The alcohol and drinks industries are dynamic and constantly evolving. This year, the trends centre around mindful drinking, bold flavours, and creative alternatives to classic choices.
If you’re wondering what to order at your next party or social gathering, read on to learn about the latest drinking trends for 2025.
Low and No Alcohol Drinks
Health and wellbeing is by far the biggest trend and sales driver in the alcohol industry to date. There is a vast audience for low and no alcohol drinks, with Gen Z drinking much less than the generations that precede them, and Millennials who are making a concerted effort to cut back on their alcohol consumption to improve their health and wellbeing.
A huge range of low and no alcohol drinks are now available on the market and continue to pop up on supermarket shelves and behind bars, including low and no alcohol beers, spirits, and cocktails. This is in response to the growing demand for mindful drinking, with many drinkers “bookending” their social evenings and nights out by starting and finishing with a non-alcoholic drink.
To be specific, low and no alcohol beers have seen a 41% increase in demand in the last year, with spirits following closely behind with an 18% increase in demand in the last year. Overall, there has been a 23% rise in low and no alcohol drinks across the board.
Alternatives to Champagne
Sparking white wine and sparkling rosé wine from a number of different countries including England, Greece, France, Italy, and Spain have been seeing a marked increase in popularity in recent years due to being chosen as an alternative to champagne.
For some sparkling wines, such as Cava, Prosecco, and French Cremant, the switch is being made due to their better affordability. Prosecco, for example, can often be found for around 20% of the price of a bottle of champagne. In light of the current cost of living conditions, it is perfectly understandable why consumers would opt for these equally delightful alternatives for a fraction of the price, especially for more casual drinking occasions or for drinking in more laid-back company.
On the other hand, some alternatives are thought to offer a “cleaner” drinking experience, having a lighter effect on the system and avoiding causing the well-known “champagne headache” the morning after drinking. Headaches are often caused by wine due to its excess sugar content and dehydrating effect. Hydrating and less sugary alternatives are the most likely to avoid causing drinkers a headache, along with drinking lots of water before, during, and after indulging.
Botanical Flavours
From herbs and spices to floral infusions, botanical flavours have been skyrocketing in popularity in recent years and have reached all-time highs in 2025. The uniqueness and refreshing quality botanical flavours add to a drink is an absolute crowd pleaser, especially when paired with a stunning spring or summer’s breeze and gentle sunshine.
In particular, infused with rosemary, wormwood, orange zest, gentian, and thyme, Botivo is a multi-award-winning non-alcoholic aperitivo that has been taking the low and no industry by storm in recent years with its intensely refreshing and bursting herbal and citrus notes. It’s definitely one to try at your next garden party or social gathering.
Botanical Gin
The deliciousness of botanical gin has long been recognised, and its popularity shows no signs of slowing down. Gin has a committed core audience who value premium quality gins with intriguing and solid flavour profiles.
Shed 1 Distillery’s Yiayia gin is a prime example of the excellence of botanical flavours in gin. This particular gin has a citrussy flavour profile with intriguing notes of seaweed, mushroom, and fig leaves which deepen and elevate the drinking experience.
Botanical Rum
In recent years, rum producers have been following in the footsteps of the gin industry by paying special attention to expressing the botanical and spice notes in their rums in response to the growing demand for these kinds of alcoholic drinks.
For spiced rum, we can look towards the broad range of Caribbean rums on offer on the market right now. For botanical rums, Scotland has been storming the industry with intriguing flavours such as sea kelp and lemon verbena.