In May, we touched on how meeting planners can accommodate the non-drinkers in their groups, and now this burgeoning gin craze will give meeting planners even more reason to craft mocktails for those attendees who want the flavor of gin, minus the booze.
London-based Seedlip first introduced the concept of a non-alcoholic gin in 2015, and now Brunswick Aces, located in Melbourne, Australia, is doing the same. While bars across the world are taking note, the herbal concoction could also be a boon for the meetings industry. With the mixology trend came themed cocktails and entire mixology seminars, and now alcohol-free spirits can bring non-drinkers more into the, well, mix (excuse the pun). Long gone are the days of serving juice or lemonade as non-alcoholic alternatives.
And gin cocktails aren’t the only ones being made sans alcohol. Non-alcoholic Margaritas are all the rage at Redemption, a vegan, teetotal gastrobar in London’s Shoreditch neighborhood, reported the Financial Times in March. Similarly, the Holiday Cocktail Lounge in New York offers a non-boozy hibiscus mocktail and Contrary Mary, Forbes reported, also in March.
While research from the National Epidemiologic Survey on Alcohol and Related Conditions shows that 30 percent of American adults don’t drink at all, it seems the millennial generation is the one leading this trend. A report from the U.K.’s Office of National Statistics found that less than half of participants aged 16 to 24 drank alcohol in the previous week, compared to 66 percent of those aged 45 to 64. Better health (both physically and mentally) seems to be the key reason that today’s attendee could be teetotaling.
Luckily now, we can all together raise a martini—with or without booze—and say cheers to that!
