Sunshine Drinks in the Fall

MODSUB#59

Wotcha!

The sun has made a welcome return in the PNW this week. You can count on Mother Nature to provide a little respite from the gloomy weather just when it is most needed.

So in this week’s newsletter, I push aside the drink recommendations I had planned and instead opt for a couple summer cocktails. A little vitamin D for the soul as it were. 

Enjoy!

In this week’s edition:

NAN
New NA Drink News

RTD COCKTAIL
Optimist - Cali Spritz

RTD COCKTAIL
Mocktail Club - Havana Twist

Read time: 4 minutes 26 seconds

From our sponsor:Thank you for supporting our sponsors who in turn support this newsletter.

NAN
New NA Drink News

NORTH AMERICA

• BEER: Californian alt-metal band Deftones have debuted a new lager by the name of Tone Zero. (Link)

• SPIRIT: Here’s an intriguing new one; Hilfens have just introduced HopHit, a non-alcoholic botanical spirit that is “packed with pure hop oil extract”. (Link)

• BEER: Go get some of the new Juicy IPA from Partake Brewing. It’s a limited run so don’t waste a minute. (Link)

• BEER: Colorado’s Station 26 Brewing Co., has a new NA version of their Tangerine Cream. (Link)*

• BEER: Talking of Colorado breweries who are replicating NA version of their flagship beers—Upslope Brewing Co., put out Non-Alcoholic Craft Light this month. (Link)*

• BEER: And just to make it a trio of Colorado NA beers, Prost Brewing Co. have put outan N/A Pilsner in the last few weeks. (Link)*

• MIXER: Oregon’s Dappled Tonic Water has two new flavors—Floral and Citrus. (Link)

*Thanks to Tyler at Reducaholic for the heads up on the new beers from the Centennial State.

WORLDWIDE

• BEER: Over to the UK, and newbies Veto are launching their first two lagers next month, Play (w/caffeine) and Pause. (Link) 

RTD COCKTAIL

ModSub: Optimist has been producing non-alcoholic spirits since early 2021. Their core offerings—Bright, Fresh, and Smokey—reflect the diverse landscapes that collectively embody Los Angeles, Optimist’s hometown. Their spirits have won numerous awards and been warmly embraced by top mixologists and premier restaurants across the country.

The Cali Spritz is Optimist's first RTD (ready-to-drink) beverage, an extension of last year’s Cali Amaro Non-Alcoholic Spirit and a nod to the classic Italian amaro spritz—think Aperol Spritz. 

Except maybe not the Aperol Spritz you are used to. Turn down the sweetness, fade the citrus back a little and open up all the channels for a rousing digest of herbal notes and that’s Cali Spritz. The botanical ingredients are both broad and lengthy, combining to produce a bitterness, that’s intentionally dominant, while the fruit applauds supportively from the sidelines. It’s delightfully bold in all the best possible ways. 

As the Holiday party season starts to limber up, you could do worse than to slip a few Optimist Cali Spritzes into you pocket and party the night away.

Dang that bitterness is the gift that keeps giving!

How does Optimist describe their Cali Spritz: Citrus, herbal, bitter-sweet. Spritzed. A non-alcoholic amaro spritz with adaptogenic plants and functional herbs.

First time reading The Modern Substitute? Why not subscribe?

RTD COCKTAIL

ModSub: Pauline Idogho came up with the idea for Mocktail Club towards the end of her pregnancy. She was out celebrating with friends, experiencing what so many others face—no decent options for those taking time away from alcohol. Inspired to create her own line, she drew from her travels to over 30 countries.

Each of the five drinks produced by Pauline’s company reflects time spent in places like India, Bali, New York, Italy, and Cuba. It was a bootstrapped start, but with Whole Foods as her first customer and an investment from Pronghorn, Diageo’s incubator arm, Mocktail Club has grown in leaps and bounds in a short time.

My first introduction to Mocktail Club’s cocktails was at an Erewhon supermarket in Santa Monica, where a sampling table was set up in-store. With no one attending the table, I assumed the drink samples were “help yourself.” It turned out the chap running it had popped off for a tinkle, and while doing so, my self-sampling turned into self-spilling.

As I tried to clear up the mess I had made, the gentleman returned and while doing his best to react well to me slinging his drinks around, he was clearly none too pleased. 

If I had not left him with the best of first impressions, Mocktail Club’s cocktails certainly had the opposite effect, and I came away from the store with a handful of Havana Twists.

I tend to find a lot of non-alcoholic Mojitos leave a lot to be desired. The exceptions are out there for sure, but if you remove the rum from the cocktail, you need to find something to put in its place or you are just left with lime and mint flavoured soda water. Which is fine I suppose, but hardly something to write home about. 

Havana Twist, though, is anything but a bland replica. It’s a perfect marriage of traditional and contemporary recipes—unlikely bedfellows but beautifully in sync. Cucumber and mint appear in the form of a shrub, with tea added to the mix along with the expected lime juice. However, it’s the addition of the peppery warmth of cardamom and the sweet intensity of clove that truly elevate this drink beyond the typical canned Mojito cocktail. Both spices play a prominent role, each adding a distinct layer of depth.

At the end of the day, this is the kind of non-alcoholic cocktail you want—not a pale imitation of a beloved classic that leaves you disappointed, but a version that replaces the missing rum with something delightfully unexpected. It’s the kind of drink that makes you sit up and think, “Oh yeah, I’ll have some of this.”

Apologies again for the spill.

How does Mocktail Club describe their Havana Twist: Refreshing Cucumber, Mint, Lime with a touch of Cardamom and cloves. The cardamom and cloves provides the refreshing cucumber mint and lime medley with some accents and complexity. Perfect as is, on the rocks, with a splash of soda or as a cocktail base.

READS + LISTENS
Last Week’s Edition + Other Suggestions

I’ve been really enjoying this podcast from Michelle O’Brien. Here’s a few episode suggestions: Amanda Giles, Jessa Frances, Laura Silverman, Tim Barber and Rebecca Forewood.