Craft soda makers, like craft brewers, improve upon the mass-produced product by utilizing high-quality, ingredients using carefully controlled methods.  The outcome is a better-tasting alternative to big brand sodas.  This non-alcoholic relative of craft beer is built on the same values—sustainability, local sourcing, natural and often organic ingredients with a back story.  “People like the local connection, something that they can tie to,” says Steve Cole, a Sales Manager for Atlas Distributing.  It is especially appealing to the young millennial consumers, whose preferences for artisanal foods and beverages continue to lead the way in the restaurant business.

Aside from the fact that craft sodas venture far away from using high fructose corn syrup and other sweeteners, using seasonal ingredients is another advantage to crafting soda.  Blood oranges or pomegranate in January, Watermelon in July, or pears in October make great additions, but why stop there?  Kip Barnes, of LA Ale Works, enjoys the culinary aspect of soda making, and states that “soda…is a lot more flavor balancing” than making beer.  It can be flavored with everything from tea to fruit to spices, and are not terribly sweet but rather refreshing and quench the thirst.  Kip started to craft sodas for his friends and relatives that didn’t or couldn’t drink and so couldn’t enjoy his homebrew beer.  Right away he was hooked by the creative options that making soda offered him.

Considering the higher cost of craft soda, how then can restaurants and bars use them to their advantage?  With consumers constantly looking for things that seem like specialties—innovative concoctions you can’t get everywhere—craft sodas resonate among health-conscious consumers as a more natural option to traditional sodas.  They can feed those who are abstaining from alcohol for whatever reason, from pregnancy to breast feeding, from health matters to fitness matters.  And it can also serve as a healthier alternative for children whose parents want a change from the unhealthy versions we have grown accustomed to.  Restaurant owners who base their brand on natural ingredients now have the ability to match their beverages with their mission statements.  According to Maeve Webster, director at food industry market research firm Datassential, “Craft sodas represent a huge opportunity for quick-serve operators right now…You can take a familiar menu item, soda, and offer a heightened experience—yours is fresher, original, more flavorful—and you have something your competitors don’t.”  Bars can also capitalize by integrating craft sodas into their alcohol programs; specialty sodas created in-house are a great base for signature cocktails!

While craft soda brewers are quick to point out their adversity to high fructose corn syrup and other synthetic ingredients, there is still a hurdle they must overcome if the trend is to grab hold and carry over into the future:  there is still sugar in the sodas, and sugar equals calories.  With the continuing rise of obesity across the nation, it is a factor that could potentially hold back the industry.  For now, it seems to be somewhat offset by consumers who are opting for craft soda over other calorie-laden beverages such as beer, wine, or cocktails, and by young parents who want healthier options for their children.  Whether the fad hangs on in the future remains to be seen, but at the moment craft soda seems to hold a lot of promise.

I, for one, am looking forward to some new flavor options to try, from simple and enticing to wacky and fascinating.  Have you had craft soda?  What flavors have you tried, or do you want to try?  Do you think the craze will remain in the future?

The post The Art of Craft Soda appeared first on Houston's Blog.

It seems that every segment of the food and drink industry has a different way of defining “craft,” using a definition to suit their needs and sell their product.  But what, really, is “craft,” and how does it apply to the latest trend, craft coffee?

The dictionary defines craft as an art, trade, or occupation requiring special skill, especially manual skill.  Or, as a verb, to craft is to make or manufacture (an object, objects, product, etc.) with skill and careful attention to detail.

In the coffee industry, opportunities for craftsmanship abound at each step of its production—from the farms where the beans are grown to the coffee shop where your drink is carefully constructed.  But it’s more than just the process, it refers to “the pursuit of making a cup of high-quality coffee, while also engaging consumers in the story of the coffee—from the origin of the beans to how it’s brewed in your local coffee shop,” according to Jill Yanish in her article “4 Things to Know About the Craft Coffee Craze.”

Coffee, though, has been around practically since the dawn of time, and legend has it that a goat herder in Ethiopia, whose goats were acting crazy, dancing around, with loads of energy, investigated why and found they were eating cherries in a field.  The goat herder tried the cherries and, according to the legend, he never fell asleep again.  It is presumed that the first cups of coffee were actually more of a stew, made from adding the coffee cherries to large pots of water and then extracting and brewing.

The evolution of coffee from the commodity product it was in the 1950s and 1960s to the delicacy it has become (and continues to evolve to) began with the formation of Starbucks, whose founding members wanted to sell high-quality coffee beans and equipment.  Retail sales began in the mid-1980s, and the evolution picked up speed in the 1990s as Starbucks sought to lure customers with tasty coffee concoctions such as the Frappuccino.

Now, though, many coffee artisans are seeking to follow in the footsteps of the beer, wine, and cocktail industry as they tease out different flavor profiles dependent on the region the beans were grown in, the roasting methods, and brewing technique.

The climate in different growing regions determines how coffee is grown, how it is processed, and how it tastes.  In Kenya, for example, coffee will have savory, grapefruit, and coconut flavor notes, while Ethiopian coffee will be more herbal and tea-like with hints of lavender and sage.  And in Latin America, coffees tend to impart chocolatey and caramel flavors.

Beyond climate, how coffee is roasted will affect the flavor.  Lighter roasts tend to be more acidic and convey floral and citrus notes.  Medium roasts are sweeter and the sweetness tends to last as you sip, and darker roasts are higher in aroma due to reduced acids and oils.

And finally, how coffee is brewed will also play a part in determining the final outcome of your cup of coffee.  Pressed coffees and pour-overs, automatic drips, and percolators all impart different flavors.

