How we DRINK in 2022

IANS

The trends that have transformed several existing mindsets

THIS is predicted to be an amazing year for cocktail culture and creativity behind the bar along with new trends.

Kunal Patel, founder and director for Monika Enterprises shares his prediction for what’s going ahead in the industry.

Abv awareness

Lots of us drank a bit too much in 2020 and then dried out with exceptional zero-proof cocktails.

During the pandemic, lots of drinkers began to understand how alcohol really makes us feel, along with an increased awareness of the very human tendency to use booze as a coping mechanism.

Riding the agave boom

Tequila and mezcal are fuelling new spirit categories in the Indian market.

There are now “agave influenced” spirits on the market, including whiskey aged in tequila and mezcal casks and even agave vodka.

Premium brands

With a rise in home consumption during the pandemic, people relished more expensive brands of wine and spirits, and become accustomed to the taste.

Here to stay

Since last year, the pandemic has ushered in a new-found knowledge and fondness for cocktails and spirits. Nine out of 10 millennial drinkers (88%) enjoy cocktails when they socialise.

Cocktails have come a long way from being a ‘ladies’ drink. They are now enjoyed by all genders, within the age group of 18-45.

The straight drinks category, though, is still governed by mature drinkers and averages the age of 50, and is clearly gaining revolutionary momentum.

Quality conscious

It is demonstrated that by 2022, while 50% of the consumers would buy more of the same category of alcoholic beverages that they are consuming, 30% are expected to move to higher brands and 20% will spend on newer categories of alcohol.

Calorie-conscious

The “calorie-conscious drinkers” are a new subtype on the rise. Such drinkers have higher expectations than their ancestors and are trying to strike a balance between social and physiological cravings for alcohol consumption and the growing importance of body and mind health and support... Brands that can capitalise on this contradictory urge will gain market share.