Five Buzzy Beverage Trends for 2017

With the ready-to-drink (RTD) market segment on the rise, on-premise coffee and tea face some stiff competition, despite coffee houses clocking in $21.6 billion in sales last year.

According to Mintel, caffeine connoisseurs can expect to see innovative techniques, down-to-earth ingredients and buzzy alcoholic brews in coffee shops, which are trying to stay on top of the market.

1. Nitro coffee has hit the mainstream: Starbucks followed third wave coffee shops and RTD beverages in adding nitrogen to cold brew coffee in 2016, giving beverages a creamy mouthfeel.
2. Consumers worried about food waste and sustainability can try cascara, a caffeinated beverage made from the erstwhile discarded skins of coffee cherries with a slightly tart and bitter flavor that even Starbucks has jumped on for 2017.
3. Coffee beans’ journeys from harvest to cup is the focus of many third wave coffee houses. Some pay more attention to barrel-aging coffees to develop new flavors, while others highlight the fermentation process, with “aged” coffee resonating particularly well with consumers.
4. Millennials will take their drinks shaken, not stirred. Mintel reported one-third of 22 to 34-year-old consumers want to see more alcohol in their coffee houses in 2017 with cold brew coffee finding its way into complex cocktails.
5. Wellness fans have hopped on teas for their antioxidants and other functional benefits. Over one-third of Generation Zers would pay more for coffee and tea with health benefits, letting beverages such as matcha and kombucha take the stage.

Source: Mintel