{"id":12927,"date":"2024-03-06T15:42:22","date_gmt":"2024-03-06T20:42:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dryatlas.com\/staging\/?p=12927"},"modified":"2024-04-22T14:34:15","modified_gmt":"2024-04-22T18:34:15","slug":"guide-to-non-alcoholic-distilled-botanical-spirits","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dryatlas.com\/staging\/articles\/guide-to-non-alcoholic-distilled-botanical-spirits\/","title":{"rendered":"Your Guide to Non-Alcoholic Distilled Botanical Spirits"},"content":{"rendered":"\r\n

A few years ago, I found myself holding a book older than the United States of America. I was wearing cotton gloves and being extremely careful, but I wasn\u2019t in a museum or an auction house. I was at a restaurant in the Meatpacking District with Ben Branson, founder of Seedlip<\/span><\/a><\/span><\/span>.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Ben owns an original copy of <\/span>The Art of Distillation<\/span><\/i>, published in 1651, and he (boldly) brought it with him to New York and let me flip through it. It\u2019s a fascinating book that includes instructions for \u201chow to extract a milky white substance from the rays of the moon\u201d and \u201cviper wine is made thus.\u201d For the latter, start by taking the best vipers, cut off their heads and\u2026 well, I\u2019ll let you read the rest<\/span><\/a><\/span><\/span> if you\u2019re interested. Thankfully for us, Ben was inspired to create not a better viper wine but rather the world\u2019s first non-alcoholic distilled botanical spirit.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Within non-alc spirits, no segment raises more questions than distilled botanicals<\/span><\/a><\/span><\/span>. Most of us know what gin tastes like, so even if you\u2019re never tried a non-alc gin<\/span><\/a><\/span><\/span>, you can imagine what one might taste like\u2014and you can probably figure out how to use it to make a non-alc G&T. So, Ben demonstrated boldness yet again when he chose not to brew a better non-alc beer<\/span><\/a><\/span><\/span> or to create a non-alc gin, but instead to create a completely new type of spirit, one without reference in the traditional spirits world. This <\/span>guide dives into this category, offering insights into how non-alc botanical spirits are made, top brands to explore, and how to enjoy them yourself.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

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What are non-alcoholic distilled botanical spirits?<\/b><\/p>\r\n

To understand non-alc distilled botanical spirits, it\u2019s helpful to first understand exactly what vodkas and gins are. Vodka comes from the Russian word for water, voda, because it\u2019s a distilled spirit defined by its absence of flavor. To say that gin is vodka with flavor, specifically the flavor of juniper berries, is an oversimplification but not a drastic one.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Branson realized that juniper is merely the tip of the iceberg in the world of flavorful botanicals to be distilled. Non-alc distilled botanical spirits are like non-alcoholic gins, except that they make use of a much broader range of botanicals.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

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How to choose a non-alcoholic distilled botanical spirit<\/b><\/p>\r\n

As the world of non-alcoholic spirits expands, the options on the shelves multiply. Here\u2019s a simple guide to picking the best non-alcoholic distilled botanical spirit for your palate:<\/span><\/p>\r\n