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CoCkTail’s FuTureWhat’s next for america’s drinkers? By Jack Robertiello

It’s impossible to overstate the popularity of the cocktail today.

Every magazine and newspaper, it seems, features regular coverage of beverage trends and local mixology stars. Drink websites blossom and flourish, cocktail-making classes sell out and, with feverish enthusiasm, mixologists continue to mine the old, explore the new and invent any-thing they can’t find to make amazing drinks.

From top left: Jackson Cannon, bar manager, Eastern Standard Kitchen & Drinks in Boston and their “Alpine” cocktail; Neyah White, head bartender at

San Francisco’s Nopa and their “Sherry Shrub” cocktail

With spirits being introduced in the U.S. at an unprecedented rate and pre-Prohibition drinks spreading beyond the major cocktail markets, it’s hard to pin down what’s next. Just ask cocktail sooth-sayer Gary Regan.

“I am not exactly sure which direction cocktails will head into in 2009, and that’s probably because I believe that they will continue to grow in every which way,” he says. Regan, who’s long followed drinks for the San Francisco Chronicle and ArdentSpirits.com and

has developed the Worldwide Bartender Database, says the ubiquity of fancy drinks and consumer interest is pushing bartenders to fur-ther experimentation.

“We’ll see more and more twists on the classics, bartenders will create their own bitters, tinctures and marigold-infused sweet and dry vermouth or some such thing, and they’ll create drinks that we can’t even dream about making at home. They will push the envelope far too far, and that’s what I think has to happen next in

WhaT To WaTCh For iN 2009

order for us to fi nd a level at which to operate,” he continues.As Regan suggests, tracking the latest developments can be a dizzy-

ing endeavor, but there are two general areas on which contemporary cocktail advocates are focusing with laser intensity: a closer attention to ingredient selection and the development of diverse philosophical approaches, based on regional differences and trends.

Meanwhile, bartenders are relishing the attention they’re getting, and putting it to good use. “There’s this general sense that this cock-tail thing has penetrated the mainstream,” says Jackson Cannon, bar manager of the celebrated cocktail spot Eastern Standard Kitchen & Drinks in Boston. “Now, the rank and fi le guest in our restaurant is very interested in our specialties. They’re not as quick to question the brands we use but are more interested in drinks with identity of the place.” This openness encourages Cannon and others to create drinks that may recently have been considered too off-beat or challenging for the average customer to accept.

As customer knowledge increases, bar staffs are trying to keep up, says Neyah White, head bartender at San Francisco’s Nopa. “If you want to have a serious bar program, a huge education component really is im-portant. You have to be able to talk about the spirits, but also the drinks, because at every place, it seems, the drinks are all new. People are taking risks, and the guests that get it, really get it and are proud of knowing the ingredients and details about distilleries.”

A Cocktail List That Stands OutWith this consumer openness and knowledge in the background, and an increasing competition to stand out in a crowded cocktail fi eld, bars and restaurants are staking out territory with a mix of the old and new. The so-called classic cocktail is now fi rmly established as a bar necessity, and bartenders are continuing to mine the pre-Prohibition era for old/new ideas: for instance, punch has quickly evolved from a quirky concept to a niche service style. At the Clover Club in Brooklyn, in just one example, punches are made for groups of three or more and served in bowls com-ing from owner Julie Reiner’s private collection. Other, slightly more diffi cult drinks, like shrubs, which employ fl avored vinegars, are also fi nding favor.

“It begins and ends with the guest and what they will accept,” says Cannon. “The list of what’s considered exotic is shrinking.”

Savory spirits:Gin has become the bartender’s best friend once again, and its fl avor spectrum is being expanded by both big and small companies. Now, once again, Dutch-style Genever (from Bols) is widely available in the U.S., and bartenders are starting to turn away from even high-grade sweet spirits, looking to the savory side for inspiration. Rye, less sweet and spicier than most bourbons, has already benefi ted from this trend, and even vermouth makers, like Noilly Prat, are returning to traditional recipes.

