RTD cocktails are a growing trend, and I predict they are about to explode in 2013. I understand this gets liquor snobs and mixologists in a tizzy… but, hey, liquor snobs and mixologists, its not all about you.  No one is debating the superiority of an individually, hand-crafted cocktail with classic mixology roots but there is a big, wide world out there filled with people who don’t know budweiser from Blue Coat gin, and have no idea who Dale Degroff is.  Yes, really.  And, those people have dollars to spend on booze.

And, here is the biggest benefit: ready-to-drink options put cocktails in their hands straight from the grocery store shelves, helping to initiate those who don’t know mixology from meatloaf. This is positive because the more the public is exposed to the idea that mixology is something good and accessible, the result is higher sales, profits and demand for mixology-focused bars. Isn’t that what we want, after all?

The average American is relatively lazy. So, if a product is “cool,” affordable and easy to get, it sells.  Consumers want to connect with the glamorous life without leaving the comfort of their beer-stained sofas.  The perceived glamour of Wolfgang Puck cafes and Martha Stewart cookware are available to the everyday shmo, who is not interested in training at the cordon bleu or flipping the perfect omelet, but still wants to believe they are rubbing shoulders with true gourmets.

Luckily for the booze world, this is also an opportunity to make the average consumer aware of classic cocktails and mixology. RTD’s give “easy access” to this “mixology thing” consumers have been hearing about, and put it into the hands of someone who doesn’t live in New York, Los Angeles or Chicago, yet is curious about dipping a toe into the cocktail pond.

The first time I tried a pre-bottled cocktail was around 2008 at a bar in Washington DC. Barman Owen Thomson had the clever idea to not compromise quality for volume, and batched classic manhattans, and the like, into single-serving plastic bottles to be sold quickly (and profitably) when the place was packed with partiers.  Brilliant!

A couple of years later, this Bethany “desperate housewife” lady made liquor industry headlines by selling her pre-bottled skinny girl margaritas for a bank-account bolstering $100 million. Does that mean this mass-produced, artificially flavored line is worth drinking? Not really. But does it mark a trend? Absolutely. And, wouldn’t it be great if we could get quality drinks bottled and presented to the public for mass consumption (and profit)?

Ready-to-drink encompasses many concepts and products.  Below are a few I’d like to highlight.  By next year, I expect the quantity of options will be overflowing.

1) Fluid Dynamics – cocktails matured in oak

I love that these brandy-based bottled cocktails are classic in style and absolutely delicious.  My favorite is the Saratoga.  I could open-and-pour that all day long.

• Brandy Manhattan:  germain-robin brandy, vya sweet vermouth
• The St. Nick: germain-robin brandy, clear creek crnaberry liqueur
• The Saratoga:  germain-robin brandy, low gap whiskey, vya sweet vermouth

2) No. Averna and Suze

This was handed out at tales of the cocktail 2012. Truth be told, I’m not sure if this is available for purchase or if it was just a promotion during tales, but I love the mix, and the handy flask-shaped bottle made it perfect for toting around New Orleans.

3) Vita Frute

Carter and Courtney Reum, the duo behind Veev acai spirit, jumped on the prepared cocktail trend and expanded their line to include Vita Frute, which comes in several flavors and hit store shelves in 2012.

4) OM Cocktails

Jason monkarsh reached out to me in 2009 when he wanted to create a certified organic cocktail-in-a-bottle.  He wanted the line to begin as original, fresh fruit cocktail recipes that could be translated into a ready-to-drink cocktail. Three years later, our line hit Whole Foods shelves across southern California, and is poised to expand to other areas this year.

If you are a fan of any other particular prepared cocktails post about them in the