M&S has just unveiled its largest Christmas drinks range to date, with more than 100 new products landing both in store and online at once. The range covers everything from bubbly crémant to the high street’s very first decaf espresso martini, giving shoppers plenty of reasons to start stocking up early this year.
With so many new additions launching simultaneously, there’s a broad spread of options on offer, whether you’re planning a full-blown Christmas party or simply fancy something a bit more festive to sip on over the coming months.
There’s a bigger focus on alcohol-free options this year.
Reflecting a wider shift toward drinking less, M&S has introduced alcohol-free versions of all its seasonal favourites for the first time, including Mulled Wine at £4.50, Bucks Fizz at £4, and a sloe flavoured fizz also priced at £4. Alongside these, the retailer has added nearly 40 new products to its wider No and Low Alcohol range.
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This expansion ties into a growing trend known as zebra striping, where drinkers alternate between alcoholic and alcohol-free drinks across the same occasion rather than sticking to one or the other all evening. Research from M&S suggests almost two thirds of shoppers say they’re more likely to include alcohol-free options at Christmas or New Year celebrations than they were five years ago.
This year is a first for the espresso martini category.
Beyond the No and Low range, M&S has also launched a decaffeinated version of its popular canned Espresso Martini Cocktail, priced at £3.50, marking the first product of its kind on the market. Given how popular canned cocktails have become for celebrations generally, it’s a smart addition for anyone who loves the flavour but wants to skip the late night caffeine hit.
There’s also a new vegan option joining the lineup in the form of a Vegan Chocolate and Coconut Blend priced at £12, designed to offer the same rich, velvety experience as a traditional dairy-based Irish cream liqueur, ensuring everyone at the table has something indulgent to enjoy.
New ready-to-pour cocktails are available for anyone hosting this year.
For dedicated cocktail fans, M&S has expanded its premium Marksologist range with three new ready-to-pour classics, each presented in elegant cut glass bottles. These include a vodka martini, a negroni and an old fashioned, each priced at £20, offering an upscale option for anyone hosting friends over the festive period.
Beyond the full-sized bottles, there are also smaller stocking filler options available, including an Irish Cream Liqueur Selection priced at £10 and a Kenmore Single Malt Scotch Whisky Selection at £12, both featuring three mini bottles ideal for gifting to a spirit or liqueur lover.
A bigger spotlight is being placed on English wine this Christmas.
M&S has also significantly expanded its English wine offering this year, growing the range to more than 30 bottles in total, its largest selection yet. English wine has been steadily gaining popularity over recent years, with M&S reporting that 57 percent of shoppers now say they’re more likely to buy English wine than they were five years ago.
The retailer has added 14 new bottles to its shelves this year, sourced from vineyards spanning from Norfolk all the way down to Cornwall, giving wine lovers a wide selection of homegrown options to explore this Christmas.
Crémant is becoming such a popular choice.
According to M&S, crémant has become its fastest growing category within sparkling wine, with sales climbing 160 percent compared with two years ago. Crémant is produced using the same traditional method as Champagne, but comes from different regions and typically at a considerably lower price point.
That combination has helped crémant overtake Champagne to become the retailer’s second best-selling sparkling wine, sitting just behind Prosecco. Building on its existing Crémant de Bourgogne Rosé, priced at £14 and launched earlier this year, M&S has now added a Blanquette de Limoux to the range too, giving shoppers another affordable way to add a bit of sparkle to their celebrations.
This launch signals Christmas is officially underway.
With such a wide range of stylish new drinks landing across stores and online all at once, M&S has made it tempting to start the festive shop earlier than usual this year. It’s not the only retailer moving early either, with Tesco having already launched its own Christmas range back in September too.
Given how quickly popular seasonal products tend to sell out once the festive rush properly kicks in, you should have a browse sooner rather than later if there’s something specific on your list, whether that’s the new decaf espresso martini or one of the ready-to-pour classic cocktails.
Whether you’re drawn to the new alcohol-free options, the expanded English wine selection, or simply fancy trying the high street’s first decaf espresso martini, M&S’s latest drinks range gives shoppers plenty of reasons to start their festive planning that little bit earlier this year.
