How to: Create a meaningful moment without alcohol

Zero-proof spirits may seem like a new phenomenon, but not if you ask Ben Branson. He founded U.K.-based Seedlip, one of the top-selling NA spirits brands globally, all the way back in 2015. And his inspiration goes back farther — centuries back, in fact. Branson’s guiding light for his creations is The Art of Distillation, an instruction manual written in 1651 by chemist John French.

Don’t take this to mean the brand is bound by tradition, though. Seedlip combined old-world inspiration with modern trend-watching, online communities and even contemporary influencers to create its latest success.

An NA spirit for the American market

Seedlip’s initial three spirits, Seedlip Spice, Seedlip Garden and Seedlip Grove, covered a range of flavors but defied easy categorization or comparison. One was spice-focused, one herb-focused and one citrus-focused. And between the three, the brand could approximate a wide range of cocktails.

But Seedlip’s thriving DTC base — which Branson calls “our brain and our compass” — was letting him know they wanted a flavor that matched up with American cocktail tastes. So, in early 2024, Seedlip launched Notas de Agave, the first of the company’s creations that begs comparison to an established liquor category: the agave-based spirits tequila and mezcal.

“The reality is that the U.S. is now Seedlip’s largest market,” Branson said. “And what we were finding was that [Spice, Garden and Grove] paired well in a margarita-style serves — and that’s not really happening anywhere else in the world. So we thought, let’s listen to that and lean into that with a product that really felt like it was for a specific market.”

Agave was an ideal vessel for this experiment, because as the popularity of agave syrup as a sugar alternative shows, the North American succulent offers more than just an alcoholic bite.

“I looked at agave solely through the lens of flavor, rather than just the fact that they use agave to make tequila,” Branson explained. “And from a flavor perspective, it gives you so many different dimensions. There’s a sweetness attached to it, but it can go grassy and greener and more floral. It can be really herbaceous, and it can be bright; it can be skewed to be a bit deeper and richer. So we started with this one ingredient, and then we built the blocks around it.”

The other “blocks” in Notas de Agave include bright prickly pear, floral damiana herb, warm vanilla, and a hint of peppercorns, resulting in a complex, slightly sweet drink that adds earthiness and depth to whatever consumers mix it with. And Branson said his vision resonated with his target American audiences immediately.

“[NA spirits] is a category that's on fire,” Branson said. “Couple that with an agave alcohol category, and margaritas and ranch water serves, that are also on fire. It's a compounding effect, with a lot of the right things in place at the right time.”

A kit for a moment

Seven months after launching Notas de Agave, Seedlip recently brought millions of new eyes to their new creation by releasing a special edition Summer Cocktail Kit created with their brand ambassador, the actor Regé-Jean Page. In addition to an immense social following, Page brought a competent mixologist’s palate and a deep appreciation for Seedlip’s vision of social connection without alcohol.

“This kit was all about getting people to embrace the different ways to enjoy a cocktail with non-alc,” Branson said. “Because the truth is that there’s an amazing freedom and creativity there that we wanted to share with people. A cocktail kit felt like the right thing to bring all that together.”

Along with a bottle of Notas de Agave, the kit features a copper jigger, a small bottle of club soda and two different mixers to make spritzes: the daytime-focused Oasis Spritz and the evening-focused Sunset Spritz. Both syrups are a little sour, a little citrusy and even a little vinegary, bringing to mind the funky, trendy drink categories like kombucha and shrubs. Both mixers are currently only available in the kit.

Drinking with fire

The cocktail kit also pairs each drink with its own unique candle. Branson said this decision was designed both to add an extra sensory dimension to cocktail time, and to help consumers slow down and pay attention.

“Lighting a candle is a very deliberate act,” Branson said. “It’s like flicking a switch. It says ‘I’ve got time. I'm going to sit down and savor this moment and enjoy a bit of space, maybe share a drink and chat with a loved one.’”

If Seedlip were only available in stores and restaurants, Branson said, a one-off like a kit with candles might not make much of a splash. But the online community of NA aficionados let him know every day that they get where he’s coming from, which allows him to be confident that small risks and limited runs will pay off.

“This category is growing up by the day,” Branson said. “And because we have an amazing direct-to-consumer business in the U.S., that means we can trial things like limited edition formats with an amazingly engaged community and audience, and then use that to potentially fuel bigger releases or different products to target our other sales channels.”