Raissa and Joyce de Haas, Dutch twins, founded Double Dutch drinks in 2015, believing that drinking might be more flavorful and that expensive spirits deserved better mixers to make each drink wonderful. The mixer & tonic water brand has won more honours than any other mixer brand, including Best Tonic for Your Gin, Bartenders Choice of Tonic, and a spot on the renowned Forbes 30 Under 30 list, with flavours like Cucumber & Watermelon and Pomegranate & Basil. We speak with Joyce and Raissa about how firms are advertising cocktails further and how they are becoming more mainstream, which has been pushed by the Covid- 19 pandemic as customers seek a handy method to enjoy on-trade drinks at home.
The rise of foodie culture and social media’s emphasis on food matching has fueled the demand for a really “Instagram-worthy” photo, and cocktails provide the ideal opportunity to do so. Cocktails can be as complex as a Michelin-starred meal, and with molecular gastronomy and an emphasis on flavour combination, you can truly take someone on a sensory adventure. On the other hand, they can be just as simple; with the rise of the category, flavoured mixers like Double Dutch’ Bloody Mary soda or Cucumber Margarita have made cocktails even more accessible at home. This transition has allowed consumers to be a little more adventurous, layering flavour profiles to get the most out of their drinks.
Consumers are actively seeking out brands that will inspire them to make the most of their consumption opportunities. It’s about more than simply the beverage, from glassware to garnish. A well-designed cocktail can elicit an emotional response as well as a hunger appeal, resulting in increased awareness and trial, making it the ideal instrument for driving experimentation and reaching new audiences.
Lower abv cocktails are becoming more popular as people transition to more moderate drinking habits, which has increased the usage of more exotic and herbal ingredients in drinks like basil and rhubarb. This shift in consumer attitudes means that a flavorful and satisfying drinking experience is more crucial than ever, and cocktails or’mocktails’ are a wonderful tool for elevating your typical ‘No and Low’ beverage as the need for low alcohol options grows.
Molecular gastronomy and flavour pairing techniques are used to create Double Dutch flavours. This allows them to create distinctive and well-balanced flavour combinations that bring out the best in the alcohol they’re mixed with while also making cocktails easier.
When it comes to employing cocktails as a marketing strategy, there are some limitations. Alcohol regulations on sites like Instagram and Facebook can make it tough to advertise effectively. However, I think that it is critical to be responsible and promote consumption that is reflective of customers’ lifestyles — modest, deliberate, and tasteful. It’s even more crucial to focus messaging on why your brand is relevant to generate a distinct message that can resonate with consumers, regardless of the medium you’re using to contact them on.
