Liqueurs: Twist the classics

As consumers demand more from their cocktails, Clinton Cawood sees doors opening for liqueurs to make their mark on drinkers’ palates

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IF YOU’RE LOOKING for history, heritage and classic cocktail credentials, the liqueurs category can be just as good a place to look as many other spirit sectors.

On the other hand, if cutting edge and exciting is what you’re after, there’s some pretty cool stuff happening here at the sugary end of the spectrum too, with renewed focus on ingredients and provenance, as well as a keen eye for consumer trends. Compared to just a few years ago, iconic and venerable liqueurs brands now have a number of younger, edgier competitors. It’s a new world out there for these established classics that couldn’t be blamed for having become a little complacent over the decades.

In terms of sales, the overall liqueurs market is beginning to reverse the downward trends of the past few years, and with more promising improvements in value than volume. According to the IWSR, global volumes decreased by 2.5% CAGR between 2012 and 2017, recovering to just a 0.5% drop between 2016 and 2017. Value, meanwhile, fell 2.9% between 2012 and 2017, yet between 2016 and 2017 sales grew by 2.8%.

So there’s light for liqueurs overall. But can the big players maintain their position in this modern landscape, amid a constant stream of new and lively liqueurs?

COCKTAIL SCENE

Cocktails are arguably more important for the liqueurs category than for most other spirits, and one of the strongest weapons in the arsenals of many classic liqueurs brands is their association with certain classic cocktails.

This is certainly the case for Luxardo Maraschino. “More people are trying cocktails such as the Martinez and the Last Word, in which Luxardo Maraschino is an essential ingredient,” says Luxardo global brand ambassador Gareth Franklin. “The rise in interest in authentic classic cocktails is extending to more and more contemporary style bars too,” he adds.

Similarly, the Amaretto Sour is important for Disaronno, whose on-trade marketing manager at Illva Saronno, Gemma Monaghan, points out that the drink is currently at number two in the Difford’s Guide Top 100 Cocktails. “The Disaronno Sour is the brand’s signature serve, so this is great news,” she says.

Cointreau, meanwhile, has been taking full advantage of the consistent popularity of the Margarita, recently launching a campaign entitled Margarita Loves Cointreau to mark what it reckons is the 70th anniversary of the cocktail. It brought Mexican-themed events to various markets as part of the campaign, with cocktail masterclasses and more. The brand’s Art of the Mix campaign this year extended this association to the many other classics that it’s featured in, complete with an entirely new brand identity.

It doesn’t have to end at classic cocktails though, and a number of big liqueurs brands are making use of classic twists and contemporary cocktails to ensure that they remain relevant and in consumers’ glasses. Grand Marnier, for example, promotes its Grand Collins, a twist on the Tom Collins, and the Grand 75, a riff on the French 75.

Tia Maria, too, isn’t putting everything behind the massive popularity of the Espresso Martini at the moment. “Classic coffee liqueur cocktails such as the Espresso Martini continue to grow in popularity and other serves such as the Irish Coffee and White Russian are returning to cocktail menus,” says Illva Saronno’s Monaghan. “We now offer cocktail lovers a variety of innovative serves, such as the Tia Flat White Russian and Tia Iced Popcorn Frappé.”

Luxardo isn’t merely relying on its association with a number of classics either. “We have been successfully introducing the Fresco, which is a long drink mix of Luxardo Maraschino, tonic water, lemon juice with a cucumber slice, fresh rosemary and a spray of absinthe,” says Franklin.

St-Germain might have only been launched in 2007, but it has earned the right to be considered a modern classic, primarily by focusing on cocktails and the on-trade. As global brand ambassador Camille Ralph Vidal puts it: “St-Germain was created for bartenders to be the most versatile ingredient for them to express their creativity. Supporting bartenders and their talent has been our focus from the start and still is to this day.”

The Teichenné range of liqueurs, with history dating back to the 19th century, has its place in the world of contemporary cocktails, says Thomas Bennett, trade marketing controller at Global Brands. “As the cocktail category grows, consumers are demanding more innovation than ever before, so cocktails provide the perfect stage on which to develop new creations,” he says. “We understand how it’s not solely the ingredients that create memorable cocktails, but the theatre of serve, flavour combinations and techniques used from start to finish.”

SIMPLER SERVES

For liqueurs brands old and new, it doesn’t have to be all about complicated cocktails when there’s a far more straightforward trend to tap into – tonic. Rising interest in tonic serves, for Monaghan, is the result of the growth of both the premium mixer and gin categories. “I think more and more people are exploring the different options that the delicious quinine flavour can offer. We tapped into this trend with our popular Tia & Tonic serve,” she says.

For Chartreuse, being served with tonic isn’t anything new in its native France, where it’s otherwise usually consumed neat. But Chartreuse & Tonic could be seen more frequently in other markets soon, where it’s most often considered a cocktail ingredient. “It’s something I’ve been trying to introduce, like in spring and summer this year, to get people to make more refreshing Chartreuse Highballs,” says UK brand ambassador Jenny Griffiths. “Obviously Gin & Tonics are the mainstay of most bars now, so we’re tapping into that market a little bit. And Chartreuse has similarities with some gins too.”