Value cocktails:Is the $12 cocktail on life support yet? As the economy teeters, some restaurants are trying to bolster sales and build traffi c with smaller or less expensive cocktails. Amidst the fl ood of spirits are numerous value brands, especially among bourbons and vodkas, that are making their way to the well to replace the super-premiums or at least become an essential part of the back bar. Look for more.

Nutriceutical cocktails:At NYC’s Apotheke, mixologist Albert Trummer lists drinks boasting the ability to stimulate, calm, or otherwise affect one’s mood, much like the vitamin and nutrient-enhanced bottled waters and teas so popular today. Apothecary in Philadelphia does much the same, using essences,

tinctures, medicinal herbs and other non-traditional bar ingredients to add more than fl avor to a drink.

Do-It-Yourself cocktails:Look for more bars involving customers in the drink crafting. At Copa d’Oro in Los Angeles, guests peruse ingredients at the bar or refer to a daily menu listing available spirits, herbs, fruits and vegetables, and can mix and match to make their own concoction or ask a bartender for collaborative suggestions.

Cordials with less sweetness:Producers of some well-known liqueurs use different formulas when making products for the U.S. market, generally sweeter and with lower alcohol. Bartenders who travel internationally often return with a few bottles of stronger and intensely fruity liqueurs and have been pushing companies to bring better liqueurs here. A number of small producers are readying some superior ones for entry soon.

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Apotheke, NYC

Martini glass lineup and restaurant diners at Mint/820 in Portland, OR

An increased interest in fresh ingre-dients and the simultaneous explosion of South American produce in the U.S. has allowed operators to introduce drinks made with kumquats, gooseberries, lime leaves and other “once impossible ingredi-ents,” says director of mixology for South-ern Wine & Spirits, Francesco Lafranconi. Even chain restaurants are experimenting with switching to fresh ingredients when possible, a challenge for multi-unit, na-tionwide operations.

“Having something seasonal or occa-sional as in limited-time-offer fashion in the menu grabs customers’ attention, and it’s also a great promotion,” says Yuri Kato of Cocktailtimes.com. “San Francisco or New York is ahead of the game in terms of offering cocktails prepared with seasonal produce.”

Beyond more fresh and seasonal ingre-dients, bartenders are adopting an increas-

ingly broader range of spirits for their drinks. To make more room on the back bar, opera-tions stocking dozens of vodkas, especially in times of economic belt tightening, are shrinking that inventory as they pick and choose among all the new liquors available.

“There will be even more premium spirits, but now with perhaps a touch more thought-ful decision-making regarding quality and value versus flamboyant and superfluous,” notes Steve Olson, wine and spirits consul-tant and one of the founders of the Beverage Alcohol Resource training program.

the next big spiritAs vodka becomes less popular as an ingre-dient in cocktail-focused, stand-alone op-erations, bartenders there will be focusing on cocktails made with whiskey (especially

Mixologists will pay even closer attention to ingredient selection and the development of diverse philosophical approaches this year.

TheCoCkTail’sFuTure

Astringent bitterness:Some contemporary bartenders who like to tinker and experiment to recreate extinct bitters or develop their own creations seem to fall in love with their own products and end up serving potions as unpleasant as a witch’s brew. Customers may feel too intimidated to say anything, but they will eventually turn away from bars where bitter is the new sweet.

Fruit bombs:Appletinis, Cosmopolitans and other overly sweet drinks seem to have peaked in popularity, as cocktails with flavor profiles balanced among tart, sweet, bitter and salty gain advocates and fans daily. The return to classic and pre-Prohibition drinks has given birth to a new generation of drinkers.

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Big vodka:There will be increasing pressure on mass market vodkas from the on-premise, especially as bars and restaurants look to shrink overly large inventories, make room on the back bar for newer, more modern spirits. Cost-cutting might help, but no one wants to go there. Yet.

