This 12 months’s drink traits run the gamut, from debatably unhinged (large Martinis served with a dozen olives and straws) to extraordinarily controversial (cocktail bars working with out ice). Will these new developments proceed on into 2026, or will they continue to be a blip? To search out out, I requested a handful of consultants for his or her takes. Right here’s what they needed to say.
Some say the traditional glass is out, and bartenders are choosing options.
Consultants Featured
Brian Evans is the director of bars for Sunday Hospitality Group.
Kenzo Han is the bar director of Firstborn.
Jesse Hedberg is the proprietor of Membership Frills.
Ben Hopkins-Prager is the beverage director of Pitt’s and Agi’s Counter.
Courtney Iseman is a freelance drinks author and Punch contributor.
Emma Janzen is a journalist and co-author of the upcoming e-book The Basic Cocktail Classes.
Kathryn “Pepper” Stashek is the inventive bartender at Kabawa and Bar Kabawa.
Ben: Nick & Noras are the important Manhattan glass. Frankly, don’t serve me a Manhattan in one other glass.
Jesse: Nick & Noras are undoubtedly slightly boring at this level however are superb for a traditional stirred, brown spirit cocktail. Don’t you dare put a Martini in a Nick & Nora although! Thank god the V-Glass made a comeback.
Courtney: Nick & Noras, in my view, mix the most effective parts of different glassware choices.
Kenzo: I’m all the time extra all for new shapes and designs. I by no means like flashy garnishes for cocktails, however an attractive and sudden glass is all the time good.
Brian: Sure glassware icons by no means exit of favor, however the Instagram Hive Thoughts of cocktail porn might all the time use a refreshing face.
Emma: The Nick & Nora is the sexiest glass on earth. I’m a fan of any and all variations of the vessel.
The transfer the place bartenders switch your half-consumed Martini right into a contemporary, frosted glass is in all places from Hillstone to cocktail bars in Chicago, New York Metropolis and past.
Jesse: I believe this development is slightly foolish actually, nevertheless it reveals dedication to hospitality and a spotlight to the visitor expertise. In case your bartender is being that attentive to the visitors’ wants, I’m all for it!
Courtney: Extra of this, please. It’s the sort of personalised, above-and-beyond service that looks as if a pure match with our refined, usually very expensive Martinis. My husband makes a imply Martini and has began doing the “refrost” for me at dwelling.
Brian: It’s the final word heat hug of hospitality, in chilled drink type.
Emma: I’m on the fence about this one as a result of a heat Martini is a shitty Martini, so something that may be performed to extend an icy chill is an effective factor. When executed with out fanfare, it may be a pleasant gesture of hospitality. That stated, the sustainability-minded a part of me will get irritated on the considered the bar having to clean two glasses for one cocktail. I’m going to say this could keep, however bonus factors for packages the place the bartender asks if the refresh is one thing I’d like for them to do or not. I need the selection.
Ben: A Martini has by no means seen me lengthy sufficient for this to be needed, however lots of my visitors at Pitt’s are extra affected person, and this contact is all the time a pleasant one.
Pepper: I’m open to being persuaded that it is a superior technique to a sidecar in a dish of crushed ice, however thus far nobody has been in a position to make a convincing case to me.
Kenzo: As somebody who works at a bar that A) doesn’t have sidecars, B) has a glass freezer, and C) isn’t essentially the most chatty and outgoing bartender, that is actually my favourite service step.
Clearly the bar takeover isn’t new, nevertheless it’s reached a fever pitch that some argue is overdone.
Pepper: I’ve performed pop-ups previously and I’ll do extra sooner or later, however for me they’re largely about having enjoyable and getting an opportunity to work alongside pals than they’re about selling myself, my bar, or my model. That being stated, they are often time-consuming, and there’s a stress to go to every kind of various pop-ups and occasions to community and keep related.
Jesse: Bar takeovers are enjoyable. It’s a good way to share your model, and it mixes issues up to your common prospects. Additionally the drinks are normally priced affordably as a result of there may be usually model assist concerned.
