US cheese imports

As the US has imported more cheese, craft distilleries have multiplied, a correlation of 0.988 that captures the essence of premiumization: a nation that simultaneously decided it wanted its cheese from France and its whiskey from a barn in Kentucky. The Gruyère arrives, the bourbon barrel fills, and the chart connects them with the artisanal confidence of a coefficient aged in oak.

Cheese imports grew from about 250,000 to over 430,000 metric tons between 2005 and 2022. Craft distilleries grew from about 200 to over 2,500. Both track the premiumization of American taste: consumers willing to pay more for specialty products with provenance and story. The same food media ecosystem that elevated craft spirits also elevated imported cheese, and both are sold through the same specialty retail channels (Whole Foods, cheese shops, tasting rooms) to the same affluent, food-literate consumer.

Eighteen years of cheese imports and craft distilleries is premiumization personified: both measure the same consumer's appetite for things that are expensive, specific, and accompanied by a story about where they came from. The cheese is imported, the whiskey is local, and both are consumed by someone who believes that knowing the producer is part of the product. The terroir is discussed. The correlation is not.