Low-to-no spirits have been seen for too long as a fringe product. But no longer, they’re now ready for prime time, found online, in supermarkets and flying with British Airlines.
This was the message at the recent Low2No Bev event at Truman’s Brewery in east London.
If you’re thinking about creating a low-to-no alcohol spirit, you need to have your flavour and selling costs sorted before taking the plunge. This is according to findings in a report from Lumina Intelligence, a sister company of Low2No Bev.
And, in observing the numerous stands and the amount of visitors to each, a spokesperson with an near-to over-the-top personality helps as well.
With this being the first in-person drinks trade event since the pandemic began last year, this reflects how the low-to-no spirts, beer and wine industry is being looked at by the industry as a whole.
While major alcohol-free spirit producers Lyre’s and Clean G had the largest stands at the show, they were far from being alone with numerous others also exhibiting, with some using the show to officially launch their entry into the field.
Along with the low-to-no spirits were alcohol-free beers, sparkling meads, CBD drinks, ciders, and other cold refreshing beverages, most tasting like they can give real-deal a run for their money.
An advantage that low-to-no beer has over similar spirits is in the UK the use of the word ‘beer’ is more flexible. There is no beer guild waiting on the side lines to come crashing down on anyone whose beer does not fulfil strict standards.
For example, when Spencer Matthews first launched his Clean G alternative gin-like drink and called it ‘gin’ on the label, the UK’s Gin Guild came down on him like a ton of bricks. To be called ‘gin’, it must be at least 37.5% ABV with a juniper-led flavour.
However, how long this strict interpretation will last is anyone’s guess. Major-players Gordon’s and Tanqueray’s alcohol-free gin-like beverage comes in bottles looking exactly like their real gin. The labels look pretty much the same – except they don’t say ‘gin’ –, and some supermarkets stock it next to the real gin. Nobody asking for Gordon’s 0.0 beverage will call it that, instead saying, “Where is your Gordon’s double-O gin?” Even when doing a Google search of Gordon’s 0.0, Google automatically added in “alcohol-free gin”.
And indeed, Distillers was asked at the event why the use of ethanol as an ingredient be seen as the key factor in how a beverage is defined? Why not only style and flavour? It is a question that ultimately needs to be addressed for/by all producers.
According to a recent BBC article, even in Australia producers and consumers are being to question the idea of why alcohol needs to be included in an adult drink.
“There is a big wave coming,” says Alistair Whiteley, who set up alcohol-free distillery Seadrift with his wife Carolyn in Sydney.
He says non-alcoholic products need to go “head-to-head” with what’s offered by sophisticated drinks brands. Then, they need to recreate the entrenched ritual of drinking without that powerful social lubricator, alcohol.
For more on the Low2No Bev event, be sure to see the Autumn 2021 Distillers Journal, coming out this July.
