Sober, booze free, adult soft drinks, non-alcoholic; with people drinking less, and wellbeing brands booming, non alcoholic adult drinking is hot property. Seedlip broke the rules with their non alcoholic spirit but its no longer a one horse race.
A non alcoholic spirit, sounds a bit like an oxymoron but in fact by definition a spirit is an “Unsweetened, distilled, alcoholic drink that has an alcohol content of at least 20%”. Which must make a non alcoholic spirit, some kind of distilled, unsweetened drink.
No one has given us complete clarity on how its made, for some it’s a cleverly guarded secret but a non alcoholic spirit seems to in fact be a hydrosol, a process involving raw ingredients and using steam / distillation / extraction, so you end up with some kind of botanical water, its been used for things such as perfume forever. Clever, elegant and delicious.
We take a look at the best non-alcoholic “spirits”, what they are, & where to find them
Non Alcoholic Spirits
Seedlip
Founder Ben Branson is really the Willy Wonka of non alc. He kicked off this whole movement and with the big dogs Diageo backing Seedlip, this is the one you’re likely to have seen about town in the trendy bars. Stocked by most supermarkets and easy to get online, it now comes in 3 flavours; Garden, Spice & Grove. With a big team they’re always up to something new so definitely one to follow if your into this whole non alc thing.
Priced at £27.99, you can get it on the Seedlip website.
Ceders Non alcoholic Gin
With three flavours to choose from these guys go head to head with Seedlip and offer G&T lovers a great non alc alternative. Founded by a Swedish / South African power couple, they use rare South African botanicals and make the liquid with Swedens pristine waters. It comes in three flavours, Classic, Wild & Crisp, all have juniper so gin flavour fans should enjoy them all.
Harder to find than Seedlip here in the UK, but with a big alcohol company distributing them we’re sure you’ll be seeing more of it soon. Priced at £19.99, you can get it online at The Whiskey Exchange.
Three Spirit
Not yet available, this is for all the people looking for a non-alcoholic spirit that isn’t trying to be a gin. Claiming to be the first plant-based non-alcoholic spirit with functionality, ie. designed to make you actually feel something. Their main belief is in the power of socialising and connection which has driven this British company to create a drink which makes you feel connected and relaxed on a night out, using ingredients such as cacao, damiana and lions mane mushroom.
Check out their website and keep your eyes peeled for the pre-order which a little birdy just told us is right around the corner!
Herbie Gin Virgin
This Danish gin company make all sorts of interesting gins (with alcohol) so they knew what they wanted to achieve with their Herbie Virgin, its produced in North Jutland, Denmark where they drill their own herbs and water then distill on small copper boilers. Herbie uses juniper as one of its botanicals, along with Danish Apple & lavender.
Get it here for £22.50
Sea Arch
Newcomer Sea Arch is definitely one our favourites, very heavy on the Juniper so it really has that gin taste when served with tonic. Sea Arch takes its inspiration from the sea of the Southwest coast of England, and uses Sea Kelp as a botanical, in addition to more traditional gin botanicals such as angelica root. Made by a couple who own pubs we’re excited to be able to buy it when its ready. Currently in production, they say follow them on social to get the latest updates.
Strykk
Ex Funkin founder Alex is the first to break the “alt gin” craze and tackle non alc Rum, he also has a non alc gin, but its the Rum we’re interested in. With big aspirations, and a few cool bars already stocking them, we expect to see plenty more from Strykk. The cheapest non alc spirit in market, you can find them on Amazon.
Surendran & Bownes
Headed by trained chef Cameron Bownes and pharmaceutical scientist, Guyan Surendran, this new “spirit alternative” mimics the aromatic profile and complexity of London Dry Gin but with absolutely no alcohol. The complexity of it’s ingredient list, from the herbaceous notes of the tonka beans, the bitterness of wormwood, the floral and fruity notes of the rose water and orris root to the woody scents of the coriander and cardamon, is what makes this so exciting. You can try their first edition here at Borough Wines.
Caleño
Founded by Ellie, who was frustrated by the lack of choice in alcohol-free drinks, set out to bring some of her travels around her columbia homeland and bottle it up in a Juniper and Inca Berry non-alcoholic, free-spirit. The Inca Berry gives this drink it’s sweet and tangy tropical notes, which means it’s just as delicious whether served on it’s own or with pineapple juice and fresh lime and soda. Wanna know the best news? it isn’t even out yet, so you can be one of the first to try it; pre-order here now.
Borrago
Avid traveller, entrepreneur and Harvard graduate Tom Tuke-Hastings founded this new non-alcoholic spirit on an awareness of the growing zero alcohol sector. Borrago (pronounced boar-ah-go) is named after the latin classification name for borage, a bright blue edible flower. Made from steam distilled botanicals, alcohol free, no calories, no sugar or sweeteners and free of any classified allergens, we think this pretty much ticks all the boxes – you can get it here for £19.99.
