A DAIQUIRI GOOD SUMMER: BRITS TURN TO COCKTAILS TO STEM FLOW OF BUMPER CROP

21 June 2012

Forget Pimms, cold beers and Rosé, the Strawberry Daiquiri is being tipped
as the must–have drink of Summer 2012, forecasting increased sales – up 28%
on last year alone.  It is expected Brits will drink more than 9 million
Strawberry Daiquiris in 2012.

The trend is the result of perfect weather conditions and an increase in
at-home cocktail consumption. Strawberry producers are predicting a bumper
harvest of strawberries for 2012.

According to cocktail experts Funkin, Strawberry puree sales are up by
27.62% (June 11 to June 2012) which is the equivalent of 9,049,700
individual cocktails.  Britain’s second favourite flavour is Raspberry, with
6 million cocktails being made. Passion Fruit has also seen an increase of
29% (equivalent to 5,979,700 individual cocktails). In contrast sales of
Kiwi puree are down by 16% and traditional Blackcurrant puree is down by
nearly 51%.

Andrew King, CEO, Funkin Cocktails says; “We’re expecting an early season
for strawberries and a bumper crop. With the warm March leading to some
concerns over fruit size and quality, the more temperate April and May lead
us to believe the crops will be excellent. We could do with a bit more sun
now, to really improve the ripening and finish the fruit off well, but it
does look very favourable at this point. Demand has been massive, up nearly
a third on last year, but it looks as though production will just about
match demand.”

Strawberry growers have lifted their production outlook to 56,000 metric
tons, well up from 52,000 tons harvested in 2011.

Rosie Davenport, Editor of leading trade title Off License News agrees
saying; “Cocktail culture has definitely spread from drinking in bars to
groups of friends getting together and recreating their favourite mixes at
home. The days of pouring a simple gin and tonic have been replaced by ever
more sophisticated options, particularly more classical cocktails, like the
daiquiri. With a summer of events now underway and lots of occasions for
entertaining, cocktail ingredients are likely to be big sellers as people
become their own at home bartenders.”