Holidays, end-of-world rumors spur alcohol sales - KOTA Territory News

Holidays, end-of-world rumors spur alcohol sales

Holidays are a time for celebration, and alcohol distributors typically see a generous bump in sales.

And this year, revelers found another cause for celebration.
 
Boyd's Wine and Spirits in Rapid City reports an increase of about 25 percent in sales this past weekend.

Manager Delight Pepper thinks part of the reason is state law prohibits alcohol sales on Christmas Day, so people are stocking up now.

She also says people are gravitating more toward wine.
 
"Less of the spirits and more of the wine," Pepper said. "I think it's just people are changing. Wine is supposed to be better for you, that kind of thing."
 
Friday also saw end-of-the-world rumors.

At least one local bar, Murphy's Pub and Grill, had a party in honor of the date, complete with a zombie invasion at midnight.

That party saw a huge surge in sales -- at least 150 percent in that single night.

And with college students coming back into town, this whole weekend has been up.
 
"It's always interesting kind of working into the holiday weekend," said Murphy's general manager Tony DeMaro, "because people know they're going to be spending a couple days a couple days with family, so I know that last night (Sunday), it seemed like a lot of people were out with their friends."

"And it was actually a really busy night last night," he went on. "We were up about 50 percent."
 
Increased sales will likely continue through the new year.