Ankur Chawla, Director Beverages, JW Marriott, Aerocity, Delhi
The primary reason for the things changing over the last 15 years in the alco-beverage field is globalization and people from India travelling abroad a lot. These travelling guys (global citizens) come back to India and demand the products they have tried abroad. So, the demand is coming from the consumer side. And, I am sure the industry is also living up to the consumer’s expectations.
These consumers are ready to experiment more and more, and they either have good knowledge about drinking or their access to knowledge is much higher than what was 15 years
ago. Their demands are also very specific, unlike the people whom I used to encounter five years ago. They would just come to the restaurant and ask for ‘the most expensive wine that you have’. They were not bothered about the grape that was in the wine, or where the wine comes from. But today the learned people really go into details. They want to know much and have something which is good value for money. And they are ready to pay more if they see value in it.
Experiential drinking or which we also refer to as sensology is also gaining importance. It’s not just about the liquid but it’s also about the kind of experience, starting from the server who
comes to you to deliver the wine to how the drink is delivered; the aromas of the drink, the taste, texture, everything in and around that particular drink.
There is also a huge trend of Indian mixers. In fact, 80% of your drink contains a mixer. A huge variety of mixers are available across the globe but not much in India. Another big thing is the
gin bar. It may open in India. Gin bars serve a large number of gin variants. There are also gins made in the home with homemade ingredients or with botanicals grown in the backyard.
Recently we did a vodka-based promotion where we had about seven different herbs on the bar top itself in small little pots. As you order the drink, the bartender plucks the herbs and
these herbs (like rosemary, sage, mint, etc actually come out of the plant in front of you and go into the drink that is served to you. Now it’s really an experience.
There is a lot of innovation happening in serving vessels, particularly for cocktails. Mostly we are going in the right direction in glassware innovation. But I think there is a lot going wrong as
well. I remember going to a couple of bars and restaurants. After the drink comes to me, I am thinking where to take a sip from because the vessel is a beautiful looking truck or similar object in which there is liquid and the straw comes out from somewhere. When I ask the server is it food grade, the server takes a small pause before telling me that it is. This creates a little bit of doubt,
Regarding cocktails, I think we still need to go back to the basics and study classic cocktails and the reasons due to which these drinks are still popular after a very, very long time of their creation, rather than just creating new drinks.