Excessively large glassware:In the early part of the decade, bars started serving customers large and expensive drinks looking to build check averages. But the drinks warm quickly and are often too sweet for contemporary tastes. Look for more modest-sized glasses like the coupe.

Extreme cocktail-making:Some popular techniques – like fat-washing or ingredient smoking – can add remarkable depth and character to drinks. But foams, gels and other enhancements often seem gimmicky and add little to a customer’s enjoyment, and the bars and restaurants that don’t focus on the customer in 2009 won’t be around in 2010.

Apothecary bar & lounge in Philadelphia

rye), gin, aged rums and tequila. Pisco is of-ten seen as the next big spirit, and this year is no exception, says Derek Brown, bar man-ager and consultant at Washington, D.C.’s The Gibson. “People have predicted that before but I’ve seen a rise in the number of bars carrying pisco and bartenders that can execute a pisco sour. Some even have two.” Yuerba Buena in New York now offers four pisco-based cocktails – the Pisco Sour, Pisco Punch, Pisco Guava and Pisco Yerba Maté.

Mezcal and shochu are also cited as spir-its on the verge of serious growth, and sherry, bolstered by an annual cocktail competition supported by the region’s producers that has attracted some of the country’s best bartend-ers, is getting greater play in new drinks as well. “I think the nation’s top mixologists will continue to experiment with less-known foreign beverage alcohol products including shochu, pisco and even Japanese whisky,” says Kato. “I think having global knowledge or experience as a mixologist is an important thing for them.”

Still, vodka pays a lot of bills, and Can-non thinks a reverse vodka backlash may be coming. “We’ve done so much work on the young generation, talking to them about gin and whiskey, that many of them are at a loss on how to work with vodka. I actually think you’ll see some really serious mixologists try to hit classic styles of vodka in cocktails.”

Look for more drinks with locally sourced ingredients, following the culinary

“locavore” movement, as well as more em-phasis on organic spirits and those made by micro-distillers. “They are becoming more mainstream and customers are more familiar with organic brands like Square One vodka and Four Copas tequila, and they sell pretty

well on menus,” says Brown.Organic spirits have built some con-

sumer interest (see sidebar), but have gener-ally been available in limited supply. But as small niche distilleries get up and running, their brands are winning favor fast. “I’ve been asked to do a cocktail menu of drinks with spirits made in the Northeast. Fun-nily enough, I think I can now,” says Brown, whose offerings include a vodka made in Virginia, a gin from Philadelphia and New York whiskies.

Lafranconi helped create the drink menu now in place at Morton’s the Steak-house chain, where foams are used to finish drinks, but he says molecular mixology may have stalled as a movement, and thinks adapting eggs for use at major national chains is difficult, given concerns about liability. Still, other observers believe that in niche bars, cocktails using egg whites, like the “Ramos Gin Fizz”, are firmly en-trenched and even growing — as Cannon points out, even major spirit companies are sponsoring drink competitions incorporat-ing eggs as part of the mix.

Using ingredients like eggs may be part of the return to yesterday, but it’s also one

way bartenders are focusing more on the cu-linary and heightening the bar-kitchen rela-tionship, especially with pastry chefs. An-

other way is through flowers. Floral notes are the latest hot flavor profile, according to Danielle Eddy, spokesperson for the Distilled Spirits Council, who is seeing mixologists incorporate edible flowers, floral extracts, flower- based spirits, syrups and extracts as well as floral garnishes.

Bitters, especially housemade versions, are still on a roll, though some observers

predict a dialing back of the aggressively astringent drinks favored by many modern cocktail enthusiasts.

Customers are also seeking more so-phisticated non-alcohol cocktails, says Lucy Brennan, owner of Mint/820 in cocktail-mad Portland, OR. Brennan creates non-al-cohol versions of her seasonal cocktails, and her cocktail classes which feature them and all sorts of cocktails continue to sell out.