Courtney: Ninety-five p.c of the time, I do not get who’s even benefiting from this. As essential as vibes are, I additionally just like the bars I like due to their drinks, and it’s frankly simply annoying to not be capable of get them, particularly when the drinks being served up by the visiting bartenders can come throughout like showy stunts caught up within the second of a Huge Occasion. On the finish of the night time, I do not really feel like I really bought to know the visiting bar, nor did I get to expertise my hometown bar I normally admire.
Kenzo: I like doing bar pop-ups. They’re a good way to attach with outdated coworkers who you may by no means work along with once more and to attach with bartenders from throughout the globe. Nonetheless—and this can be an LA factor—persons are so sexy for pop-ups however won’t ever go to a bar, restaurant or café’s regular service, which is all the time higher than the pop-ups. I additionally do not love that worldwide bar pop-ups all the time should be sponsored by one of many huge company liquor firms.
Brian: We’ve hit peak “visitor shift” mania and these packages have merely misplaced their luster. The bars are blurring their very own hard-earned identities alongside the way in which.
Ben: These can keep, however bars which can be mainly present rooms for single-brand teams are dangerous and boring, and normally make terrible cocktails.
Bartenders have been turning to the stout for frothy, chocolatey taste of their drinks.
Brian: YES PLEASE. The flavors of stout unlock a lot pairing potential with spirits and cocktail modifiers. I’m stunned this isn’t utilized much more.
Courtney: Beer is an undervalued cocktail ingredient lastly being taken extra significantly.
Jesse: Guinness is simply too good to be adulterated. I wouldn’t use grand cru Champagne in a French 75, both!
Pepper: If the tip outcome tastes good, let’s maintain it. I’m hard-pressed to think about any ingredient that I’d say shouldn’t be used simply out of precept. (Nicely, besides possibly activated charcoal.) The Cut up Ends at Bar Snack is a private favourite instance of this development.
The Nick & Nora Is So 2009
The glass that helped outline the cocktail renaissance is on the outs. Right here’s what bartenders are utilizing as a substitute.
Prix fixe isn’t only for chef’s tables anymore.
Pepper: Creating a extremely good cocktail pairing is tough! When it’s performed nicely, it may be an unimaginable expertise, nevertheless it’s so uncommon to discover a pairing the place the meals and the cocktails actually improve one another. I’d be way more all for seeing somms, servers and bartenders work collectively to create a wide range of solutions for a la carte pairing, be it wine, cocktails or neat spirits.
Jesse: I’m the sort of drinker that wishes to attempt every part, so I say this one ought to keep. However depart the meals pairings to wine.
Kenzo: I like try-hard issues, and what’s extra try-hard than a tasting menu?
Brian: If that is your bar’s mannequin, I’d say, “Good luck.” I don’t see a future in it, particularly with rising prices of products and the labor concerned in the direction of expediting one thing this valuable. From my expertise, there are too many imbibers on the market who will completely not department out additional than two or three completely different spirit classes for their very own enjoyment.
The newest beer-and-shot combo (wherein one is N/A) is like microdosing, however for alcohol.
Jesse: There isn’t a disgrace in a boozy shot and a N/A beer chaser. N/A beers have come a great distance and are literally nice. At my age I would like all the assistance I can get to make it via an extended night time of drinks. However please inform me no one’s taking pictures of N/A whiskey and chasing it with an IPA.
Courtney: Look, you gotta do you in the case of your beverage decisions, particularly if you happen to’re creating the mixture that personally works for you in the case of stability and moderation. However as somebody who doesn’t admire pictures to start with, it is a head-scratcher to me. If you wish to drink however solely slightly, why not simply have the beer sans shot, or a pleasant low-ABV spritz?
Pepper: Drink what you need!
Brian: Positive, why not. I’ve been identified to have a pour of whisky in a single hand and an N/A Guinness within the different. Make the nights last more and your mornings harm much less.
