I wanted to post a few comments and respond. One viewer wrote:

Can you please explain how this would hurt alcoholic beverages? I feel like alcohol is recession proof. Even if people living on the cusps of poverty with no discretionary income are bumped down, and can no longer afford alcohol[this is a big if, they may neglect other areas],
isn't it feasible that other classes will consume more alcohol in anger and frustration of their lost wealth/income?

RC

Response:

I agree more people will drink alcohol when angry or frustrated, but in Southern Louisiana, its a way of life. This is not my reasoning however. When you talk about 90,000 square miles being affected because of the storm, many businesses (bars, restuarants, grocery, and liquor stores) have been put out of commission. This of course interrupts beer sales in the region. As far as the population goes, many of these people have been displaced from their homes and have very little income to buy even food.

The sales that would be affected the most would probably be beer. I do feel companies like Anheuser Busch (BUD) are wonderful opportunities at current levels. Longer term, you're right, alcohol is recession proof, but the problem here is businesses are closed and there is no distribution to the area.

As a side note, I have been hearing stories about some displaced individuals using their debit cards from FEMA to purchase lap dances, and high priced purses in Houston. Who knows, maybe they figured out a way to buy a few beers too.