How local innovation drives global cocktail culture

If two trends defined global cocktail culture in 2025, they were the rise of the tequila-based picante and the return of the Old Fashioned. The latter, the simple, definitive bourbon cocktail, is usually an uncomplicated concoction of the liquor, simple syrup and bitters. But it continues to be reimagined in cocktail bars across the globe and in India—often smoky, often citrusy, sometimes quite wild; infused with spices like cardamom and cinnamon, fruits like tamarind and mango, chai, and even bhut jolokia chilies.

The resurgence of the Old Fashioned and its playful iterations are a pretty accurate representation of global cocktail culture today, where the rapid spread of popular trends across cities and countries is accompanied by the infusion of local flavours, often quite literally, says Nidal Ramini, advocacy director at Brown-Forman, the company behind brands like Jack Daniel’s whiskey and Woodford Reserve bourbon. A trend may kick off in Spain or Portugal or Bangkok, and within weeks, it will be on the cocktail menu in bars in Mumbai, Delhi and Bengaluru, says Ramini, who was on a visit to India recently.

“If you’d asked me 10 years ago whether the top bars in the world would include many from Asia, I might have been surprised. But the globalisation of hospitality means talent travels, people take inspiration, and local bartenders are now the people pushing the scene,” says Ramini. “Speed is the key thing here: the speed at which trends travel and get adopted is unprecedented.”

The spread is partly driven by rising consumer demand for premium, experiential, and sustainable drinking options, as well as by social media—Instagram and YouTube have made cocktail preparation a visual art form, with bartenders competing on aesthetics, theatricality, and shareable, Instagrammable presentations.

Alongside, the rise of bar takeovers in the hospitality industry has given a massive push to ideas and techniques being shared by mixologists and bartenders from across the globe. The phenomenon of bar takeovers may have peaked in 2025 —as some experts predicted—but it’s more likely that it will continue well into 2026. As recently as last weekend, ZLB23, the speakeasy bar at the Leela Palace Hotel in Bengaluru, hosted Hong Kong’s Bar Leone, named the global no. 1 on the World’s 50 Best Bars list, for a fun bar takeover.

“It’s a proper exchange programme, and an ongoing one,” says Nishant Agarwal, general manager, The Leela Palace Bengaluru. “While getting Bar Leone to do a takeover was a great honour, our team from ZLB23 has also done takeovers all over the world. They have been to Japan, Bangkok, Hong Kong, Singapore… all the places where the bar scene is the most active. The bartending community is a close-knit one, where ideas are exchanged freely and there is no gatekeeping,” adds Agarwal.

Among high-profile bar takeovers across Indian cities last year were the ones featuring Singapore bar Jigger & Pony, Bar Nouveau from Paris, and Aubrey from Hong Kong, while an event at Bangkok’s Bar Sathorn featured Indian bars like Lair (new Delhi), ZLB23 and Soka (Bengaluru), and Boilermaker (Goa). From mere takeovers, the trend is also moving towards entire bar programmes being crafted by teams from other cities and countries, such as Singapore’s Cat Bite Club, on the Asia’s 50 Best Bars 2025 list, creating a drinks programme for Bengaluru’s Bar Sama. And it’s not restricted to metros either. One of the big shifts in the Indian bar scene has been the rise of cocktail culture in cities beyond the cocktail hotspots of Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru and Goa. Last year, Atelier V, a new bar in Indore, hosted Vietnamese bar Stir and Cabinet 8 from Malaysia.

There are other, smaller signs of globalisation as well—from ice programmes to culinary techniques being used in cocktail-making. “Good ice production indicates precision and care, and I’ve been to several Indian bars on this trip where I was impressed by the attention being paid to ice. The technical experimentation— using rotovaps (rotary evaporator machines), sous-vide, centrifuges—is notable and at a level you’d expect in top global bars,” says Ramini.

In 2026, expect to see a move back towards ingredient-focused and minimal garnishes, minimal presentation, and quality glassware, says Ramini. “Some bars still use big garnishes, but many are moving towards restraint. Stripped-back craft bars will be big in 2026. We will continue to see bars develop a tone of voice and identity: their look and feel, the guest experience, their storytelling,” he adds.