Bright drink colours are catching the eyes of consumers – standing out on shop shelves or encouraging drinkers to share them on socials.
In the face of economic turmoil or just disappointing weather, bright drink colours give more than just aesthetic appeal too, offering a moment of fun, escapism or nostalgia.
Bright drink colours are being seen across other 2024 drink trends – like floral flavoured creations and kitsch cocktails.
The ‘sophisticated naff’ trend, where retro drinks are given an elegant evolution, is one place where bright drink colours can be spotted – think outrageously pink Cosmos cocktails and neon blue Caracao cocktails.
And feminine colour palettes are used with floral flavours in drinks too. Soft shades of purple complement fragrant lavender coffees, earthy pinks suit rose flavoured spirits and sodas, and rich reds from flavours like hibiscus are being used in tonics and syrups.
Across all drink formats, three key shades are really standing out overall – peach, pink and blue:
Looking peachy
The soft but energising tones of peach have been seen across beauty, lifestyle, fashion and food alike this year.
Peach Fuzz was named 2024 Colour of the Year by the Pantone Colour Institute, while WGSN crowned a similar shade, Apricot Crush, colour of the year.
With a delicate, sweet flavour and a hue that’s evocative of being calm and nurturing, peach is a natural fit in the coloured drink trend of 2024.
As an already established flavour, peach’s elevated status has inspired new flavour combinations and variations too, like Starbucks’ Peach Passion Blossom Frappuccino and Belvoir Farm’s blend of peach with mango in its sparkling canned drinks. And in Australia, Cold Ones have used the floral fruit’s flavours in Grog, a premixed drink of Japanese shochu, vodka and soda.
The different hues of peach – comprising yellow, orange and pink – needn’t solely come from the stoned fruit, though. Peachy, bright drink colours can be created using grapefruit, guava, apricot and citruses too. Monster uses the same soft orange hues on its citrus-flavoured Ultra Sunrise energy drink, for example.
Thinking pink
While comforting peach is the colour of 2024, Barbie made all-out pink the colour of 2023. Suggesting fun and irreverence as well as hope and health, pink is a leader amongst bright drink colours.
From bubblegum and baby pink to bright magenta and soft mauve, bold shades of pink are still being used across foods and drinks. M&S has a mauve-shaded summer berry ice-cream milkshake while Cold Stone Creamery’s Barbie shake comes in classic baby pink, for example.
Different tones of pink can come from a range of ingredients and work across all drink types – like Nix & Kix’s Sparkling Watermelon & Hibiscus and Prata’s pink lemonade.
Coloured coffee syrups allows fans of colourful drink to emulate these at home too. Pink syrups with flavours ranging from rose and raspberry to dragonfruit and lychee can create eye-catching coffees.
Mixologists use colourful, flavourful syrups and liqueurs in mocktails or cocktails too, often elevated further thanks to edible glitter, dried petals or fancy ice.
Feeling blue
The fun factor of bright drink colours means there’s no feeling blue with cool coloured creations. Blue kitsch cocktails and retro slushies are nothing new, but the rise of the retro drinks trend has seen other drink formats take on blue hues.
Pepsi launched its bright blue Pepsi Electric last summer, a citrus flavoured cola, while Starbucks had a whole range of blue fruity refreshers.
While the colour typically symbolises confidence and stability, blue drinks evoke feelings of fun and irreverence. Classic blue cocktails like the Blue Lagoon and Blue Hawaiian have been doing the rounds for some time so mixologists have now made this 2024 drink trend their own, either adding blue curacao to other cocktails, or inventing all new mixes. Ingredients like raspberry, coconut and citruses all offer familiar flavours for blue drinks. The vibrant shades of energy drinks like Gatorade and Powerade can create energising cocktails too, while blue lemonades give all the colour without the alcohol content for mocktails. And slushies – both spiked and kid-friendly – are the coolest blue drink to reach for, of course.
Creating eye-catching serves
Vibrant colours are standing out to shoppers this season. With a range of different colours offering their aesthetic appeal, and dozens of different ingredients and flavours able to give or pair well with these shades, bright drink colours look set to remain as a key drink trend.
Image source: Trendhub The Food People 2024
