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In April 2020, during the early stages of the pandemic, Ina Garten captured the moment. She posted a video on Instagram to show how she was holding up at home during quarantine: by making the perfect large batch of Cosmos, served all at once to herself in a gigantic martini glass.
Garten wasn’t drinking alone. According to a study by the National Library of Medicine, an organization within the National Institutes of Health, many people who were impacted by the pandemic began to drink significantly more alcohol than prior to the outbreak.
However, as the pandemic progresses, a counter-phenomenon has cropped up. This year, across the globe, 58% of those who drink alcohol are increasingly opting for non- and low-alcoholic cocktails, according to the Bacardi Cocktail Trends Report for 2022.
Non-alcoholic drinks shop Boisson in Manhattan / Photo by Walter Wall
Javelle Taft, head bartender at Death & Co., a cocktail bar in New York City, has observed this evolution firsthand.
“Americans are known, in general, for over-imbibing,” says Taft. “Before the pandemic, you’d just kind of go into rowdy bars and have some drinks, and you were there to have a good time.”
