Flavors such as yuzu, key lime, calamansi, kumquat, hibiscus, ginger and turmeric are among the leading citrus and botanical options in beverage innovation.
The variety of flavors emerging in the beverage sector is a good sign that the industry continues to evolve. Health and wellness manifests in flavor profiles, as some brands try to convey that their product has a lower sugar content, natural sweeteners, or a portion size or nutritional profile that gives consumers permission to partake.
Some products want to be perceived as better-for-you or natural and use flavor as a mechanism to communicate their intended position, even though many flavors aren’t relegated to a specific category or product type.
In the “sexier citrus” category, blood orange has become relatively mainstream, though we at Imbibe would still classify it as more dynamic and sexier than a traditional orange flavor. Flavors we are tracking (and you should be, too) in this grouping include yuzu (which has seen 49% growth as a Google search term in the past 18 months), key lime (49% growth), calamansi (49% growth) and kumquat (22% growth). Other true-to-fruit flavors on our radar because of increased sample requests and/or product launches include guava, persimmon and fig.
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