The magic of mixing
Cocktails are starting to make their way onto pub menus. But many outlets are still uneasy about offering them.
Rosie Davenport reports
Simply sticking the kettle on is not enough to get coffee sales going - who would be satisfied with a mug of instant and a pot of UHT milk?
Envious of the £730m that consumers spend in the likes of Starbucks, pubs are right to be trying their hand at coffee-making, even if they have to take a hit on buying in equipment and then training staff on the facts of achieving the perfect froth.
But why not also apply the same commitment to what's already there - the bottles of spirits gathering dust that you don't know how to use and the more familiar ones aching for a livelier partner than orange juice?
While coffee is getting more complex
wherever it is sold - single estate Ecuadorian roast anyone? - the secret to good cocktails in pubs is to keep it simple, a mantra that's made all the more achievable by taking a few legitimate short-cuts along the way.
Clearly, cocktails aren't right for every outlet, but they are certainly on more people's radars. At experiential marketing events hosted by spirits brands like Pernod Ricard's Havana Club, it's Mojitos and Cuba Libres that are now put in consumer's hands.
This message has been taken up by the supermarkets too, who have made it easier for drinkers to mix them at home. Within the on-trade style bars clearly still lead the charge, but their prolific growth and increasing accessibility has created a strong market and yet another experience when consumers are exposed to cocktails.
Grand Marnier, however, believes there is a big fear factor holding pubs back, as managers and staff question whether they have the knowledge and expertise to handle lots of different recipes and ingredients.
"Emphatically they do have those skills," says Jamie MacDonald, an award winning mixologist who works with Grand Marnier. "Many cocktails are simple to make and have a lot of added value," he says. "And you don't need a big back bar of strange liqueurs. Most classic cocktails can be made with the drinks and mixers you have in stock already."
MacDonald says that customers are prepared to pay more for a handmade cocktail, with the average style bar charging around £7.50.
They can also help attract more trade. "Cocktails can be just as attractive in a pub and add that element of something different which so many customers are looking for,"
he adds.
All the main spirits suppliers are throwing their weight into making cocktails easier for pubs and reducing the element of fear.
De Kuyper, one of the most well known cocktail liqueurs, distributed by First Drinks Brands, has set up a training programme for pubs as well as a website (www.in-the-spirit.co.uk) where staff can go to get recipes and ideas.
Anthony Habert, brand manager for De Kuyper at First Drinks Brands, explains the rationale. "Across the entire drinks portfolio, consumers are constantly looking for ways to trade up from standard to premium drinks, and cocktails offer a tasty solution as well as maximising profits.
"If a bar is thinking about moving into cocktails for the first time, staff should ensure they stock a core range of ingredients and offer a few simple cocktails that are easy to make, and can be made well. Badly made cocktails represent a wasted opportunity as consumers will switch drinks if they are not given a perfect serve every time."
At Global Brands, the emphasis is on helping licensees to make cocktails using a handful of ingredients, which means speedy delivery and decent pricing.
Based around its Corky's brand, it has just launched the third edition of the Mixologist Handbook.
Developed in response to feedback from bar staff and consumers, it is designed to be a working cocktail list that incorporates all of the Corky's flavours and features blends, jugs, mixers and cocktail recipes.
Helen Tungland, Global Brands PR manager, says: "The thinking behind it is really to expand the usage of Corky's and is part of the brand's evolution from a range of shooters, when it was launched in 2002, into a versatile range of flavoured vodkas."
As well as pushing products already familiar to consumers, suppliers argue that cocktails are a good way of bringing new lines to the fore.
Nick Paget, Beam Global UK sales director, explains: "Cocktails are also a great way to introduce customers to a new type of drink that they perhaps wouldn't ordinarily try.
"Education plays an important role here, both with the trade and consumers in terms of the versatility of different spirits, cognac being a good example, as it's more mixable than you might think.
"It can be mixed with a number of different soft drinks including Coke, apple, ginger and is great with pomegranate."
Similar advice is offered by Jamie Walker, brand ambassador for gin Bombay Sapphire. "Using premium brands within cocktails is a very strong vehicle for driving value sales and improving consumer experience through things that are a talking point."
He has a three point-plan for pubs wanting to sell cocktails.
l Firstly, use good ingredients - premium spirits and fresh ingredients.
l Secondly, keep it simple - the simplicity of what cocktails you offer will be critical in terms of speed of serve and the consistency and taste of the final cocktail.
l Thirdly, good training is essential, so the end result matches consumers' expectations.
Five cocktails to try
Orange Crush
25ml Grand Marnier
25ml vodka
25ml pineapple juice
50ml orange juice
Shake ingredients together and pour over crushed ice in a tall glass. Finally, garnish with mint.
Salty Dog
50ml Smirnoff vodka
120ml fresh grapefruit juice
Rim a 12oz or 16oz glass by rubbing the lemon or lime piece around the edge of the glass to dampen it and then dust the rim with coarse salt (do not use table salt). Build ingredients in a highball glass over cubed ice.
Spiced Crumble
50ml Morgan's Spiced rum
100ml apple juice
2 pinches cinnamon
12.5ml lemon juice
12.5ml sugar syrup
Shake all ingredients with ice and strain into an ice-filled
Collins glass. Finish with a slice of apple.
Bourbon St
25ml Southern Comfort
25ml Jack Daniel's
Ginger beer
Lime wedge
Build over cubed ice in a highball glass. Top with ginger beer and garnish with a lime wedge.
Mojito
50ml Bacardi eight-year-old rum
10ml sugar syrup
Half a fresh lime
8 mint leaves
Soda water
Muddle eight mint leaves, chopped fresh lime and 10ml sugar syrup in a highball glass. Fill the glass with crushed ice, pour in the rum and a splash of soda water.
Profit-making pitchers
Spirit and mixer drinks are the most profitable category in the on-trade and Diageo urges licensees to take this on board when devising a summer drinks list. The drinks giant also says that research by NTS AlcoVision indicates that groups of friends spend 40% more per visit than individuals and pitchers of spirits and mixers are ideal for these groups as well as being extremely profitable.
With this in mind, Diageo is launching its "Chill Together with a Pitcher" campaign, based around its leading brands - Smirnoff vodka, Archers peach schnapps, Gordon's gin, Pimm's No.1 spirit drink, Cuervo tequila and Morgan's spiced rum. When served in pitchers with interesting but simple mixers, licensees can help increase sales of spirits and mixers by up to 20%, it claims.
Gary Singleton, Diageo GB's category development manager, explains: "People look for refreshing-tasting drinks to enjoy while visiting outlets during the warmer summer months. Pitchers of spirits and mixers, such as Pimm's and lemonade or Smirnoff Moscow Mule, provide something different for licensees to offer groups of friends while delivering healthy profits."
To support the campaign, Diageo has put together a collection of eye-catching, point-of-sale material to promote pit
