LCBO Food & Drink Spring 2024

MINI TREND

Luxe Water: The 1990s trend of deluxe bottled water is back, driven by those who take their daily hydration ultraseriously. Ontario now boasts its first certified water sommelier, Christina Li, who donates part of her company’s proceeds to the Canadian-based Safe Water Drinking Founda tion. With so many people being more careful about what they’re putting in their bodies, “water awareness” is both a wellness buzzword and an affordable, everyday luxury. Sip local with naturally alkaline spring water from Flow Water or crisp, natural-spring Muskoka Springs.

TIKTOK-TAILS

Viral mixology videos now inspire new cocktail trends weekly, with social media influencers offering insight on what to whip up at home. Typically created by amateur mixologists, these inventive drinks can be every bit as tasty as those concocted by the pros (and usually fun and easy, too), and often skew to a younger, sweeter palate (though the savoury Parmesan Espresso Martini craze bucks that trend!). Take the Hugo, an elderflower-tinged spritz: it amassed millions of social media hits, taking mixology out of the hands of bartenders and helping everyone feel more confident mixing up cocktails for friends. Sweet hits from last spring included Peep-Secco (a bright Easter marshmallow treat in a glass of spar kling wine) and the Chocolate Martini, served in a hollowed-out Easter egg. We can’t wait to see what TikTok bar-fluencers Michelle Kimball (@Michellebellexo) and Wootak Kim (@BarChemistry) do next. Find recipes for the Hugo and Chocolate Martini at LCBO.com/fdspring24.

76 FOOD & DRINK SPRING 2024