A tonic for the gin market

marketing and communications specialist

There was a time when the young and trendy could see no further than New Zealand’s burgeoning wine industry, and a tot of gin, vodka or brandy was considered old school. Somehow it was acceptable to drink bottles of wine and beer, but when I suggested something from the top shelf, eyebrows were raised. But finally I’m on-trend.

What’s been called the ‘‘ginaissance’’ has swept the Western World, where small distilleries have popped up far and wide. So much so that bottle stores now showcase walls of gin flavours with asking prices of between $50 and $100 a bottle.

Sold-out events like the Gindulgence Gin Festival in Wellington last week demonstrated how to have fun tasting and mixing spirits without ‘‘boozing’’. ‘‘Gincredible’’ is in Tauranga in March.

It’s not just gin that’s made a comeback. Sales of all sorts of spirits are up.

Three key things have happened: the transformation of old products, an intense rebranding and repositioning of old drinks, and a massive drive to educate consumers and frontline staff on new drink combinations. Included in this change is the very welcome creation of sophisticated new non-alcoholic drinks, designed to be paired specifically with the new flavours.

At the end of a hot day last week I walked into a cafe to see a whiteboard full of ‘‘summer spritzers’’ with an almost defunct drink – Aperol – in most recipes. This flame-red Italian drink has taken the summer market by storm, a lot of it due to Instagram. Its makers, Campari America, saw how beautiful it looked in the sun and actively encouraged Instagram chatter, including creating instructional videos on how to make an Aperol spritzer for maximum taste and beauty.

The ‘‘Aperol Brunch Society’’ was created, asking people to upload Instagram videos explaining why they should be the ‘‘chief brunch officer’’. Campari believes Aperol spritzers may be the most Instagrammed drinks yet, and sales increased a whopping 45 per cent.

Tequila’s been transformed too. Traditionally, the drink of Mexicans and party girls, it was considered anything but premium until the promotion of ‘‘sipping tequila’’ and, voila, it’s now acceptable for the discerning.

Marketers are running conferences and courses to promote new ways to serve old drinks, and even the art of ‘‘throwing’’ cocktails – think Tom Cruise – to mix them has made a comeback.

The gin market has been so popular that many say it can’t go on, but I disagree. As we see new liquids, there will be new regions producing it, and different consumers being targeted. With so many gins and so little time for us consumers, marketers say they’re under pressure to provide something unique that cuts through the ‘‘gin noise’’.

So, they’ve come up with more wacky ideas: savoury gins that use watercress, lavender and coriander; another with basil; the Christmas gin with an entire gingerbread house as an ingredient; and even one claiming to be made from powdered unicorn horn.

Trendy pink gin is mainstream now; they’ve launched colour-changing gins like British Rose, which transforms from pale gold to bright fuchsia when tonic is added, and British Lavender, which changes from purple to pink.

We could wax on about the evils of alcohol, but this move toward quality drinking over quantity is good fun. Marketers and spirit producers are clearly enjoying being creative with their products and we can too, in moderation, with little harm done, except to our wallets.

If it helps to create a sophisticated approach to drinking in New Zealand – I’d drink to that.