Tonic isn’t the only consumer trend working in favour of classic liqueurs, or liqueurs in general. Provenance can play an important role. “Over the past year both French spirits and cognac have seen a rise in popularity in a wider, younger, more mainstream audience. This is great news for us given the fact that Grand Marnier is obviously French but also a blend of 51% cognac,” says Nick Williamson, marketing director at Campari UK. “Older millennials are also beginning to align themselves more with brands that have an authentic story and rich heritage,” he adds.

Then there’s the growing consumer demand for low-abv cocktails, which St-Germain’s Vidal sees as a positive. “Spritzes are on every table and this is great for the brand, as St-Germain is low abv and makes a delicious spritz à la Française,” she says.

Similarly, interest in ingredients helps the brand, according to Vidal. “It’s a natural liqueur made with freshly handpicked elderflowers, with no artificial colouring or preservatives – these talk to today’s consumer.”

There’s a flipside to these health-conscious consumer trends, however, and they can present something of a challenge for liqueurs brands, making innovation all the more important. First and foremost among these is growing awareness of both sugar and alcohol consumption.

“It’s a difficult one,” admits Griffiths. “But because Chartreuse is such a potent flavour, people can incorporate it into drinks just by using a barspoon of it.”

Luxardo Maraschino is in a similar position, according to Franklin. “Maraschino has a most distinctive floral, grassy, fresh flavour, and is used in relatively small quantities, unlike some liqueurs which are designed more to add sweetness, texture or colour,” he says. “When it comes to a health perspective, we have been developing new cocktail recipes to reflect the trend in consumers seeking lower-abv cocktails and aperitivo serves which can be enjoyed from early until late.”

STRENGTH IN NUMBERS

Of the various factors – both positive and negative – impacting the liqueurs market, the influx of new products looks to be predominantly a force for good, even for established classic brands – reinvigorating the category and inspiring innovation.

“If anything it’s kind of given the category more awareness,” says Griffiths. “Because it’s such a broad spectrum of products with so many differences, the vast majority of people – consumers and bartenders alike – don’t necessarily have as much knowledge of liqueurs as they would of rum or tequila, for example. So people are starting to look at the story and history behind liqueurs, and that’s the biggest USP for Chartreuse.”

Monaghan, too, is optimistic. “The growth of the liqueurs category is great for all liqueur brands, and the growth of coffee liqueurs is obviously fantastic for Tia Maria,” she says.

For Franklin, there’s still something that separates the classics though. “We are in an era of product innovation. But alongside brilliant new creations there are many entrants that vary in quality and still need to prove themselves if they are going to be genuinely useful in a bartender’s line-up of essentials,” he says. “Classic products that have a track record of being made with integrity and pride will always have a place.”

The same way the passage of time made today’s classics what they are, it seems time will tell which will remain, and which trendy new releases will one day be held in the same regard.

GIN AND COFFEE LIQUEURS

When it comes to new additions to the liqueur market in recent years, two sub-categories stand out. There has been a steady stream of new gin liqueurs and coffee liqueurs – creative and often more premium takes on these classics, all competing for space on liqueur shelves and back bars. Both have their origins in some strong global drinks trends.

Fledgling gin liqueurs might not directly compete with any of the established liqueur names, but they’re certainly competing in the same space, joining sweet offerings from many of the major gin brands, as well as potentially taking on established light, botanical-led liqueurs. They’re a natural progression of the juniper-flavoured mania that’s been sweeping the globe over the past few years, and have emerged alongside fruit-flavoured gins, as well as the recent pink gin trend.

Many have been launched by UK gin producers small and large. The team behind Pinkster created Hedgepig towards the end of last year with Wild Bullace & Quince and Rampant Raspberry variants. In the US, new gin liqueurs include Pomp & Whimsey, launched at the start of 2018. Produced in Los Angeles, it’s made from a list of botanicals including exotic fruit and floral elements and has a pale pink hue.

On a somewhat larger scale, Greenall’s got in on the action earlier this year with a pair of gin liqueurs, namely Green Apple & Hibiscus and Blood Orange, Fig & Ginger. Their debut took the form of a travel retail exclusive. And if any further evidence of gin liqueurs’ mainstream popularity were needed, UK supermarket Aldi recently unveiled a passionfruit gin liqueur. The Infusionist has been created with Pornstar Martinis in mind.

Unlike new gin liqueurs, those entering the coffee liqueur market directly challenge some established names, and they’ve largely been doing this by communicating details about their production processes and ingredients. Both new and old are surfing a wave of growing interest in coffee, as well as a global surge in popularity for the Espresso Martini.

An early pioneer was Mr Black, putting its cold-brew coffee front and centre, and offering a serious trade up to established brands. There is no shortage of other new coffee liqueurs to choose from, including Conker, Cross Brew, and a sweet Espresso Vodka from UK distiller Chase.

All of this activity no doubt keeps established liqueur brands on their toes, bringing renewed interest to the liqueurs category overall, while directly responding to consumer trends.