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.

Sweet Bubbly Espresso. Photo Courtesy of Frizz Coffee

Coffee drinkers rejoice! Houston’s is proud to announce the arrival of Frizz Coffee to our product line-up!

Produced in southern Italy, Frizz Coffee is the original sweet & bubbly espresso soda with pure cane sugar and a single shot of espresso rounding-out it’s very simple ingredient list. Frizz Coffee’s rich flavor tastes best when served cold, and even straight from the bottle. It can also be enjoyed poured over ice with half & half or cream. Frizz lovers say that it is a “must try,” and for those who are hesitant about the idea of coffee soda, rest assured that it tastes much better than you might think; especially when used in one of these delectable recipes from Frizz Coffee:

Frizz & Cream

• 1 bottle Frizz Coffee
• half & half or Cream
• Ice

1. Pour Frizz Coffee over ice.
2. Add half & half or cream, to taste.

Frizz Float

• 1 bottle Frizz Coffee
• Vanilla Ice Cream

1. Fill a glass with vanilla ice cream.
2. Pour Frizz Coffee over the top and enjoy!

Photo Courtesy of Frizz Coffee

Frizz Italian Cream Soda

• 1 bottle Frizz Coffee
• 24 oz cup filled with ice
• 1/2 oz Vanilla Syrup
• 1-1/2 oz Cream

1. Pour Frizz Coffee and Vanilla Syrup over ice.
2. Top with cream and stir. Mix it up by trying other syrup flavors!

Frizz Frapp

• 1 bottle Frizz Coffee
• 24 oz cup, chilled
• ice
• Smoothie Base
• 1/2 oz Caramel Syrup

1. Combine Frizz Coffee, Caramel Syrup, Smoothie Base and ice.
2. Blend and serve.

Frizz Mudslide

• 1 bottle Frizz Coffee
• Ice
• 1 shot Irish Cream Liqueur
• 1 shot Coffee Liqueur

1. Fill a glass with ice.
2. Add one Irish Cream Liqueur and Coffee Liqueur.
3. Pour in Frizz Coffee, stir and serve.

Photo courtesy of Frizz Coffee

Frizzkey

• 1/3 bottle Frizz Coffee
• Old Fashioned Glass
• Ice
• 1 shot Whiskey

1. Pour Frizz Coffee and Whiskey over ice.
2. Serve in an Old Fashioned glass.

White Frizztini

• 1/2 shot Kahlua
• 1/2 shot Vanilla Vodka
• 1/2 shot half & half or cream
• 1/2 bottle of Frizz Coffee

1. Mix all ingrdients in a cocktail shaker with ice.
2. Shake, strain into glass and serve.

Black Frizztini

• 1/2 shot Amaretto
• 1/2 shot Brandy
• 1/2 bottle Frizz Coffee

1. Mix all ingredients in a cocktail shaker with ice.
2. Shake, strain into a glass and serve.

Have you tried Frizz? How do you drink it – over ice, with cream or flavored syrup? Watch for new recipes and join the conversation! #HowDoYouFrizz

The post Frizz Coffee – the original sweet & bubbly espresso! appeared first on Houston's Blog.

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.

The post Restaurant Trend #4: Raise a Glass appeared first on Houston's Blog.