#Trendspotting Chicago Edition

Posted: August 28, 2017
In: Trends

TEA

We visited the Kombucha Room in Logan Square and chose a flight with very dynamic flavor profiles, including Mango Chili, Watermelon Agua Fresca, Blackberry Cucumber Basil, Strawberry Rose Jun.

After, we tried the Iced Cascara Tea at Wormhole Coffee, which had strong cherry notes and a hint of coffee flavor.

FOOD AS MEDICINE

The Ginger Fennel Chai and Turmeric Chai we sipped at Chiya Chai were infused with botanicals and functional ingredients.

We also had the Salty Pink Himalayan with Almond Butter Chai, which was an indulgent treat with almond butter at the bottom of the cup.

We stumbled upon Juice Rx and tasted the Rescue Shot, a potent elixir that is suggested to combat the flu or any other illness.

Its ingredients included ginger, lemon, wildflower honey, acerola berry, oil of oregano, cayenne pepper, and stabilized oxygen.

NOSTALGIA WITH A TWIST

We tasted the Rosemary’s Baby at Wormhole Coffee.

The beverage was a play on the Arnold Palmer with cascara (instead of black tea), lemonade and rosemary.

Next, we tried Thai Tea Egg Cream at Spinning J, which was a classic egg cream with a global twist.

POPULAR INGREDIENTS

Also at Spinning J, we ordered the Watermelon Hibiscus Crush.

The house-made soda was bursting with flavor from the watermelon, and even had grassy notes from the rind.

We snacked on a Beet Reuben at
Spinning J that used beets as a meat replacement.

Our last stop was Nosh and Booze, where we enjoyed a salad with grilled watermelon and beets.

We concluded the trend walk with a
Rosé O’Donnell icee pop from Nosh and Booze.

beverage, Beverage Industry, beverage trends, cocktails, coffee, consumers, customization, dessert, flavor, flavor chemistry, FoodBev, functional beverages, functional ingredients, imbibe, Juice, locavore, Non-dairy milk, nutrition, nuts, organic, plant-based, probiotics, Product Development, protein, RTD, spices, sugar reduction, superfruits, sustainability, transparency, vegan, vegetables

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