Team William Murray visited Hotel, Restaurant & Catering (HRC), the largest event for foodservice and hospitality, taking place over three days at Excel, London. Co-located with IFE (International Food Exhibition) and Pub Show @ HRC, visitors had the opportunity to talk to over 1,500 suppliers and take their pick to watch one of the 100 demos and seminars.
The Pub Show @ HRC covered all things pub and bar, from tech to equipment and bar snacks to drinks including samples of the latest mixers, flavoured spirits, bubble drinks, craft beer and cider. Co-located with Drinks @HRC & IFE, The Pub Show @ HRC welcomed a constant stream of visitors keen to source the next new ‘fad’ for their pub.
The British Institute of Innkeeping (BII) played host to a pavilion with experts on hand to provide advice and support to visitors.
Craft and independent beer and ciders were showcased in The Taproom with samples on offer from Siren Craft Brew.
Surprisingly, there didn’t seem to be a huge amount of no/low alcohol brands exhibiting although popular brand Lucky Saint, non-alcoholic beer stood out. Luxlo, a lower alcohol, lower calorie, vegan and gluten free gin was also a busy stand.
Visitors looking for suppliers of soft drinks, mixers and hot drinks were spoilt for choice. Spring, Arctic, and Norwegian waters were popular and tea brands were there in force.
Gin remains one of the most popular UK drinks although the UK Gin market is one of the most competitive in the world with over 200 strong offerings available and a local maker in every city. So, no surprise to find some new flavoured gins at this year’s show.
The key take out from this year’s Pub Show and one to watch is the comeback of vodka. Growing at 300% from 2019 to 2023, 50% of the top 10 cocktails are vodka-based. Flavoured vodka increased by 55% in 2020 and a further 45% in 2021*. Sampling at the show, with a quirky branded horsebox, the team at The Cotswolds Toffee Vodka were singing the praises of flavoured vodka. The team were so passionate about their product – a premium flavoured vodka loved by all generations, even the WI.
*Mixed Drinks Report by CGA NielsenIQ
