Raise A Glass

Any glance at a cocktail or wine menu these days shows that taste preferences are not the same as they used to be. Long gone are the single non-alcoholic offerings, and in their place are non-alcoholic beer, wine and cocktails with complex flavor profiles. In fact, a recent winner at the Guild of Fine Food’s Great Taste Award in the alcohol category was a non-alcoholic product, shining a spotlight on just how far this section of the industry has come.

Non-alcoholic drinks date back to Prohibition, when anything above 0.5% ABV was forbidden. Vendors mostly made this style of beers out of necessity during this time. After the repeal, the interest in this family of drinks waned.

Fast forward 100 years and the attitudes towards, and methods for these offerings have skyrocketed thanks to innovations in the category and more mindful collective consumption. According to The Food Institute, the sales of non-alcoholic beers, wine and spirits increased 31% in 2023, reaching a market value of over $510 million. The segment grew to more than $11 billion overall, representing 30% growth in the four short years from 2019 to 2023.

Nic Wallace, Resort Bars and Spirits Manager at Sea Island, began working in beverages almost 20 years ago and remembers when these offerings were slim. “It was on the menu, but a forgotten category,” he says. Ryan McLoughlin, Head Sommelier, says that premium non-alcoholic products are the fastest-growing segment in the alcohol industry.

MOCKTAILS NO MORE

Taking the new era seriously, the monikers on the menus across the property have gone from “mocktails” to “non-alcoholic cocktails” reflecting changing attitudes and the effort put into them. “We put more influence, dedication, time and emphasis on these beverages,” Wallace says. “They aren’t mocking something that exists by repurposing, but they are their own category expressing intentional thought.”

A wide selection of brands and spirits now allows Wallace to craft inventive and surprising zero-proof drinks. “Today, we offer dozens of amazing brands, such as Lyre’s, Ghia and The Optimist, all of which produce non-alcoholic spirits,” Wallace says. Beers in this category offered at Sea Island include Heineken 0.0, Guinness 0.0 and Athletic Brewing’s “Upside Dawn” Golden Ale.

Wallace is encouraged by the enthusiastic reception of the drinks so far. “Our guests will go for things that are familiar with alcoholic beverages such as Negronis and old fashioneds. We try to create those mouth feels and textures and light up the senses in the same way, but with non-alcoholic spirits,” Wallace says.

Seasonal menus at Sea Island are based on guest preferences, with Wallace tailoring them accordingly. For example, Tavola has a refreshing and bright drink called Veni, Vidi, Vici. It’s made with cucumber-infused Lyre’s Non-Alcoholic London Dry Spirit which has a flavor profile and finish similar to gin. Tangy lime, cool cucumber and herbaceous mint provide balance on the palate. Similar to a gin and tonic, the drink compliments everything from seafood to fruit-forward desserts. “Everything is built purposefully to be well-balanced between the senses,” he says.

Guests enjoying beverages poolside.

GRAPE EXPECTATIONS

McLoughlin is excited that the technology to create zero-proof products, especially wines, is now better than it has ever been. “Wineries de-alcoholize real wine and keep the equity in taste while keeping the flavor profile interesting,” he says. The process can be done through different methods. Vacuum distillation heats wine at a low temperature under reduced pressure which evaporates the alcohol. Reverse osmosis pushes wine through a membrane to separate the alcohol, while a spinning cone column uses centrifugal force and steam to remove it. Cold filtration chills wine to almost freezing temperatures before filtering out the alcohol. The variety of methods allows these wineries to experiment with the final taste and smell, finely calibrating their products similar to traditional wine.

“There are a lot of interesting wines coming out of Germany and South Africa in particular,” he says. That includes Misty Cliffs, a South African winery where McLoughlin sources non-alcoholic sauvignon blanc, a cabernet sauvignon blend, rosé and brut sparkling wine.

Both McLoughlin and Wallace are enthusiastic about non-alcoholic products and see catering to curiosity about the beverages as a welcome challenge. “People want more choices and we have options,” says Wallace.