Top Spirit Brand Reps Predict What We’ll be Drinking this Year

By Chilled Magazine

We happily raise our glasses to the new year!

In the spirit of looking ahead, we thought we’d share insight from some of the top names in the industry on which trends will impact what, where, why, and how we will drink this year.  

Over the past few years, there has been an increasing demand for quality and natural ingredients in cocktails, plus a constant focus on Low- and No-ABV options, sustainability, and more.  

 

According to the experts at Bacardi Limited’s 2022 Trends Reporta few of these hottest trends will continue with more on sober-curiousness and sustainability. Along with premium ingredients in drinks, consumers committed to zero-waste cocktails and eco-friendly brands. The brand also predicts that the Mojito will be the IT drink this year, along with the Margarita, Gin & Tonic, Pina Colada, and Vodka Soda. Another continuing hot trend? E-commerce. With more than 65% of consumers using online services to purchase spirits and cocktail-making kits.  

Dan Lasner, founder and president of Worldwide Libations predicts, “It’s clear that consumers are purchasing premium products and want quality over price.  We see the whiskey category continuing to grow in 2022 and foresee a high growth potential for premiumization of brands. For this reason, we entered the category in 2021 with The Covered Bridges Whiskey Company’s introduction of Ruddell’s Mill.  This brand is focused on small batch and limited release productions. We first started with a Kentucky Straight Bourbon followed by a Kentucky Straight Rye Whiskey.  Ruddell’s Mill is the first in a series of American whiskies that will engage consumers in the story and the category.” 

Jenny Manger, marketing director for Marussia Beverages, USA, adds, “New developments in packaging, I think, will be huge in 2022—sustainable but also lighter weight-wise. I foresee these changes happening not just for environmental reasons but also to alleviate some of the issues in our current supply chain. The lack of certain dry goods and the cost of shipping will push brands to think out of the box. Then beyond packaging, sustainability made liquors will be coming to the forefront in 2022. Brands will continue to make strides in producing liquor from start to finish using ground-breaking production and agriculture means. We see this already happening with Koskenkorva Vodka and its new Climate Action Vodka, which we are hoping to bring into the USA this spring.  

Daniel and Christine Cooney, owners of Heavenly Spirits say, “Some of the spirit trends we are keeping an eye on are exotic gin flavors like Yuzu citrus (Yu Gin), and fucus algae (Retha Gin). These tasty trends prove there is much more to great gin than juniper berries. Another noticeable trend that whisky lovers should keep an eye on, is in fact French whisky, which is perhaps the fastest growing segment developing in the whisky world—from only one producer 30 years ago to over one hundred today. Things are happening quickly there, in a country that is a world leader in whisky consumption and spirit production. Organic spirits, especially in the French brandy category are really proving to be an increasingly desirable alternative as a younger, more informed demographic comes of age. Heavenly Spirits imports some of the leading organic French spirits including: DuPeyrat Cognac, Claque Pepin CalvadosArmorik Single Malt Whisky, and Artez BasArmagnac.” 

As Heavenly’s design and marketing director, Dan predicts spirit label makeovers. “As far as packaging trends go, some of our high-end French spirits have been getting modern packaging makeovers, making for cleaner, more informative labeling. A good example comes from the oldest house in Armagnac, Dartigalongue who just introduced a new line of younger, cocktail-oriented Armagnacs.” 

 

Looking ahead to 2022, Scott Jove, vice president of sales and marketing at Shaw-Ross, concludes, “I expect the premiumization trend will continue across all spirit categories. Tequila will continue to accelerate especially at the high end with ultra-premium sipping tequila remaining in high demand, while flavored and infused tequila will continue to emerge as a strong sub-category. Aged rum is another category that we are excited about, as craft producers continue to innovate with different maturation and finishing techniques that are appreciated by the trade and consumers alike.”

 

 


 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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