What small-batch coffee artisans do, then, much as craft brewers or wine makers, is to experiment with different regional coffees, different roasting methods, and subsequent brewing styles to create a complex cup of coffee that consumers can experience rather than just drink.  Fading away are the days where your daily cup of coffee is simply a “bolt of energy,” and we are welcoming these new subtle nuances of plums, chocolate, pineapple, caramel, herbs, and spices.

Welcome to the craft coffee craze.  I think you will enjoy the ride.

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The high demand for these specialty beers, though, is creating a black market, and unauthorized dealers are selling them underground or online for inflated prices.  All in an effort to profit from another’s time, hard work, and passion.

Besides simply taking from what the brewer so whole-heartedly put in to the craft beer, there are other reasons they are opposed to this black market of beers.  Natalie Cilurzo, co-owner of Russian River Brewing Company, says that quality control is at the heart of the issue.  “Beer is a food product and it does not take much to spoil it,” she states.  Imbibing in beer that is not at its best can harm the reputation of the brewer, but still, this is not the end of the harmful effects of bootlegging.  There are costs involved in making and selling the beer, underlying costs beyond the obvious expenditures for materials.  There are business licenses, taxes, production costs that aren’t accounted for when the beer is sold underground.

Unscrupulous black market beer geeks work around the alcohol regulations, too, as they often lack the proper permits to sell alcohol.  By marketing the rare craft brews as “collectible beer bottles” and not mentioning the content of those bottles, they have found a way to divert the system, at least temporarily, as eBay for one is working to prohibit these sales.

So what is a beer-lover to do?  How do you legally get your hands on these scarce relics of the industry, the “whales” in the beer community?  First, try beer trading.  You can find traders online on Craigslist, or Beer Advocate (which, by the way, also posts a “Bad Traders List” to help you avoid price gougers and unethical sellers.)  Or you can join a membership club.  You can find friends who are visiting the area around where your favorite beer is located and have them help you obtain a few bottles or cases.  When there is a will, there is usually a way, and there are opportunities out there for nabbing the vintage beers. You may have to be creative, and you may have to be flexible in your choices, but it is possible.

And what should you do if you do manage to score a rare brew?  Devon, from an article found on www.drinkcraftbeer.com, tells of the five basic rules he follows if he is ever able to get hold of his favorite rare beer, Heady Topper, from The Alchemist in Vermont.  First, he says you should never be greedy.  Don’t buy up all the beer in one purchase—the reason you found it in the first place is because the person before you didn’t do just that.  Second, don’t sell it.  He says that “not everything has to be about money all the time.  Just enjoy the beer.”  Third, drink it now!  As I mentioned earlier, beer is a food product and is meant to be enjoyed soon after purchase.  And as Devon says, there is always new beer coming out.  Fourth, share it.  You may get a little less of your favorite but karma dictates that someone you share it with will likely share their next score with you—win-win in my opinion.  And he is quick to point out that you should share some with your not-so-savvy beer-drinking friends.  Help them learn to love craft beer the way you do!  And lastly, beer should be fun.  If you don’t get the exact beer you wanted, no worries, there will always be new and exciting beers out there.  If you ever take beer too seriously…well, just don’t do that.

Do you have a favorite special artisanal beer?  How do you go about obtaining it?  I bet there are plenty of beer lovers out there who would love to hear your secrets!

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Right now it’s easier than ever to understand the driving forces behind the beverage boom. It’s fall, it’s chilly, and warm and spicy is all the rage. The Pumpkin Spice Latte, a mass-market hit since its inception, is just one product that has people running to coffee shops to get their “fix.” And the treat isn’t isolated to Starbucks, its inventor. Convenience stores such as 7-11 offer up the hot drink during the holiday season, and Dunkin’ Donuts has joined the craze with their own version—the Pumpkin Crème Brulee Latte. And swap out regular dairy milk for almond or coconut milk, another fad accounting for the increased coffee shop sales, and you have just opened your doors to an entirely different market…the nut milks allow vegans to enjoy a decadent coffee drink alongside their dairy counterparts.

Seasonal beverages aren’t the only trend in world of beverages, though. Specialty hand-crafted sodas are making a splash in the refreshment department. Sonic, with an already-extensive list of beverages, has recently expanded their menu to include lower calorie sodas with flavorings that they already carry: Peach, Raspberry, Blackberry-Pineapple, Sunshine Berry, and Hawaiian Wave—the latter two including pieces of fresh fruit, diced small enough to be sipped through the straw. And Starbucks introduced their new Fizzio line during the past summer, their own lighter versions of ginger ale, lemon ale, and root beer that are not only lower in calories but also are caffeine-free and contain no high-fructose corn syrup, artificial flavors, or preservatives.

Alcoholic libations are also on the rise, as restaurants and even coffee shops stretch their creative minds to add new twists to old favorites, evidenced by the rise of fancy, fruity martinis or savory cocktails that implement infusion of different herbs and spices into their traditional offerings. Even the fast-casual dining segment is furiously working to find ways to integrate alcohol sales into their growing culture—a difficult feat as they are simply not operationally set up for it. Larry Leith, of Tokyo Joe’s (based in Denver), is in the process of testing a service that will include a staff member walking the floor during the weekends, offering to bring additional beer to thirsty diners.

These are just a spattering of examples of why beverages are a part of the 10 biggest restaurant trends to watch for in 2015. It’s easy to see the allure to business operators and customers alike, and the effect they will have on sales in the coming year and beyond.

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