We're Calling It—This Is 2024's Drink Of The Summer
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Aperol spritzes were the runaway favorite for drink of the summer in 2020. Espresso martinis dominated restaurant menus in 2021, then ushered in the Dirty Shirley a year later. We predicted that the Hugo spritz, a refreshing, low-alcohol cocktail, would be 2023’s drink of the summer. It may not have become as popular as its Aperol-based cousin, but according to Google data, interest in Hugo spritzes skyrocketed last July. So it’s safe to say that you can trust our cocktail-predicting abilities.
Now that the weather is warming up, it’s time to start thinking about summer 2024. We consulted over a dozen industry professionals to identify the trends they see on the horizon. They came up with a wide range of predictions, including different spirits, mixers, and general flavor combinations. Here are their picks that stood out, and our pick for drink of the summer 20024.
Low-ABV Drinks
Spritzes for summer? Groundbreaking. But really, there’s a reason why people gravitate towards bubbly beverages with low ABV in the summer. “You have to enjoy summer as much as you can. You want to go to the beach, you want to go to rooftops, and you don’t want to get hammered," says Miguel Munoz, Head Bartender at Altair NYC.
Pairing aperitifs like Aperol, Campari, and St. Germain with sparkling wine is an easy way to drink without getting drunk. And as outdoor gatherings and opportunities to day drink become more common in the summer, spritzes are a no-brainer.
"The trend I’m seeing everywhere is a variation on the classic spritz! In the quest for lighter calories in cocktails, the spritz itself is lighter in alcohol coming in at 20-25% alcohol," says Claire Marin, owner and master distiller at Catskill Provisions and Pollinator Spirits.
Munoz predicts that spritzes this summer will veer even further into the fresh produce territory. "What we see now is that people are leaning more into spritzes, but with actual fruit," he says. "But the most important thing is that it has to be low ABV."
Old School Cocktail Revival
A lot of cocktails have been lost to history. Flavor preferences change, new and exciting beverages take their place, or they become so popular that they eventually become a cliché. But just like with fashion trends like low-rise jeans, drinks can come back in style. But you can likely expect them to be slightly more elevated for a modern audience.
“It seems like the '90s and 2000s are coming back in all facets of popular culture,” says Jarett Carlsberg, beverage director at Wythe Hotel in Brooklyn. “One popular '90s and early 2000s drink that I think will have a big summer is the Cosmo (and not just because Sex and the City is now available to stream on Netflix). I anticipate bartenders will reimagine it to be dryer than the original for today's palate.”
Brittany Belfiore of Center Bar in NYC also predicts a big year for the Cosmo. “Refreshing yet stiff, it is the true definition of a balanced cocktail, especially on a hot day,” she says. “I feel like this is vodka’s ‘comeback’ year in the cocktail world, so be on the lookout for the return of the classics and riffs on them.”
At Pelato and Luogo in Nashville, lead bartender Darrick Bourgeois is adding a contemporary twist on the classic sour apple martini. “We are making ours with vodka, apple pucker, lime juice, and Tuaca to add a little more depth of flavor and a fun Italian twist on this comeback cocktail and will surely put a smile on everyone’s face to enjoy this classic again,” he says.
Tropical Flavors
We can't all go on a luxurious beach vacation this summer, but we can channel some tropical vibes with some fresh and fruity flavors. Citrus is a standard mixer for plenty of summer cocktails, but bartenders predict that you’ll start seeing more tropical ingredients in your glass.
"We’re doing a guava paloma on draft, and we’re sweetening it with what’s called fassionola. It’s this syrup that has guava, passion fruit, and lots of citrus. It’s ridiculously good," says Evan Hawkins, co-founder and beverage director of Romeo’s in New York. "We also have a passion fruit spicy margarita that’s one of our top sellers."
Older renditions of tropical cocktails leaned on more accessible ingredients like pre-made juice blends and syrups. As they start popping up on today's cocktail menus, you can expect them to have a fresher flavor.
"Everyone loves a tropical fruity drink in the summer. They just don’t want something that’s artificially flavored and overly sweet," says Renato Tonelli, Beverage Training Director at New York celebrity hotspot Dante. "People strayed away from these cocktails because they knew it was canned lychee and artificial syrups. But now more than ever, bars are making elevated versions with fresher ingredients."
Our Drink Of The Summer Prediction
One particular cocktail combines the latter two trends and has been steadily increasing in popularity this year. Our official prediction for 2024’s drink of the summer is...drumroll…the porn star martini.
If you’ve never heard of this provocatively titled cocktail, it combines vanilla vodka, simple syrup, and passion fruit as a purée and a liqueur. The porn star martini is accompanied by Prosecco—you can pour it on top of the drink, but it’s traditionally served on the side.
It was first invented at the London bar Townhouse in 2002 by Douglas Ankrah, who created the recipe in just 15 minutes. It was one of the many notable drinks that came out of the city’s cocktail renaissance that started in the late '90s. The porn star martini also reflects a dominant beverage trend of that era—serving any sweetened, vodka-based cocktail in a V-shaped glass and calling it a martini.
Despite objections from martini purists, the porn star martini skyrocketed into stardom in the United Kingdom. Kate Middleton reportedly drank them at her bachelorette party in 2011, and researchers reported that it was the most popular drink in the U.K. in 2018.
And now the porn star martini momentum is moving stateside. Interest in the cocktail is consistently growing among American Google users, so much so that Renato Tonelli at Dante is convinced that it's going to explode in popularity sooner rather than later.
“It’s one of those cocktails where people will try it and tell their friends about it," he says. "If it goes out and you see a nice orange cocktail in a martini glass with a passionfruit half in the summertime, people will go nuts."
The porn star martini fuses rising trends with many of the characteristics that defined popular cocktails of summers past. It’s an old school cocktail in the midst of a revival. It uses tropical flavors. It’s refreshing. And it’s becoming popular in the United States after first gaining traction across the pond—just like the Aperol spritz and espresso martini.
Mark our words—the porn star martini will be the drink of the summer. And if you want to get ahead of the trend, you can make the cocktail for yourself:
Get the Recipe: Porn Star Martini
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