Ben: Sure, oh my god YES. That is one thing I provide at Pitt’s nearly every day to visitors, and it’s all the time nicely acquired. Make something accessible N/A. You’ll be able to catch me having this actual combo at Sunny’s in Crimson Hook nearly each time I am going.
Margaritas, Garibaldis and aperitifs have been Creamsicle-inspired this 12 months.
Ben: Orange juice might be essentially the most wasted juice in bars. It simply isn’t superb in most cocktails—and if persons are discovering methods to make it work, extra energy to them.
Courtney: Personally, it’s a giant “No, thanks” from me on this development. The considered something vanilla- or marshmallow-sweet in my drink makes me gag slightly, even when it’s minimize by citrusy acidity. However I’m certain when performed nicely, this profile gives a pleasant stability.
Pepper: It’s not a taste that I actually get pleasure from myself, but when different folks need cocktails with this taste, allow them to. And, if I’m going to be absolutely trustworthy, I’m presently growing a cocktail for the Kabawa menu that’s Creamsicle-adjacent, so I’m undoubtedly a part of the development.
Brian: Whereas there’s some cool, inventive alternative with the sort of nostalgia, this taste combo is personally my “cilantro allergy.” I’ve by no means been a fan of orange juice in cocktails, anyway.
This 12 months, the “chilled pink” motion gave approach to cabs, Bordeaux and merlot.
Pepper: For me, these wines by no means actually went away. An ice-cold Martini with some oysters, adopted by a giant, daring cab and a well-cooked steak has by no means performed me incorrect.
Courtney: Once I order wine, I certainly need one thing that falls right into a “huge pink” class—dense, an entire flavor-and-mouthfeel expertise, in a position to stand as much as any meal. I can’t see the draw back in these being extra accessible.
Brian: As a whisky fanatic, my palate’s been conditioned towards daring flavors, so that is proper up my alley.
Ben: People love huge, oaky juicebox wines, and I completely get it, however I’d a lot slightly have a correctly chilled Pineau d’Aunis than a jammy fruity-tooty cab any day.
Kenzo: I grew up in Northern California and my dad loves huge, boozy, obnoxious Napa wines. I like my dad however I don’t love his style in wine.
Katy Perry made an N/A aperitif, Lewis Hamilton made zero-proof tequila and Tom Holland made nonalcoholic beer. Are you even well-known if you happen to don’t have your individual zero-proof line?
Courtney: I’ll sound each bitter and trite, however N/A merchandise simply look like a simple money seize. N/A is the brand new tequila for celebrities, besides it’s even simpler since you’re speaking a few product that may be something, from anyplace. I’m dreading seeing a relentless glut a la the flood of meaningless movie star perfumes within the early aughts.
Jesse: This one’s bought to go. Aren’t celebrities wealthy sufficient already?
Pepper: Alcoholic or nonalcoholic, I need celebrity-created drinks out of the drinks world, please!
Ben: Dude, each [brand] needs to be making N/A merchandise. Each spirit manufacturing home of each variety on the earth needs to be making N/A merchandise. I don’t care if Lewis Hamilton or Barbra Streisand is making N/A stuff, the extra the merrier.
Brian: Whereas there are clear advantages to the rise of nonalcoholic drinks in cocktail/beer/wine tradition, it looks as if the pendulum has been swinging right into a route of ethical superiority from the messaging of life-style influencers and sober-curious journalism. Celeb co-signings are simply the pointless icing on the cake.
De Vie made a splash by debuting as a cocktail bar with out ice. Will different bars comply with go well with?
Kenzo: I’m all for sustainability. However in comparison with the quantity of vitality and water huge firms are utilizing, we’re not saving the world by not utilizing ice in a bar. I suppose I’m pretty forwards and backwards on this, however any try at sustainability is a sure for me.
Pepper: A lot of the bar program I put collectively at Bar Kabawa revolves round ice, so I’m certain it doesn’t come as a shock that I’m voting “no” on this one. Ice is essential for creating texture in cocktails, and that makes the expertise of ingesting them so significantly better.
