For the 10th time in Brands Report history Tanqueray has been named the bestselling gin. Since 2013 Diageo’s flagship gin hasn’t left the top two and this year it was the number one choice in 30% of our polled bars – almost twice that of both Beefeater and Bombay. Gin’s role in many classic cocktails makes it one of the most competitive of all the rankings in the Brands Report. The big volumes also mean it’s a category for the major players, with all bar one of the brands belonging to a major spirits conglomerate – the unicorn being Boatyard, which continues to win over the hearts of bartenders even in its infancy.

Arguably the biggest headline is the omission of Monkey 47 for the first time since it entered the list in 2014. The Pernod Ricard brand has been steadily dropping down the top 10 in recent years and missed out by a single point in the weighted system, making a return in 2027 achievable.

How we did it

The Brands Report has been released every January for the past 16 years and aims to provide data analytics into the buying habits of consumers in the world’s best bars.

To collect the data, we first curate a sample of industry-acclaimed bars from a combination of The World’s 50 Best Bars and its regional North America and Asia lists.

In order to ensure the best global coverage, about 5% of the poll were ‘editor’s picks’ – highly rated bars in regions less represented to assure a truly global data pool reflective of the current bar industry. Each year the panel rotates to ensure a fair and accurate set of results.

As part of the survey, we ask each bar owner or head bartender to dig out their sales spreadsheets and rank the three bestselling products in each spirits category, as well as beer, champagne and mixers. The bestselling list is based on hard data, while top trending is more subjective – the brand which isn’t necessarily shifting big volumes but is seen as in vogue by each bar. Often, the brands that figure highly in the trending list move on to the bestselling list the following year, as curiosity and excitement transition to weight of sales.

We also ask our poll to declare the house pour in some of the world’s bestselling classic cocktails. The drinks are chosen to specifically represent major spirits categories and are generally big hitters in the Cocktail Report’s list of the 50 bestselling classic cocktails, due to launch in spring.

To view the page-turner edition of the Brands Report click here.

The Brands Report will be serialised on drinksint.com throughout January.