About a week ago Carl and I were invited for a non-alcoholic cocktail masterclass in the heart of Manchester that was organised by a company called Seedlip.
When I opened my invitation, the first thing popped in my mind was "Oh no, I'm trying to quit sugar.." and of course if I accept this, I will drink a lot of those.
The name was super new to me, and as I have never heard of them as soon as I received the invitation, I searched online for hours to gather as much as information I can.
I found out that one of main inspiration for Seedlip creator Ben Branson was The Art of Distillation that was published by John French physician in 1651. It was very common for physicians to distil herbal remedies using copper stills. Then he stumbled across John French’s recipes, and he began experimenting with them in his kitchen, using a small copper still and herbs from his garden. How cool is that, right?
The other inspiration behind Seedlip is the sugary mocktails. He wanted to create a drink that people could enjoy when they were not drinking. We are both not big drinkers, occasionally we love to drink a glass of wine or try new cocktails. However, most of the times when we eat out we order non-alcoholic cocktails or water. If I pick a cocktail that doesn't contain any alcohol, I end up with a non-alcoholic cocktail that includes a tremendous amount of sugar, possibly even more than an alcoholic one. Definitely not the right choice if you want to cut back on the sugar if you are diabetic or just want to follow a healthy lifestyle.
Yes, water would be the realistic choice, but who wants to drink only water when you are out?
So we sort of stuck..exactly what Ben Branson head in his mind.
Couldn't agree with him more.
So what is Seedlip?
Seedlip is the world's first distilled non-alcoholic spirit, solving the ever-growing dilemma of "what to drink when you're not drinking".
It's sugar-free, sweetener-free, artificial colour- and flavour-free. Wanna hear more? It contains 0000 calories. How amazing is that, right?
Seedlip currently has three unique and complex blends: Spice 94, Garden 108 & Grove 42.
My personal favourite was the Spice 94 which debuted in Selfridges in late 2015, the very first batch of 1000 bottles sold out in just three weeks, the next in three days, and the third 1000 in less than half an hour.
My personal review on Seedlip, is it any good?
First of all, let’s start at the name: A family in Lincolnshire who had begun farming, hand sowing seeds they were using baskets called ‘seedlips’. I love the name, unique, easy to pronounciate and to remember.
I would certainly take one of these pretty, luxurious bottles with 0 calories off any supermarket shelves. I would probably end up buying one just because it would look nice on the trolley in our soon to be refurbished dining room.
But let’s talk about the most important thing, the taste. It's definitely not what you expect from a non-alcoholic cocktail. Carl has many AA 3-rosette backgrounds, so he loves trying new sophisticated flavours both food and drinks wise. He loved Seedlip as it’s an entirely new flavour with a unique experience and that’s exactly what anyone looks for in fine dining food/drinks.
Thinking of the procedure how Seedlip is made you can expect a strong herbal, botanical flavour which you can mix with tonic if you find it too strong. As Carl doesn't like literally anything that is sugar-free, I found super strange that his first experience was positive with Seedlip. For him, this spirit tasted a lot better with tonic. Even that his idea was adding a bit of sugar syrup, I'm still super proud of him as he drunk something that is sugar-free. haha
For me on the other hand, Seedlip is perfect. Healthy, sugar-free, non-alcoholic so I can drink as much as I want without getting a headache the next day or feeling guilty because of the calories.
I love fresh, natural blends, especially on a hot summer day.
I would definitely pick this spirit over any sugary mocktails any days.
I just wish they would have a berry flavour one. Oh yes, that would be my favourite!
Flavours that they currently have :
A zesty & complex, citrus-forward blend of three types of orange & uplifting spice distillates.
Orange & Mandarin peel & pith top notes, with juicy Blood Orange undertones, open up to a stalky, grassy character.
Clean, fresh notes of Ginger & Lemongrass with a dry finish from a subtle Peppercorn prickle
A complex blend of aromatic Jamaican Allspice berry & Cardamom distillates with two barks & a bright citrus finish.
Seedlip Spice 94 is aromatic with warm spiced notes, citrusy top notes from Lemon & Grapefruit peel and a long bitter finish from the highest quality barks (Oak & Cascarilla).
A floral blend of hand-picked Peas & homegrown Hay from founder Ben Branson’s Farm, with traditional garden herb distillates in celebration of the English countryside.
The fresh & floral Seedlip Garden 108 captures the essence of the English countryside. Sophisticated top notes of hand-picked Peas & Hay & a complex herbal base character of Spearmint, Rosemary & Thyme.
Gifted
So, yes my experience with Seedlip was only positive, and I would 100% honestly recommend to all my friends. If you want to try all the flavours, they have a super cute trio gift box. (click here)
Seedlip is available to purchase at Booths stores in Manchester and www.seedlipdrinks.com
Thank you Seedlip for having us we both really enjoyed mixing our drinks up.
