With dry January done and dusted, it’s time to enter February with a drink or two, and what a better time to explore the new and upcoming cocktails of 2022.
The cocktail scene is forever changing to keep drinkers happy with an ‘out with the old and in with the new’ mindset.
For all the cocktail lovers out there that want to stay up to date with the top concoctions of the year, this is the perfect guide for you.
Rum makes a comeback
Rum has fallen off the radar over the last couple of years, but it is rumoured to be the next big spirit.
Back and better than ever, rum can make a variety of cocktails that will be hot on the market with new and exciting twists to drinks such as the Mai Tai and Reggae Rum Punch.
The classic mojito cocktail is set to smash records with producers making this drink more appealing to a younger audience.
Creativity
There is no escaping the popular demand for cocktails with drinks and bars all over social media.
Oscar Powell, 22, who works at Bierkeller, Nottingham talks about how the way drinks are presented rather than how they taste is an ever prominent trend for the year.
He said: “Cocktails are turning more to looks than flavours more so than ever.
“I worked in a fancy bar before bierkeller and our most popular cocktail was served with foam and a floating rubber duck which looked appealing but in fact tasted like bath water!”
Talking about upcoming trends, he said: “The trending cocktails are always going to be the classics such as mojitos, pornstar martinis and long island teas.
“However, what is new is what bars are doing with these drinks such as adding new ingredients, this adds a different flavour to the drinks which makes them stand out and means they’ll never lose their top spot.”
Tequilas time to shine
Tequila is slowly making its way to become the star of cocktail ingredients and this will only grow over the next 12 months.
The versatile sweet but smoky, earthly taste to tequila gives the opportunity for this spirit to be in a wide range of drinks from the old school tequila sunrise to the new sparkly paloma and french kiss drink.
New celebrity attention in this field such as Kendall Jenner’s 818 range helps to puts this drink out there.
Gin and bear it
Gin has been the ‘it’ drink over recent years, and its really made its debut in the cocktail world and this won’t be changing anytime soon.
Cocktails such as martinis and sloe gin cocktails rely solely on the gin ingredient to provide the flavouring which explains why it remains a favourite on the menu.
With strangers in the gin field such as the clover club making a comeback across cocktail bars there really is no stopping this spirit.
Wild Card
Through lockdown, people set up there own drinking stations at home which saw them mix an array of drinks together to create there version of a cocktail.
Cocktail bars across Nottingham have taking this on board by adding more adventurous drinks to their selection.
Pitcher and Piano in Nottingham have added a twist to a classic drink through the Passionfruit Margarita, a mixture of el jimador silver tequila, Cointreau, mango & passion fruit juice, passion fruit syrup, lime juice and a citrus filled bubble.
The Alchemist in King Street showcases the Dead Red Zombie leading with Bacardi carta Blanca rum mixed with wray & nephew, grand mariner, lime, pineapple, cranberry, zombie mix and smoke.
Nottingham’s underground bar Coco Tang hosts much loved drink Rapa Nui, a cocktail inspired by Easter island with Tanqueray gin, chartreuse yellow and Aperol topped with a white chocolate and activated charcoal head.
After a month of staying away from the drink, it is time to hit the town and try some new drinks you may have never tried before!
