5 ways drinking will change by 2080: from high-tech pints to solar powered spirits

Find out how new technology could change British boozing habits in the future
Mieke Smith25 January 2016

One of the many reasons Star Wars: The Force Awakens has gone down as the highest grossing movie in history, is that it indulged our obsession with life beyond our time on Earth. Although Star Wars itself is set a long time ago in galaxy far, far away, for decades sci-fi films and books have given us intergalactic depictions of our destiny on other planets. Here, we ponder the most vital question about life in another galaxy… what and how will we be drinking in the future?

1. Forget the pint glass

Designed by the Open Space Agency and Ballantine’s whisky, the ‘Space Glass’ solves the biggest issue with drinking in zero gravity, runaway liquids.

The glass which has already been created and tested in Germany’s microgravity ZARM Drop Tower, is built with 3D printing technology currently used by the International Space Station. The drinking vessel includes features such as rose gold detailing to deflect radiation from the sun, a small helix to carry the drink to your mouthpiece, a one-way valve to allow your drink to travel from the bottle to the glass and a magnetic base so you don’t have to down it in one and can rest your glass on a magnetic coaster or surface.

2. A protein-packed drinks menu

In space, you have to combat the loss of muscle and bone mass due to microgravity by exercising for several hours per day. So it only makes sense that cosmic drinks lists will have much more of a protein kick to them.

Michele Reina, Head of Mixology at the Looking Glass Cocktail Club, in Hackney, and business partner Dr. Georgia Billing, have worked together to produce a cocktail list of the future. Including drinks such as a stomach settling, vermouth based ‘The Green Planet’ which uses herbs and plants currently grown in space on the International Space Station and ’The Meteor Diet’, a vacuum packed Bloody Mary style cocktail that acts as a protein and nutrient-rich meal, with a biltong chaser to make up for the limited food choices in space.

3. Medicinal serves

In microgravity conditions, fluids build-up in your respiratory system causing you to feel a cold-like illness. With this in mind, another of Reina and Dr Billing’s creations is a futuristic twist on the Hot Toddy. This could be served hot ‘on tap’, due to the slower mixing and infusion of liquids into hot water in space, or alternatively served in individual premixed bottles heated, of course, by a solar-powered microwave.

Having a permanent cold may well affect your ability to taste, so drinks like this galactic hot toddy will be made with super concentrated aromatic bitters that contain vitamins such as D and K to boost energy and the immune system.

Best London gin - in pictures

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4. Your bartender will be a scientist

Zoe Burgess, Head of Research and Development at the future-gazing collection Drink Factory, already uses cutting-edge scientific techniques to push the boundaries of drinking experiences - from making diamonds out of vermouth to extracting water from olives.

She thinks it’s these advanced scientific methods, used by likes the Heston Blumenthal and other pioneering chefs will play a major role in future of making drinks. Burgess says: ‘The future methods and experiences will be very different to what we currently recognise as mixology. We would have to get even more inventive with flavours and ingredients and how they would work at zero-gravity. I imagine drinks in a hundred years time would be simplified and refined, and possibly pre-batched. If there was limited space then we would stick to the classic choices of a good whisky, gin and vermouth. I also think a number of concentrated essences and aromas would be key in order to manipulate these base spirits; items like lemon oils and olive aromas could be used to replace the classic lemon twist or olive in a martini.”

5. Your local boozer will be velcro-filled

There hasn’t been any confirmed plans to build a bar or club in space (yet), but this hasn’t stopped plenty of visionaries and music influencers revealing their expectations for your drinking experiences in the future.

Simon Guerrier and Dr Marek Kukula, authors of The Scientific Secrets of Doctor Who have suggested that for nostalgia’s sake future bars would still have all the trappings of your traditional English pub. Naturally there would be some differences such as a majestic view of an asteroid, velcro to hold drinks and bottles down, dark stain-hiding carpeted walls in case of any rouge spillage and candidly they warn: ‘Patrons are advised to drink in moderation as vomit in a zero­ gravity environment is not nice.’

You can find more predictions on the future of drinking in 2080 in W instazine

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