Campari tops our bestsellers list once again with our data showing it holds 15% of total category share. Those volumes are largely thanks to its role in the Negroni, the third bestselling classic in the UK’s top bars according to our poll. And it doesn’t stop there – the Boulevardier, Jungle Bird and Americano all feature in our top 50 bestselling classics, and then there’s Garibaldis, Spritzes and all manner of aperitivo-style serves too.  

Liqueur brands can generally be described as specialists or generalists and Giffard and Briottet, our second and third bestselling liqueur brands, fall squarely in the latter camp. The two French liqueur houses have swapped positions since last year’s ranking, with Giffard now in the silver medal position. Historically, the family-owned Giffard has been best known for its Menthe Pastille, but in the UK’s best bars it’s probably better known for its Elderflower, Pamplemousse or Banane du Brésil. 

If your bar isn’t relying on Giffard for its range of fruit liqueurs, there’s a good chance it has opted for another French liqueur-producing family. Briottet was slightly less likely than Giffard to be a bar’s number one spirit brand (6% to 8%), but shaded its compatriot 12% to 11% as a supporting brand. 

Cointreau takes the fourth spot. The triple sec is the named brand in traditional Margarita specs, the serve that’s topped our bestselling classic cocktails list three years in a row. But unlike Campari and the Negroni, Cointreau isn’t a dead cert in modern Margarita specs which often feature other orange liqueur brands or eschew the stuff altogether.  

Fair and Merlet, two more liqueur brands of the generalist bent, take sixth and seventh, while Luxardo and a second coffee liqueur, Mr Black, bring up the rear. 

Chartreuse tops the Bartenders’ Favourites ranking despite only managing eighth place in the volume ranking. That gap tells a now-familiar story, bartenders still love it but price and availability limit its practical uses.