One thing the travel and the food and beverage industry have in common is that there's always a bit of flavor and excitement right around the corner. In Q4 of 2022, we circled the world and explored some of India's best drinking influences in order to bring you the latest trends. What we found was that some options were familiar with just a slight twist on the colas we've grown to know and love, while others were bursting with flavors we never knew we needed. Let's dive into some of our findings.
Lemon Lime and Cola Must Haves
For fans of caffeinated sodas, cola and lime-flavored drinks are beverage flavors that we all love. Worldwide, they're the most popular beverage flavors and are easy to mix when you want to create new flavor innovations. The main difference between popular global cola flavors compared to the American equivalent is the light taste of caramel you'll find in each sip. With lemon beverages, you'll find that non-American options tend to be a bit more refreshing than Lemon Lime sodas in the US and often have an underlying water-like freshness without tasting watered down.
Refreshing Speakeasy Style Cocktails
Some nights deserve to be celebrated with a well-made cocktail, and there's no better option than the stylings of hard-to-define (yet easy-to-make) opportunities. Blending traditional flavors with enriched and unexpected flavors is an art that can be difficult to master. Fortunately, these cocktails are easy to make and are more than memorable.
Ho Se Boh (Hokkien for How Are You?)
Translating to the simple question, "How Are You?," a Ho Se Boh is a delicate drink packed with a sledgehammer of flavor. The drink is served chilled and has remnants of Sesame oil washed bourbon, Osmanthus syrup, galangal bitters, and angostura. Some stylings of the drink include a lager, cranberry juice, and spiced rum. However, the bourbon-made version is much richer in flavor.
Wood-O
Found at Thyme Bar in NYC, you can get a little tropical and warm up the atmosphere with a tasteful Wood-O. The drink blends Ayuuk Empirical, coconut, cappuccino, and tonic to create subtle hints of smokiness and earthy flavors.
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Cocktail Flavor Trends
Many of the trending drinks we found showcased a mixture of spicy, creamy, and smokey flavors. Consumers are still loving drinking culture and highly sought-after liquors, but they're pursuing options that include ingredients such as:
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Peppers
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Jasmine Tea
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Barley
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Black Tea Soda
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Roasted Pineapple (and other flamed fruits)
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Ginger and Ginseng
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Matcha
Of course, serving up drinks in stylish glassware can make almost as much of an impact as the drink itself. So, adding a little flare, a small flame, or a perfectly taboo yet memorable glass to drink from can keep customers coming back time and again for the experience as much as the flavorful trends. Many customers are looking for an experience and an opportunity to try something that defies the standards of what seemingly should pair together well.
Fortunately, many of the ingredients found in these new beverage trends are easy to find while making the drink unique in a way that's hard to identify. The New York City locations we explored to source these one-of-a-kind drinks had a monopoly on setting the standard for upcoming drinking trends and popular flavors.
Want to learn more about about our latest trends? Contact us here today!
