Adult-ifying The Snack Market
A little sweet, a little salty and slightly spicy, alcohol-flavored chips are bringing to life several grown-up trends shaping the snack scene. As snacking is no longer the optional extra and becomes a definitive occasion, flavorists are infusing snacks with classic alcoholic beverages for consumers increasingly in search for bold, strong flavors in everything from snack foods to the main course.
When it comes to beer, think outside the glass. Craft breweries have taken note of this “adultification” trend in the snack industry and have infused chips with the flavors of dark stouts and porters to lagers. The end result is a chip with subtle beer flavor. This trend isn’t being confined to just chips – cracker manufacturers are also adopting the trend. Pilsner and porter crackers are making their way to grocery store shelves and are expected to liven up consumers’ cheese plates. Flavorists can recreate the hoppy essence of a cold draft with Advanced Biotech’s Azacca Hops Concentrate, natural Stout Distillate or natural IPA Distillate.
While some consumers are indulging in hoppy and malty flavors in chips others prefer a more sophisticated treat. Potato chips are also being infused with premium flavors like coffee and wine. This allows flavorists to create a number of different products, including health food snacks such as rice cakes and vegetable chips, popcorn, and snack crackers.
The prominence of craft beers has subsequently led to the popularity of it and other alcoholic beverages as flavors. And in fact, as people look for bolder flavor combinations, they will continue to be paired with a number of different flavor ingredients. Whether they’re paired with sweet and tart citrus flavors, with more delicate flavors such as pear, and with spicy flavors such as hot pepper to create a wider range of flavors in the snack industry than ever before. The flavorist who is looking to explore some of the bolder flavor options might just find cocktails to be a great source of inspiration when looking to create the next big hit flavor.