Cocktail and Liquor Trends for 2006

[johnder]

Wow, you do indeed love Lychee. Specifically Lichido it seems from your other posts.

Can't say I have tried it but according to bottlewatch.com I am not sure if I want to.

Described as the only lychee-based liqueur soon-to-be available in much of the USA, it's a blend of Premium Vodka and carefully aged French Cognac, infused with the fragrant essences of Exotic Lichees, Tropical Guavas and White Peach Juice. The company goes on to say that it's as mellow as it is seductive, and is a one of a kind fusion of Asian and French spirits. They say it's great in cocktails, over ice, or taken straight.

Sounds like Alize.

[freshherbs]

I'm feeling TEQUILA coming on strong.  Many Mexican restaurant owners have their own make now, plus Mexicans have begun assimilating in huge numbers! 

Beer sales have gone down over the last couple of years, due to wine and spirits, so maybe we'll see more drinks made with beer.  Of course that's if AB and Miller atrat marketing this.

At least vodka is better than the continued trend of the 'malt beverage' sweet drinks that the gatorade and coca cola palates go right to when drinking begins:  Smirnoff Ice, Mike's Hard Lemonade, Bacardi whatever...  This will be a hard battle, especially as more and more distilleries get bought up by major conglomerates who merely use the brand names as a marketing ploy.  For those who are unaware, there is no Smirnoff or Bacradi in these beverages.  EDUCATE YOUR CHILDREN!

Marketing is pretty much the denominating factor, TV especially.  What I've been most appreciative of as of late is the PBR (Pabst Blue Ribbon) trend.  This trend began in Portland Oregon with bike messengers, and then made it's way through the underground, to Pabst's astonishment!  The fact that consumers can create a market is really good news, in all areas of our American life!

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interesting stuff in the latter part of this thread. a few things of note (full disclosure, I work in the bev alc business for some of the brands mentioned above):

- Anheuser Busch has strongly started marketing "beer cocktails". yes, cocktails made with beer. can't link to it here, but go to www.budweisier.com, then click "beer", then "innovation". there are four recipes. a couple are technically probably "shandies". and a few call for liqueur. interesting...or gross...or desperate. or all of the above

- yes, PBR started "underground", but not much of it was "to Pabst's astonishment". that was one of the most well-orchestrated marketing campaigns in beer in a long time. PBR has been running this marketing program for a while.

- re: "educate your children" about malt beverages not having spirits in them. not sure what the point is here...that your children should know they aren't drinking the hard stuff? more to the point, i think we should make sure children aren't drinking. period.

- finally...sake. we will see sake growing. and we will see it both in the higher end (as a wine replacement) and at a mainstream level (in use for cocktails). Both of these, to me, are valid and exciting.

that's my rant

[slkinsey]

An email just landed in my inbox from my friends at the Distilled Spirits Council of the Uniuted States with their take on the "Nation's Top Five Cocktail Trends," which they have as:

• Super-premium spirits (this category grew by 23% in revenue to $566 million in 2005)
  
• More vegetable, fruit, herb and flower garnishes as visual appeal becomes increasingly important
  
• Fresh is best, as the emphasis swings back not only to fresh citrus juices but extends to house made syrups, homemade bitters, and in-house infusions
  
• Muddling makes a comeback, as practically every bartender worth his salt knows his way around a this technique that was all but unknown a decade ago
  
• Flights of spirits and flights of cocktails are gaining popularity.
  

[jlo mein]

Interesting what forum searching brings up. I wonder if anyone has comments on what has happened (and hasn't) this past year.

Perhaps a new thread should be started as well with predictions for 2007.

[slkinsey]

My predictions were that rye and rhum agricole would be significant trends in the cocktails community. That's absolutely happened with respect to rye, and to a lesser extent with respect to rhum agricole.

I'm glad to see that applejack appears to be making significant inroads into the cocktailian psyche, as I had hoped, and Laird's bonded is now available for sale in NYC.

Bitters also seems to be starting a minor explosion in the second half of 2006, with many new brands and types available commercially as well as lots of people experimenting on their own.

All in all, I'm pretty happy with how my predictions turned out.