Olson and Lafranconi agree that small is

expect to see more exotic beverage alcohol products like shochu and pisco.

Bottom left: “Salad Days Sour” created by Derek Brown for The Gibson, Washington DC; “Bermuda Swizzle and Clover Club” cocktails (right) and interior from the Clover Club, Brooklyn, NY (below right)

TheCoCkTail’sFuTure

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green mindedBars and restaurant operators may be worrying about red ink, but customers are increasingly turning to the green.

A few outposts – like Counter in New York City’s East Village (above) – have catered to the growing interest in organic and vegetarian demands of customers. As more beers, wines and spirits arrive with the organic imprimatur, it is increasingly easy to build a bar program with all – or mostly all – organic ingredients.

Cafe Flora, one of Seattle’s favorite vegetarian and vegan restaurants, just launched its first cocktail program based on organic and sustainable products from local farms, nearly 100% vegan. Many of the innovative drinks are variations on classic favorites. Others are more current, featuring ingredients like prickly pear and fennel-infused vodka, tea-infused sweet vermouth and house-made ginger beer. The signature cocktails, priced at $8, include “Red Sky at Night” (prickly pear and fennel-infused light rum, house-made Ginger Beer) and the “Blueberry Cucumber Rickey” (gin, blueberry purée, soda water, cucumber and fresh lime juice.)

Cafe Flora’s not alone. Green vodka 360 is being used to make a number of cocktails. At the Pagoda in Houston, the “360 Eco-Teani” is topped with sweetened green tea, whereas at Blu Sushi in Ft. Myers, FL, Larry “Smokey” Genta created the “360 KoKo Drop”, with 360, a splash of Licor 43, a drop of DeKuyper Blue Curacao and organic coconut milk.

With the help of Tru Organic Spirits, the Mandarin Oriental in Miami launched an all-organic cocktail menu recently for the hotel’s restaurant, Azul and M Bar. The list includes the “Basil Melon” (Tru Organic Lemon Vodka, melon, lime, basil, grapefruit juice, simple syrup and seltzer) and “Mandarin Delight” (Tru Organic Vodka, cucumber juice, simple syrup and tonic).

TheCoCkTail’sFuTure

beautiful, and predict smaller portions than the current 12-ounce monsters, perhaps down to six- or seven- ounce glasses, not only because of aesthetics, but also due to concerns about over serving. In fact, many national chains and hotels are trying to promote drinks with lower alcohol content. At least one major chain is developing a three- to four- ounce cocktail to be served at certain times of the day.

Also coming: more recession-aware pricing. Consultant Tad Carducci, who with partner Paul Tanguay developed the drink menu at Apothecary in Philadelphia, introduced a “Recession Proof Menu” last October, installing $6 drinks on weeknights on a menu where standard drinks range from $10 to $14.

Among flavors and ingredients mentioned as hot for 2009, cu-cumber is still strong, with jalapeño, lychee, açai berry and agave frequently cited. Tea-based drinks and those using wine and wine-syrup are bubbling up, too, and Lafranconi is confident of the emergence of more beer-based cocktails using fruit lambics from Belgium or the coriander and citrus flavored weiss beers.

Whatever changes are next, one that is widely wished for is a greater acknowledgement that cocktails are not about the old days, or molecular mixology or even the correct way to drink. As Ol-son points out, warm, friendly service communicating pleasure that guests are coming out to drink in troubled economic times would be nice. Or as Regan says about the high-end tinkerers: “Some ex-periments will be disasters, and some will be magnificent. Above all, though, I’m hoping that bartenders will not forget that their true mission is not to serve cocktails, but to serve their guests.” n

among the flavors and ingredients mentioned as hot for 2009: jalapeno, lychee, açai berry and agave.

Bella cocktail at Mint/820 in Portland, OR