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Old Fashioned Cocktail Continues To Be A Favorite At Craft Cocktail Bars

New data reveals the whiskey-based Old Fashioned cocktail continues to remain a top tier staple at craft bars across the United States.
  • Nino Kilgore-Marchetti, founder of The Whiskey Wash, is an award-winning whiskey journalist, expert, and judge
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The good old Old Fashioned whiskey cocktail, it turns out, continues to be a hit in an era of super creative cocktails.

A new report [PDF] out from IWSR, a source of data and analysis for the alcoholic beverage industry, revealed that the Old Fashioned, whether bourbon or rye-based, appears on a large number of menus at leading craft cocktail bars across 25 US cities. It, along with the vodka-based Moscow Mule, accounts for a combined 30% of menu mentions, though the Old Fashioned continues to sit atop the heap.
Old Fashioned
image via Tim Sackton/flickr

By category, IWSR noted,

whisk(e)y cocktails are most prevalent across craft bar menus with a 23% share, followed by rum (16%) and gin (15%). The cities with the most Old Fashioned menu mentions are Los Angeles, Baltimore and Portland. Trending variations of the cocktail includes barrel-aged, sherried and vinegar, as well as flavour profiles such as walnut, chocolate, fig, ginger, cherry and more.

Data shows that consumer search interest in the Old Fashioned spikes around the holidays, and increases in consumer interest correlate with the growth of on-premise US whiskey consumption. In addition, 45% of on-premise operators surveyed believe the Old Fashioned is trending positively among their customers.

What’s also interesting to take stock of from this report is the fact Buffalo Trace is leading being mentioned in the whiskey category on tracked craft bar menus, followed by Bulleit, Four Roses and Maker’s Mark. Apparently having brand recognition on these menus is important, as three quarters of on-premise operators find this consideration to be a factor when selling a drink.

Nino Kilgore-Marchetti

Nino Kilgore-Marchetti is the founder of The Whiskey Wash, an award-winning whiskey lifestyle website dedicated to informing and entertaining consumers about whisk(e)y globally. As a whisk(e)y journalist, expert, and judge, he has written extensively about the subject, been interviewed in various media outlets, and provided tasting input on many whiskeys at competitions.

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