ACCESSIBLE SPICE

So, is the market ripe for some new serve suggestions? Though concertedly pushed for years and now made infinitely easier by the arrival of dedicated grapefruit flavoured mixers, there’s still a very low awareness of serves such as the Paloma. But where that serve takes a little explaining, flavour combinations such as lime and chilli, or mango and chilli absolutely do not. They are immediately understandable.

It's clear that consumer enthusiasm for all things either nostalgic or tropical is going to wane at some point; there’s only so many raspberry ripple ciders, or Eton mess liqueurs you can get through in one evening. And when they do, there’s going to be a vacancy.

Mexican-inspired flavours make a logical next step from the tropical trend, by adding a bit of spice, depth and different combinations to ingredients and lead flavours many are already purchasing, such as pineapple and mango. The tricky balancing act is going to be with branding. With many consumers already seeking premium Mexican products, anything that leans into regional design tropes in an overly cartoony or stereotypical way may not be taken overly seriously as a product with staying power. Sure, consumers still want to have fun. But new launches in this space need to lead on their big, bold, but authentically Mexican flavours first if they’re to get consumer buy-in.

THE NEXT BIG THING IN GIN?

French wine may be the ultimate category when it comes to credibility; there’s few who are unaware of its long-held reputation as a region that produces some of the best liquids and vintages available. But can that extend to French gins? A number of new brands hope it might.

What happened to all the tequilas? Skip back over the past few years and the booming agave category has been where most drinks-curious celebs have planted their investments. And it probably isn’t because they’re passionate about tequila. Cha-ching!

So it’s been curious to watch how over the past few weeks there’s been a plethora of celeb gin launches. Gin, surely not?