There’s been a revival of retro and an influx of new nostalgia. Shoppers’ preferences for comforting, familiar or evocative treats have fuelled the retro drinks trend, seeing old school or childhood-favourite flavours used across all categories.
From vintage styles reminiscent of the 50s to kitsch fashions from the 80s, unabashedly retro food and drinks are back in vogue. In culinary terms, this is seeing appetisers like prawn cocktails or devilled eggs served up alongside mains like meatloaf, and desserts of trifle or roulade. So, washing them down with a traditional tipple is essential. These can be a standalone retro drink – like Dirty Martinis or Kir Royals, crushes or slushies – or a retro flavour added to a more modern format.
Throwback cocktails are the obvious start point for exploring the rise of retro drinks in the UK. These range from Prohibition-era 20s cocktails – like the classic French 75 or Sidecar – to tiki cocktails popularized in the 80s – think playful Pina Coladas or Strawberry Daiquiris – as well as timeless tipples like Espresso Martinis.
The retro drinks trend isn’t reserved solely for cocktails though – beers and ciders are getting the retro treatment too. Northern Monk has gone all out, adding hints of raspberry ripple and bubblegum to its Screwball Pale Ale, for example. And the return of drinks like the Radler aren’t just aligned with the retro drinks trend either, as lower ABV serves like this suit the NoLo drinks trend too. Typically made by topping up tap beer with lemonade, ready-to-drink Radlers are now available in a range of other fruit flavours. Extra modern twists on these could now come from creating alcohol-free beers or ciders using flavours from times gone by.
Nostalgic drinks are, of course, just as popular in the non-alcoholic categories. Flavoured syrups are helping to create retro coffees, hot chocolates or milkshakes, as coffee shops use flavours like banoffee pie or raspberry ripple or emulate the ingredients of cereals from our childhoods. One US coffee shop has even stepped this up by topping its matcha latte with iconic Froot Loops to give a breakfast drink a playful twist.
Soft drinks, CSDs and sodas are in on the action too – like Coca Cola’s collaboration with Oreo, combining two nostalgic icons, or Burger King’s retro blue raspberry Frozen Candy Cloud. Taking inspiration from sweet treats, Sparkling Ice has a new line featuring the four flavours from packs of Starburst … or Opal Fruits, if you want to feel really nostalgic.
Retro drinks are spotlighting old-school formats with modern-day flavours too. Matcha milkshakes, for example, are growing in popularity, working the Japanese green tea into comforting, cooling shakes served everywhere from shake Shack to Starbucks.
Simpson’s view:
The range of factors we’ve seen influencing buying habits in recent years quite naturally lead to this retro flavours revival. Traditional or nostalgic flavours tend to appeal to around half of all consumers, as people have sought out comfort and familiarity in recent times. As such, we’re now seeing certain categories really leaning into targeting adults with nostalgic flavours, like coffees and adult soft drinks using flavours famed from our childhoods, or sports nutrition drinks giving an extra boost with retro flavours.
Inspiration – nostalgic flavours & retro drinks to try:
For fun, familiarity and big flavours combined, all sorts of desserts offer rich inspiration to create ‘newstalgia’ drinks. From kitsch Banana Split, Battenburg or Crème Caramel, to classy Tiramisu or Tartin, dessert flavours could be emulated in cocktails, coffees, ciders and more. Cookies and candies like Oreo, Rhubarb & Custard, or Love Hearts can offer visual, as well as taste, inspiration too. TikToker @mancavebartender topped his rum and tequila-based Naughty Neapolitan with a wedge of the wafer-wrapped ice cream, for example.
This summer saw the ‘sophisticated naff’ drinks trend, where retro drinks received an elegant evolution – like creating neon blue curacao cocktails featuring trendy new tequilas. This led to a range of colourful cocktails building on the blue drinks trend too – like eye-catching bright pink Cosmos, mint green Grasshoppers and even daring banana Daiquiris.
Sophisticated naff can also come from the ingredients worked into cocktail classics, like classy Lychee Martinis giving a global twist on a nostalgic favourite. And visually appealing drinks can come in the form of experiential creations, with drinks like milkshakes or coffees using flavours emulating the joy of Birthday Cake, seasonal desserts like Eton Mess or holiday candies like Candy Floss.
Plan ahead for new nostalgic drinks
At Simpsons, we can create and manufacture almost any flavour for use across multiple categories. We develop, formulate and manufacture flavours in-house, using our industry insights to ensure our customers stay ahead of the latest drinks trends. To make a retro drink or timeless classic, get in touch.
