Drinks – Page 5 – Keep It Overproof!

Diageo launches first ad campaign for non-alcoholic ‘spirit’ brand Seedlip

Drinks giant Diageo is preparing to unveil its first advertising campaign for non-alcoholic ‘spirit’ brand Seedlip. It’s the first time Diageo has set up a campaign for Seedlip, after upping its investment in the business to a ‘significant’ majority stake in August 2019. The campaign, which will launch on 13 January in London and Manchester, will appear across rail, underground, buses, billboards and digital. Developed by Seedlip’s EU marketing director Ben Thomson alongside Creative agency And Rising, the campaign features the strapline ‘Drink to...

Top 10 food and drink trends for 2020

Posted in Beer, Spirits, Wine.

Zero waste restaurants Silo in Hackney claims to be the world’s first zero waste restaurant Last year saw the rise of the closed-loop cocktail, with bartenders like Duck & Waffle’s Rich Woods and Dandelyan’s Ryan Chetiyawardana making use of ingredients most chefs and bartenders would throw away, from avocado stones and burnt toast to lemon husks. Cub champions closed-loop cocktails This year chefs will be following their zero waste lead in a movement pioneered in the UK by Doug McMaster, head chef of Silo in Hackney, which markets itself as the world’s first zero...

12 London restaurant openings to watch in 2020

Posted in Beer, Spirits, Wine.

Oklava Bakery + Wine Selin Kiazim and Laura Christie are turning their Turkish Cypriot restaurant Kyseri in Fitzrovia into a bakery by day and wine bar by night, which is set to open in January. Located on Grafton Way in Fitzrovia, Oklava Bakery + Wine will feature the kitchen and bakery at the front of the venue, alongside a shop and takeaway kiosk. Open from breakfast until dinner, the site will serve quality coffee and a plethora of pastries with a Turkish-Cypriot twist. Among the yeasty treats on offer will be simit – a bagel topped with sesame seeds; börek pastries with a variety...

The week in pictures

Posted in Beer, Spirits, Wine.

In New Year’s Eve Parties to end them all, Nikki Beach on the Caribbean island of St Barth hosted its annual New Year’s Eve celebration, this time inspired by chateau chic meets punk rock. This year’s theme –“Rocking The Palace” –saw guests dancing away to a Queen-influenced show from Visionair, masterminded by DJ Kygo, who holds the record as the fastest artist to reach one billion streams on Spotify, and has worked with major artists including Rita Ora, Selena Gomez, John Legend and, posthumously, Whitney Houston for the chart-breaking hit remix of...

Vinexpo CEO: ‘If we don’t do anything then in five years’ time we are dead’

Posted in Beer, Spirits, Wine.

Facing competition from the likes of ProWein, Vinexpo has to battle to keep its premium position in the world of wine fairs. But new CEO Rodolphe Lameyse is relishing the challenge of revamping the brand, he tells Patrick Schmitt MW. Even seemingly timeless labels must adapt to survive. If you are not convinced, then consider historic motoring marque Volkswagen’s current reinvention as Volts-wagen in response to Tesla taking the electric car mainstream; or toy-making leviathan Lego’s move into movies to enhance its appeal to a new generation of children. These brands may appear...

Six new ways to become a wine, beer or spirits expert in 2020

Posted in Beer, Spirits, Wine.

We’ve rounded up some of the latest courses to launch in the wine, beer and spirits worlds you might want to consider if you’re looking to broaden your horizons in 2020. Do you fancy yourself as a beer sommelier, or want to learn more about the mysterious world of Scotch whisky? Drinks education is bigger business than ever. The Wine and Spirit Education Trust (WSET) celebrated its 50th anniversary this year, and has now awarded over 500,000 of its qualifications since 1969. But as the craft spirits and beer markets have expanded in recent years, it is now possible to learn about...

‘The definitive Christmas present for wine lovers’ recreated

Posted in Beer, Spirits, Wine.

A new book called In Vino Veritas “is the recreation of the definite Christmas present for anyone who loved wine when I was in my 20s,” according to wine writer Steven Spurrier. Published by The Académie du Vin Library, the book, which has been edited by Susan Keevil, is inspired by Cyril Ray’s The Compleat Imbiber – a guide first published in 1957, and one that prompted Spurrier to make the remark. Spurrier, who founded the Académie du Vin Library, described this latest book from the business as “my baby”, adding that In Vino Veritas would be “launching onto the worldwide market something...

Fine wine predictions for 2020

Posted in Beer, Spirits, Wine.

What could be in store for the fine wine market in 2020? A natural uprising? An Italian renaissance? Is 2019 Bordeaux already in trouble? Will South American labels benefit from anti-EU tariffs? Our recent publication of the Power 100 list (aka the ‘Power Rankings’) and Liv-ex’s own end of year report have examined a number of trends in the secondary market. Many are continuing trends but some are really starting to accelerate. The broadening of the market has been happening for a while but it really stepped up a gear in 2019 with 6,367 wines traded on the Liv-ex Exchange from 995 brands. Bordeaux...

Top 10 drinks trends in the US on-trade for 2020

Posted in Beer, Spirits, Wine.

The low to no alcohol trend will expand Non-alcoholic ‘spirit’ brand Seedlip’s Mr McGregor cocktail In the coming year, expect to see an increase in ‘spirits’ with no alcohol in the US, with a greater variation in products to appeal to different drinkers. On-premise creativity will continue to fuel alcohol-free cocktail menus and bars across the country. The rising popularity of drinks like spritz-based cocktails has helped this category grow. New takes on classic drinks may emerge, highlighting the emergence of low-alcohol Sherries, vermouths and saké options.

The biggest drinks acquisitions of 2019

Posted in Beer, Spirits, Wine.

As 2019 draws to a close, we round up a year of acquisitions which has seen two prominent British brewers snapped up by foreign investors, Constellation Brands agree a wine sale worth over US$1 billion, and the break-up of retailers Naked Wines and Majestic. Constellation Brands has certainly been one of the most active in the acquisitions scene this year, taking both majority and minority stakes in a number of companies. Its sale of just under 30 wine brands to E&J Gallo, however, was one of the biggest in the drinks industry this year. In the UK, if 2018 was the year of the Conviviality...

Tag: Drinks