Sober Spirits

Grasse is a small city in the hills above Cannes, and it has been the centre of the global perfume industry for several centuries. The techniques for extracting aromatic compounds from raw materials, concentrating them, and preserving their complexity were developed here over generations. It is an unusual starting point for an alcohol-free spirits brand, but it is exactly where Sober Spirits began.

Brothers Calixte and Viktor Payan spent years organising luxury events, running over four hundred a year for clients across the high-end corporate world. From that experience they understood something practical: guests at premium events wanted quality non-alcoholic options, and most of what existed was not good enough. The sweet, juice-heavy alternatives that passed for sophisticated AF drinks were not fooling anyone.

Their solution was to work with Grasse perfumers who understood how to separate alcohol from a liquid while keeping what makes it interesting. Rather than conventional dealcoholisation, which strips flavour along with the ethanol, the Payan brothers partnered with fragrance industry specialists to extract the alcohol in a way that preserves aromatic complexity. The alcohol itself is repurposed for perfume production. What remains contains no alcohol and no added sugar.

The spirits are produced in a distillery established in 1875, using century-old copper pot stills. The whisky begins its life as a Scotch-style whisky aged in oak barrels; the gin is built on a London Dry profile. The rum, amaretto and a bitter aperitif round out the range.

The results have been well received in specialist spirits competitions. The brand is available in over thirty countries, which puts it among the more internationally distributed AF spirit producers.

It is expensive by the standards of the category, which reflects the production approach. Whether it justifies the premium depends on what you are looking for from your drinks cabinet.

The Collection

0.0% Whisky