Jesse: I believe this development is sensible in Europe, the place they hardly provide you with ice anyway! Ice is a defining attribute of American bartending, and I can’t see it going anyplace quickly. Additionally the deep freezers and different methods to sit back liquids these bars are utilizing are all drawing lots of electrical energy, too; I don’t suppose it realistically comes all the way down to sustainability. Appears extra like a gimmick to me!
Ben: I all the time say, if it really works, it really works. A 2.5- by 2-inch ice dice normally prices 65 cents, and people prices add up for bars. If you can also make it work, save and make it a cool presentation that results in a balanced drink, I’m right here for it.
Brian: These bartenders are rethinking the bar in an inspiring, statement-claiming route. There are many methods to hack an thrilling and well-balanced cocktail lately with out using ice, so I say sustain the nice work!
Some bar operators are shopping for and restoring outdated native landmarks and dives in hopes of preserving them alive.
Emma: Dive bars are essentially the most egalitarian establishments of our business and essential cornerstones of native communities. It doesn’t matter what stage of fancy cocktail bar you’re employed in, or what lists you make or accolades you acquire, all of us find yourself in the identical dive bars on the finish of the night time. So I’m a large proponent of oldsters taking up these native landmarks when the choice is a closure. Nicely, so long as the brand new possession doesn’t fuck up the magic of the place. There’s a superb line between good respectful preservation and fucking it up.
Brian: It’s damn-near unimaginable to hold forth a dive bar’s unique imaginative and prescient to the fullest, nevertheless it’s a good endeavor to aim preserving any worthwhile legacy alive.
Pepper: Restored dives ought to completely, 100%, no hesitation keep! Like most bartenders, I like dive bar, and I like that persons are saving these spots from being destroyed or changed into one thing extra fashionable. There’s simply one thing that feels so good about sitting all the way down to have a drink in a spot with a way of historical past to it.
Jesse: Save the bar! A few of these locations are mainly a nationwide treasure, and we’ve all been unhappy to see a storied dive bar shut for good. Hopefully it’s a longtime common of the bar who takes over. In the event you’re gonna worth out (or “hipster” out) the present clientele, that simply reads kinda corny.
Courtney: This could keep, however restoration ought to solely embody restoring what completely must be restored. It’s a bummer when you possibly can inform the unique perspective and historical past has been glossed out of an establishment.
Ben: It’s actually case-by-case however as long as it doesn’t flip into, like, an City Outfitters model of the factor then I’m right here for it.
Apparently some Martinis now include straws, 1,000,000 olives and a dream.
Ben: Let me have my Martini alone in peace.
Pepper: Does anybody really need this? I’ve by no means encountered a shareable Martini within the wild, however all I can suppose is it looks as if a gimmick for TikTok, not an gratifying ingesting expertise. The glass is so huge it’s a must to stand as much as drink from it? That doesn’t sound enjoyable in any respect. And the way does it keep chilly during the time it takes to drink an enormous Martini? Huge no from me on this one.
Brian: A “shareable Martini” appears like a extremely dangerous joke for social media visibility. The Martini is essentially the most personalised cocktail of all of them; it’s exhausting discovering even two folks at a given desk to even agree on how they need one.
Emma: Pay attention, there are few issues on this world as marvelous as ingesting an ice-cold gin Martini within the firm of fine pals or family members, or hell, even full strangers generally. However they don’t seem to be constructed for fishbowls spiked with straws. The way in which you are taking one speaks volumes about your character; I like studying one thing new a few ingesting companion this manner. Selfishly, it’s one of many solely drinks the place I don’t wish to alter my preferences for the higher good. Additionally, scaling up a single serving makes no sensible sense—preserving the temperature and dilution of a monster vat of Martini proper for lengthy sufficient to accommodate a bunch is a idiot’s errand.
Jesse: Martinis are like soup; it’s bizarre if you happen to share them.
Responses have been evenly edited and condensed for size and readability.
