Non-alcoholic ‘spirits’ are making quite the splash in the drinks arena, and while it took me a while to wrap my head around the idea, I get it now.
Some people stop drinking alcohol for the health benefits. Some just don’t like the taste. Many can’t control the effects. And others can’t deal with the hangovers.
And that’s where non-alcoholic bevvies come into their own.
The idea is they taste like the real deal, minus, of course, the fermentation process which creates the alcohol.
Fluere is the first non-alcoholic spirit I’ve tried. So I don’t have anything to compare it to. But on comparing the bottle design to others I’d seen online, I reckon Fluere’s is right up there. It’s a classy looking bottle, that’s for sure.
Seeds from Casablanca coriander, juniper berries from the Himalaya, lavender from the Provence and Mediterranean lemon peel combine to make Fluere. And on the nose, the stuff does smell like gin… with a hint of cordial.
On ice, for me, it tasted pretty watered down. Like a glass of cordial filled with too much water. But with Fever Tree tonic and a couple sprigs of lavender, it tasted like, gin… minus the bite. Turns out that’s fairly common among non-alcoholic gins. They’re not really supposed to be drunk neat.
It bursts with botanicals thanks to them being individually distilled in a copper pot.
The designated driver was pretty stoked with it, saying he found it really refreshing. And reckons he’d easily be convinced it were the real deal if he’d already had a few gins. And I agreed. Which is a pretty great thing to say about a non-alcoholic spirit, don’t you think?
