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Chefs can say the darnedest things. According to a recent survey of 1,282 culinary professionals polled by the U.S. National Restaurant Association, here are some of the top things we'll be sipping more of in 2008: craft beer; energy-drink cocktails; martinis; seasonal brews such as fruit and spice beers; mojitos; Belgian-style Lambic beers; India pale ales and other hoppy-tasting beers; organic wine, and wheat beers.

Detect a theme? All I can say is it must be getting hot in America's restaurant kitchens, because beer is clearly top of mind with chefs these days.

Not that they're wrong. Premium, craft-brewed beers of all stripes will certainly be more popular this year than ever, with traditional suds from the brewing behemoths continuing to beat a slow retreat.

But permit me to offer a supplementary list. Announcing the trendy tipples of 2008:

VODKA, VODKA

AND MORE VODKA

No surprise there, of course. And as much as I would like to see an ebb in the vodka tide, there will be no such thing. New sales will be driven by ever-more-offbeat flavourings as distillers raid the tropical-produce aisles and spice racks.

Small, niche producers are creating infusions based on saffron, tarragon and kaffir lime. Look for such brands as Sub Rosa soon at a liquor board near you. Other, wackier flavours on the horizon include mojito mint and Australian wattle seed, already available in foreign markets.

The next big, mainstream product will be Absolut Mango, proving it can take a while for those sharp-minded MBAs at the spirits companies to discover the world's second most popular fruit. Absolut's entry follows Finlandia Mango Fusion, already in many Canadian stores. Prediction: The next big sissy cocktail will be the mango mojito. I'd bet a good bottle of gin on it.

GIN LOSES ITS

NEXT-BIG-THING STATUS

Speaking of gin, will 2008 be the year gin finally becomes the new vodka?

Don't bet on it.

The spirit that could be called the original-flavoured vodka (that's what gin essentially is) won't gain much ground, despite rumblings to the contrary.

According to the Liquor Control Board of Ontario website, three excellent brands are about to be discontinued, South from New Zealand, Citadelle from France and Broker's from London.

Those chefs cited above know what they're talking about: Almost one-third of those polled ranked gin as

passé.THE HUNT FOR

FRENCH REDS

The big wine trend this year will be the global hunt for newly arriving reds from the great 2005 vintage in Bordeaux, Burgundy and the Rhône Valley.

Wine aficionados will be tempted to overspend on the wines from that year.

"Two thousand and five is going to bankrupt most collectors," said Dave Hopgood, portfolio manager of European wines for the British Columbia Liquor Distribution Branch.

Mr. Hopgood is planning his largest single-category release ever on Oct. 4, with 6,500 cases of barrel-matured 2005 Bordeaux (the previous record was 3,500 cases). "The wines are so complete and so generous," he said of the selections, typically blends of cabernet sauvignon and merlot. "Bordeaux will bankrupt people if Burgundy doesn't do it first."

Faster-maturing red Burgundies, based on the more delicate pinot noir grape, have already been streaming onto shelves.

Mr. Hopgood predicts that one of France's most famous reds from Bordeaux, Château Pétrus, could reach $2,000 a bottle. That said, he added many of the premium wines to be released in October will retail for as low as $25.

Mr. Hopgood's favourite bargain-basement 2005 Bordeaux red is already available in British Columbia: Château Le Marquisat La Pérouse, at just $9.99. "It tastes like 15 bucks," he said. "It's delicious."

RHÔNE ROARS

Look for Rhône Valley wines to capture a wider audience in 2005. As its top wine of the year, the influential U.S. magazine Wine Spectator recently chose Clos des Papes Châteauneuf-du-Pape 2005. The entire southern Rhône, and in particular the districts of Châteauneuf-du-Pape, Gigondas and Vacqueyras, has been hugely undervalued by wine consumers. But they seem to be getting the message, especially with the 2005 vintage, when abundant sunshine ripened the grapes to near perfection.

Many new wine consumers also are discovering that the Rhône Valley is the spiritual homeland of the shiraz grape (a.k.a. syrah) common to Australia, the go-to wine country for drinkers on a budget.

Mr. Hopgood says the French category in British Columbia grew by 17 per cent during the past year thanks largely to consumers trading up from such hot-selling, training-wheel wines from Australia as Yellow Tail, with its fruity, smooth-textured, slightly sweet profile.

"They've been brought to wine by the likes of Yellow Tail," Mr. Hopgood said. "It's brought people into the wine category, but I think Europe is benefiting."

It should be noted that France hasn't fared as well lately in the east, where it has historically enjoyed a much larger share of the market and has been losing ground to such value countries as Australia and South Africa.

LOWERING CALIFORNIA PRICES,

RISING CANADIAN RIESLINGS

Across the country, look for California to bounce back, supported by a favourable Canada-U.S. exchange rate. In recent years, the Golden State has been maligned for exorbitant prices despite some superb offerings from blossoming districts like Santa Barbara and Paso Robles.

Liquor boards willing, the weak U.S. dollar should start to reflect itself in better Canadian retail prices this year - though many readers have written to me to complain that it isn't happening quickly enough.

On the Canadian wine scene, the big story this year will be new releases from the 2007 harvest from Ontario, British Columbia and Nova Scotia, proclaimed by many as the greatest in the short history of the domestic industry.

While most reds require a longer time in barrel and bottle before they're released, many fresh whites, notably rieslings, will hit winery boutique and liquor-store shelves starting around May. If ever there was a year to discover Canada's ever-improving rieslings, this is it.

BATTLING THE SCOURGE

OF CORK TAINT

Many Canadian whites will come sealed under a screw cap, as will many more red wines from courageous producers around the world doing their share to fight cork taint.

Whether you're experienced enough to notice it or not, a chemical called TCA is spoiling the flavour, in a sweaty-sneaker way, of an estimated 5 to 8 per cent of your wine bottles.

It occurs randomly in corks and many people simply mistake it for poorly produced juice rather than a chemical defect in the cork.

BURGUNDY, BORDEAUX

... AND PARIS?

Here's another trend you can bank on: every celebrity on Earth will own a winery by the end of 2008.

Okay, I'm exaggerating, but not by much. To a list that includes Wayne Gretzky, actors Dan Aykroyd and Gerard Dépardieu, golfer Mike Weir, singers Sting, Olivia Newton-John and Cliff Richard, and porn star Savanna Samson, you can now add Paris Hilton. The hotel heiress has launched a new Italian sparkling wine in Europe, to be released in North America this year, called Rich Prosecco.

Appropriately, she appeared nude, covered in gold paint, in a promotional video for the wine, which is packaged in a can and comes in three flavours, including passion fruit and strawberry.

DRINK TO YOUR HEALTH

WITH VITAMIN BEER

The big club-drink trend for the year will be sport-drink cocktails spiked with vitamins, herbs and protein, purporting to deliver health benefits and stamina in addition to a nice buzz. I hope the fad peters out before I write this column next year.

More appealing to me is another virtue-boasting drink on the horizon: vitamin-enriched beer. It's basically an attempt to win back drinkers who've bailed to red wine for its purported health benefits.

Among the new, better-for-you brews currently available only south of the border: Stampede Light, flavoured with smoked white oak chips (like many inexpensive wines, not coincidentally) and infused with B vitamins and folic acid. Among the catchy taglines on the Texas-based company's website: "Beers to your health."

Major U.S. brewer Anheuser-Busch is reportedly rolling out two of its own.

The only problem: The U.S. government has so far prohibited listing vitamin content on beer labels because it would imply a health benefit, and that's a no-no when it comes to booze.

Frankly, I think there's more upside in a beer-flavoured vodka.