Absolut is betting on brunch, not bottle service, as drinking habits shift

• Absolut partnered with Tabasco to launch a new spicy vodka, geared toward brunch cocktails.
• Although consumers are drinking less, an IPSOS poll found a rise in "daycap" drinking.
• Younger drinkers are shifting away from late-night drinking toward earlier consumption.

Vodka has long been associated with late nights and crowded clubs, but Absolut is betting its next growth moment will happen earlier in the day.

The spirits giant recently partnered with Tabasco to launch a spicy vodka designed with brunch cocktails in mind — a move that reflects a broader shift in how and when Americans are drinking.

As overall alcohol consumption declines, especially among younger generations, brands are increasingly chasing what some are calling the "daycap"— intentional daytime drinking tied to social occasions like brunch rather than nightlife. Data from Bacardi ties the daycap trend to what it calls "snackable sips" and "mini martinis," influenced by European consumption habits, rather than nights out drinking to excess.

"People are not just staying at home, they are going out, they're going to brunch, they're choosing different times of the day to drink," Caroline Begley, US VP of Marketing for Absolut, told Business Insider.

Absolut's Tabasco-infused vodka leans hard into meeting that moment for early drinkers. The brand has positioned the product around Bloody Marys and other brunch-friendly cocktails, timing its rollout to coincide with Bloody Mary Day, National Hot Sauce Day, and the lead-up to the Super Bowl — all daytime drinking occasions.

Absolut even marked the launch with a brunch event in New York City, a deliberate nod to the mid-morning communal dining trend that many brands see as resurgent.

The strategy comes as younger consumers are rethinking their relationship with alcohol. Gen Z and millennials are drinking somewhat less overall than prior generations, but when they do drink, they tend to be more intentional about the occasion, the setting, and the flavor.

Ipsos found in 2025 a year-over-year increase in daytime drinking across generations, a trend marketers increasingly point to as evidence that alcohol consumption is shifting earlier rather than disappearing entirely.

Brunch has become a particularly attractive target. OpenTable data shows an increase in large-group reservations, with mid-morning emerging as a popular time for social dining. Yelp has reported a 142% rise in searches for breakfast and brunch over the past year, while Datassential research, cited by Absolut, suggests that more than half of alcohol-drinking consumers attend brunch monthly — including a large majority of Gen Z.

Flavor experimentation has also become a key lever for reaching those drinkers. Spicy foods and beverages, in particular, have gained traction with younger consumers — a trend acknowledged by executives across the restaurant sector, including a recent reference from McDonald's CEO Chris Kempczinski as a top flavor to watch in 2026.

Market research firms project growth in both the hot sauce category and spicy spirits in the coming years, making heat an increasingly popular way for legacy brands to stand out.

For Absolut, the Tabasco partnership is as much about reframing vodka as it is about launching a new product. Begley said Absolut sees vodka as at risk of feeling "one-dimensional" at a time when consumers want more from fewer drinks. A brunch-focused, flavor-forward product allows Absolut to stay relevant without relying on the late-night drinking culture that younger consumers are increasingly opting out of.

The return of high-energy brunches — from restaurant expansions to revived daytime programming at nightlife-adjacent venues — suggests the shift may have staying power.

For spirits brands, that means the future of drinking may not be about convincing people to drink more, but about meeting them where they already are: cocktail in hand, well before sunset.