The Agave Showstopper

MODSUB#84

Wotcha!

It’s that time of the year where we turn to drinks inspired by our friends to the south.

So this week I spend an afternoon with one of the best non-alcoholic tequilas on the market and realize I’ve ignoring a beer from Athletic Brewing that has quickly become a favorite in the ModSub Towers.

Enjoy some good drinks this week.

Cheers,

Myles

P.S. If you need more Cinco de Mayo non-alc drink ideas, here’s last year’s suggestions.

In this week’s edition:

NAN
New NA Drink News

SPIRITS
Free Spirits - The Spirit of Tequila

BEER
Athletic Brewing - Atlética

Read time: 6 minutes 54 seconds

NAN
New Non-Alcoholic Drink News

NORTH AMERICA

• BEER: We’re kicking of this week with news from of a new Blood Orange Cerveza from Partake Brewing. (Link)

• COCKTAIL: De Soi have a new spicey Haute Margarita out. (Link)

• WINE: If you fancy a glass of Good Twin’s Sparkling Blanc but not a whole bottle, you’re in luck! Single-serve mini-bottles are now available. (Link)

• FUNCTIONAL: Kentucky’s Cornbread Hemp have launched 4 new THC seltzers. (Link)

• BEER: One of my favorite beers from the beforetimes, Apocalypse IPA from 10 Barrel Brewing Co, now has its very own NA version. A little kitchen jig has already been performed. (Link)

• COCKTAIL: Not content with treating us to one new product this year, The Pathfinder is treating us to two. Spritz is out now. (Link)

From our sponsor:

We are excited to be holding the 2nd Annual International Non Alcoholic Competition. 

Only real trade buyers judging by Category & Price. Top Winners will be profiled on our ProfessorMediaGroup sites.

Thank you for supporting our sponors who in turn support this newsletter.

SPIRITS

The ModSub thoughts: When you hear from multiple trusted sources that there’s a drink “you should definitely put on your list,” I tend to listen. So for some time, I’ve been waiting for the right moment to crack open a bottle of The Spirit of Tequila from The Free Spirits Company. Today’s the day.

I’m too excited about this one to waste any more time writing an intro. So let’s get straight to the cocktails I’ve randomly chosen from the Free Spirits recipe collection.

La Batanga

I couldn’t resist kicking off this afternoon of cocktail-making with La Batanga. Aside from having a cracking name, I used to be a fan of the Cuba Libre, and this version—with tequila instead of rum—caught my eye. The original drink was created by Don Javier Delgado Corona a number of years ago but became a hit in 2024 thanks to TikTok. 

With 2.5 fl. oz of tequila in this cocktail, the agave and spice from The Spirit of Tequila are front and center, with lime adding a welcome tang to round out the cola.

What I love about this version is the suggestion to add a couple of dashes of All The Bitter Aromatic Bitters and a half-ounce of The Pathfinder. It gives an otherwise simple, yet lovely, cocktail just that extra level of complexity to create one of those “oh wow” moments.

The sugary cola won’t be for everyone. I couldn’t recall the last time I had one, but this cocktail is worth making an exception. Keep this recipe in your back pocket for the coming summer.

Bitters & Beer

As many of you likely know, adding bitters to a cheap lager can turn a frog into a prince. This recipe, however, is not that—by any means. It’s an unusual spritz-like mix of The Spirit of Tequila, Wilfred’s Non-Alcoholic Aperitif, Corona, and dashes of All The Bitter Orange and Aromatic Bitters. The result? Something I can only describe as very unusual.

In the alcoholic world, there are a handful of similar cocktails—a Corrido Prohibido, a Lagerita, a Tequila Shandy—but none that I could find that also include the orange and rosemary-herbaceous bitterness the Italian liqueur. 

Still, the flavors of the three key ingredients remain distinctly separate, yet seem to work both with and against each other. It’s a collision of flavors that shouldn’t work—but somehow do.

Would I order this again at a bar? Maybe. Would I like a little more sweetness? Perhaps. Would I recommend you try it? Absolutely.

I switched out The Spirit of Milano for Wilfred’s and Best Day Kölsch for Corona. 

The High Tea-Quila Cooler

This little beauty wins the day though. To be honest, I was mildly irritated that I needed to make a simple syrup for this one—even though I chose the cocktail and it took all of five minutes to put together. But that Earl Grey syrup? A total head-turner.

The sweet, citrusy bergamot from the syrup is balanced by lemon and rounded out by the spiciness of the tequila. The mint adds a refreshing brightness that enhances the spice. Crazy good. I thought La Batanga would take the crown, but it’ll have to settle for second place. The gold medal goes to the High Tea-Quila Cooler.

