Everleaf Mountain - Non-Alcoholic Aperitifs - The Distinctive Ingredient to Prepare a Refreshing Spritz. A Great Alternative to The Non-Alcoholic and Alcohol-Free Gins. Perfect for Gifting (50cl)

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Specially distilled for making low-alcohol drinks, the serve impressed Kiely’s panel with its “intense fragrance of spices and a bit of citrus”. The first panel to gather at the Ibis Styles hotel in London Bridge comprised: Antony Moss MW, qualifications director at the Wine & Spirit Education Trust (WSET); Joyce Yu‐Hua Chou, translation project manager at the WSET; and Melita Kiely, editor of The Spirits Business and chair of The Global Spirits Masters Competitions, who led the group. Uresti said: “There were some amazing products in this flight, and we saw the category not involving too much sugar or acids, but finding a way to balance both.” Hoppy and citrusy” notes on the nose secured a Master medal for Aperitivø Classicø. Smith said: “There was a nice bittersweet interplay. Good intensity, and with soda it’s Americano‐esque.” Smith was just as excited about this round. He noted: “Some superb products that really encapsulates their alcoholic counterparts, balance of sweetness and sourness.”

Seedlip Spice also found favour with the judges, winning a Gold medal. Tasting notes included: “Clove oil, cinnamon, and warming Christmas spices.” Furthermore, it was praised for having a “delicious balance of sweetness with a lovely, lingering aftertaste.” For the perfect low-ABV serve, pair this with San Pellegrino Blood Orange to create a simple yet effective Garibaldi.

De Kuyper blew away the judges with De Kuyper Zero 0% Margarita in the non-alcoholic apéritifs round. In the Lower‐Alcohol (26% to 30% ABV) round, meanwhile, Beefeater Botanics Lemon and and Ginger walked away with an impressive Gold medal. A large flight of Non‐Alcoholic White ‘Spirit’ (less than 0.5% ABV) delivered a pair of Master medallists. Gold‐winning Ceder’s Wild was found to be “complex, with ginger and woody spice”. Smith said: “It mixes well and has good potential with soda, tonic, ginger ale, Coke.” Drinkers are switching out full-strength spirits for lower-ABV alternatives Ten Silver medals completed the flight, including medals for Glory Mornin’ Super Vivid, Lyre’s Agave Blanco Spirit, and Siegfried Wonderleaf.

The first panel to gather at the Ibis Styles hotel in London Bridge comprised: Antony Moss MW, qualifications director at the Wine & Spirit Education Trust (WSET); Joyce Yu‐Hua Chou, translation project manager at the WSET; and Melita Kiely, editor of The Spirits Business and chair of The Global Spirits Masters Competitions, who led the group. In the Non‐Alcoholic Dark ‘Spirit’ (less than 0.5% ABV) flight, Sober-Rum 0.0% went home with a coveted Gold medal for its “hint of nice butterscotch and caramel towards the end”.The data came from IWSR’s No‐ and Low‐ Alcohol Strategic Study, which looked at 10 countries: Australia, Brazil, Canada, France, Germany, Japan, South Africa, Spain, the UK and the US. In terms of volume, the low‐and-no sector rose by 7% in the regions in 2022. The figures are testament to the ongoing consumer interest in low‐and‐no products. Gluten is a protein compound found most commonly in the grains wheat, barley, rye and oats. Wheat and barley are often key ingredients in producing drinks such as beer and in sealing wine casks. Gluten free drinks avoid using such products. To label as gluten free the product must have below 20 parts per million of gluten, which is barley a trace! This beautifully-bottled Italian aperitivo secured a Gold medal in the Low‐Alcohol (6% to 25% ABV) round of our blind tasting. Lees noted: “A very diverse category, good to see natural flavours and very good to see balance achieved.”

Reflecting on the standard of entries, Moss said: “The message I took from today is that this is clearly still an evolving category. Some were quite successful with a little complexity – but there is still room to create some convincing ‘switch‐outs’ for major spirit categories. One area that requires work is capturing the aromatic complexity of a product, which is clearly very hard. But it’s all moving in the right direction – I’m looking forward to seeing what future developments we’ll see from this relatively new part of the spirits world.” The next flight to be sampled was Low‐ Alcohol (6% to 25% ABV). The judges were impressed by Savoia Americano Rosso, awarding a Gold medal. Lees found this to be “rich and aromatic on the nose, nicely bitter and herbal on the palate. Delicious balance of sweetness with a lovely, lingering aftertaste.”

In the Non‐Alcoholic Liqueur (less than 0.5% ABV) flight, Silk Cream Liq.eur with Maca Concept from Creamy Creation (B2B) received a Gold medal. Kiely’s panel noted the “vanilla aroma, custard‐like”, and found the palate to be “well‐textured, indulgently creamy, and very good”. High-quality options are growing for lower-alcohol dark ‘spirits’ The judges also awarded 12 Gold medals in this heat. Four Pillars Bloody Bandwagon was one of the Gold winners, enjoyed for its “sweet, red‐berry” nose, with a “good level of dryness and complexity on the palate – even when mixed with tonic water”.

The third group consisted of: Rosie Lees, co‐founder and director of Nineteen94; Sara Jane Eichler, founder of Negroni Club UK; and Matt Chambers, spirits writer and co-founder of the Whisky for Everyone blog, who chaired. Nine Gold medals gave this round a boost, with winners including: “refreshing, balanced and slightly sweet” De Kuyper Fizzy Watermelon; Fluère RTD Negroni, with “soft bitters, sweet orange” aromas; and “crowd‐pleaser” De Kuyper Fizzy Peachtree, which did “exactly what it says on the tin”. A second Master was awarded to Pallini Limonzero, which offered a “great lemon aroma” on the nose. “Excellent body and lemony taste that resembles limoncello greatly. Slight spiciness at the end, but overall great,” noted Prousaefs. We think it’s worth knowing that each Everleaf flavour has a similar viscosity to an alcoholic spirit and if like us, you’ve tried tons of alternatives, you’ll know this is no mean feat.

This zero-ABV version of a traditional cream liqueur was developed for sipping, and Kiely’s panel noted the “vanilla aroma, custard‐like”, and found the palate to be “well‐textured, indulgently creamy, and very good”. In keeping with the names, each are inspired by places, and mountain is labelled as vibrant and aromatic, forest as complex and bittersweet, while marine is said to be crisp and refreshing. We also found handy mixing instructions on the reverse, outlining measurement ratios with tonic, fruit slices and ice. Our tester thought this was a particularly nice touch.