We are excited to release our “flavor Trends” for 2020. According to marketing research institute GlobalData, “flavor is the first buying criterion for food and beverage products”, meaning that each consumption experience must awaken the senses.
Much of the demand for new and exciting flavors comes from younger generations. Consumers, specifically millennials and Gen Z, get bored incredibly easy these days. Millennials and Gen Z’ers are willing to try anything new and have little brand loyalty.
Flavor trends to watch for the remainder of 2020 are these three categories: florals; complex heat; and tangy, tart, and sour.
Florals
Florals like rose and cherry blossom are popping up on restaurant menus throughout the country. More approachable flavors are elderflower, hibiscus and lavender. These flavors pair well with other complementary flavors such as citrus elderflower, blueberry lavender and peach hibiscus.
Complex Heat
Complex heat flavors are focusing on the actual name of the pepper like ghost pepper, ancho, serrano, and habanero. Snack foods seem to dominate the shelves with the spiciest products, you will see more named peppers as the basis of cocktails coming up on more restaurant drink menus in 2020. One complex heat flavor I know will be seen in more beverages in 2020 and beyond is spicy ginger. Ginger is known for its halo effect for health but can also be used as a stand-alone or combination flavor in many beverages.
Tangy/Tart and Sour
Tangy/Tart flavors are going to continue to rise in popularity throughout 2020. Some unheard-of citrus fruits like pomelo and calamansi are making their debuts in some recent product launches. The pomelo, known as the grapefruit’s cousin, is sweeter and not as bitter as grapefruit whereas the calamansi is a sour, not so sweet relative of the orange. One mainstream flavor that will be showing up on more grocery store shelves as well as trendy cocktail menus is the tangerine. Millennials and Gen Z’ers will recognize the subtleness of the tangerines sweet flavor and juiciness that the flavor brings to beverage developers.
Outlook
The outlook for 2020 trends, deals with the fact that most consumers are happy trying new flavors as long as they are somewhat familiar or are paired with well like complementary flavors.
Cheers!
Greg – co-founder and Chief Research Chef
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