A look at three of the newest liqueurs on the market, plus tasty cocktail recipes for each.

Liquor companies and their marketing teams spend loads of cash and even more time developing new products based on consumer trends. Their objective: to create a product that not only taps into the mood of the public but also has legs and won’t disappear after a year or two. It’s too early to tell the success of these liqueurs, so feed your curiosity now, it just might be your only chance.

High-end picks are a recognition of craftsmanship and achievement

Uh-oh! Are the eighties back? With seven new Starbucks opening daily and Whole Foods all but dominating the high-end grocery business, it’s easy to see how the premium experience has materialized around us. It’s also easy to compare this trend to the credit-card flush days of the ’80s, especially with The Donald gracing our TV screens again.

Where the ’80s were about excess (and mesh sandals), the premium experience is more altruistic. It’s a trend where product knowledge and experience are the driving factors, not consumption. It’s a trend about craftsmanship, achievement and the creation of a unique emotional connection.

Where passion and tradition meet a few thousand grape varieties

As a vino superpower second only to France, Italy produces 20 per cent of the world’s wine. It boasts a winemaking lineage that goes back to the time of Christ and the country is home to an estimated 2,000 grape varieties. Italians are passionate about their wine, grapes, technique and tradition, and even their wine-making regulations are steeped in the sort of controversy only 2,000 years of legacy can create. And, if you’ve ever been caught cheering for the wrong team at a soccer game — you know, Italians love expressing themselves!