Funny thing is, I’ve spent an afternoon making and writing about some pretty amazing cocktails—and I’ve barely mentioned the tequila itself. You know what? There’s really no need, other than to say this: It’s no surprise to me that friends in the non-alc industry have strongly recommended The Spirit of Tequila. It’s one of the best—if not the best—non-alcoholic tequilas currently on the market. At a push you could sip it neat, but I question what the point was when it performs so incredibly well in a cocktail. 

Fabulous. And I haven’t even made a Margarita yet.

How does Free Spirits describe The Spirit of Tequila: A premium non-alcoholic tequila alternative inspired by traditional Reposado tequilas. Crafted with all-natural flavors and functional ingredients, this award-winning spirit delivers the rich complexity of aged tequila - without the alcohol. Awaken your palate, elevate your mood, and recharge your body with every sip.

With warm notes of oak, vanilla, and bright pepper, balanced by roasted agave notes, The Spirit of Tequila is perfect for crafting zero-proof Margaritas, alcohol-free Palomas, or any tequila or mezcal cocktail that calls for a smooth, lightly smoky base - all the flavor, without the compromise.

Previously from Free Spirits: Espresso Old Fashioned

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BEER

The ModSub thoughts: Sometimes it’s easy to overlook the big players like Athletic Brewing. At this stage, almost everyone knows about them. Do they really need more coverage—regardless of how much we all owe them a debt of gratitude? The point of this newsletter has always been to highlight drinks you might not know about, not the ones staring you in the face every time you walk into a supermarket. It’s why I’ve never felt compelled to write about Heineken 0.0. You already know about it—so why waste the digital ink?

That said, I have covered Athletic before. Three times, in fact: the now gone but not forgotten Geralt’s Gold, their enduring Oktoberfest seasonal Fest Brew, and the summertime music festival release, Fancy Like. All three are limited editions—an area I find far more interesting from the brewery, as they tend to offer something more boundary-pushing.

So, when I went looking for a beer to write about this week—something fitting for Cinco de Mayo—I promptly threw all of that out the window and dipped into Athletic’s bestsellers to try Atlética, a Mexican-style copper. And boy, am I glad I did.

I spent about 45 minutes trying to figure out what exactly the “copper” in “copper beer” means, thinking it might refer to some specific brewing process I’d never come across. Turns out, it’s pretty much about the color. Sure, there’s a rabbit hole you can go down—kilned malts, caramelized sugars, Vienna-style lager comparisons—but honestly, I’d rather just drink the beer.

Atlética leans heavily on Munich malts, delivering a sweet, toasted, bready flavor that stays smooth right through the swallow. There’s a hint of floral and possibly some citrus, with a mild bitterness on the finish. It reminds me of Negra Modelo from the regular beer world—a true thirst-quencher with a flavor profile that edges toward lager territory, if amber ales were on the far end of the spectrum.

The bottom line is Atlética might just be my favorite Athletic beer now—and I wasn’t expecting that at all. I guess that’s why it’s a bestseller.

How does Athletic Brewing describe Atlética: A refreshingly bright take on a Mexican-style copper. Using the finest Munich malts, it boasts a lightly toasted malt character with a whisper of spicy florals before rolling into smooth and lightly sweet waves of bread crust and wheat. A medium-body brew that is big in flavor, it’s the epitome of easy drinking. A smooth and satisfying cooler must-have.

COMMENTS
Share Your Thoughts

Let’s get the conversation going. HIT THE “COMMENT” BUTTON ⬇️ and share your thoughts.

Here’s some suggestions:

1. 🇲🇽 Have you tried any non-alcoholic tequila alternatives like The Spirit of Tequila? What’s your favorite way to use them?

2. 🇲🇽 Which of the three cocktails in this issue—La Batanga, Bitters & Beer, or the High Tea-Quila Cooler—are you most curious to try? Or have you already made one of them?

3. 🇲🇽 Do you have a favorite non-alcoholic drink for Cinco de Mayo celebrations?

4. 🇲🇽 Have you tasted Atlética from Athletic Brewing? How does it compare to other Mexican-style NA beers in your opinion?

5. 🇲🇽 Do you find yourself reaching for big-name NA brands like Athletic or smaller, lesser-known ones? What drives your choice?

6. 🇲🇽 What’s a non-alcoholic drink or brand you think deserves a shout-out for Cinco de Mayo? Let’s build a list together.

READS
Last Week’s Edition + Other Reads