting income streams. That requires a discerning eye on what the new volume levels might be, but those "remnants" may well deserve a strong premium in valuation.

In some other markets like France, the fall may be more major and lasting, simply because there were extremely high levels a while back. Nobody here wants to consume the oceans of mediocre wine that used to be guzzled day and night, when consumption per capita was over 25 litres/year in the 1960s. (it's now under 12, but interestingly the whole of the fall has been in wine...spirits and beer consumption are flat in the last 60-70 years)

Jim
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This community has written 21,448 posts about Berkshire Hathaway. The article-length ones it recommended most:
BRK: Why Not XOM? · 62 recs · 2024
Second quarter comments · 60 recs · 2023
Berkshire's Profit Contributors · 57 recs · 2023
Summary of 2Q 2026 · 54 recs · 2026
3Q Summary · 53 recs · 2024
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