INTRODUCING

INTRODUCING… BÔTAN DISTILLERY

Explore the world’s first non-alcoholic distillery straight from field-to-bottle. Ina Simone and Timothy Peeters, co-founders of Bôtan Distillery give us a peek into the new generation of gastronomic grade drinking

Describe the brand.

Bôtan Distillery is the world’s first non-alcoholic distillery straight from field-to-bottle. We develop and create the most refined and complex spirits on the market. Our liquids distinguish themselves through a complete flavour palette – a nose, mouthfeel and an aftertaste. We do everything in-house – straight from our fields right down to the bottle!

Bôtan Distillery currently offers five distinct flavours. The flavours are inspired by terroir and application in cocktails. Citrus Spice is a Japanese botanical distillate with citrus fruits and floral sansho pepper. Juniper Garden is a twist on a Mediterranean classic white spirit. Pine Haze brings an ode to Scandinavian terroir and cuisine, with similarities to a spirit distilled from grain or potato. Signature Blend combines roses and cocoa which pair amazingly well in coffee concoctions, and Oriental Roast refers most to a classic distilled beverage - made from maguey - with flavours of fresh habanero and jalapeno peppers and a smoked hint.

How was this brand conceptualized?

We’ve always been conscious about what we’re consuming. We’ve always been looking at the ingredients list of the food and drinks which we were buying. With the rise of the non-alcoholic market, both Timothy and I were interested in drinking less alcohol. Our motivation for this change in drinking was inspired by the health aspect. So, again, we started doing research on the new non-alcoholic brands by reading the back of the bottles of all non-alcoholic spirits, and we felt surprised about the list of industrial synthetic ingredients. There wasn’t a non-alcoholic spirit made from true botanicals, flowers or species, and not one non-alcoholic spirit owns craftsmanship and heritage.

In addition, as we often dined at restaurants, we felt disappointed by the limited offer and minor quality of the non-alcoholic apéritifs and pairings. When going out for dinner, we often ended with a juice-based, sugary drink. In addition, we felt disappointed in not experiencing the same level of enjoyment and fun. At that moment, we decided to research non-alcoholic distilled spirits. Driven by a passion for nature and flavours, we spent three years in research together with our culinary herbalist. We’re on a mission to change the non-alcoholic industry. We turned our back against the industry and created a nonalcoholic distillate beyond category. This is only feasible by going back to the origin of flavour: nature. Because we only use exquisite ingredients, we’re able to create clean botanical distillates and can be transparent about it.

How does your brand stand out from the rest?

There is literally no other brand growing, distilling and blending award-winning herbs while creating clean non-alcoholic distillates. Bôtan Distillery stands out from the rest as we distil non-alcoholic spirits from real ingredients. We do not add artificial flavours or so-called natural aromas. You won’t find preservatives in our spirit either.

The newly born market for non-alcoholic drinks and spirits is crowded with industrial products. These are made from water, flavour extracts and preservatives. Flavour is literally made from chemical components. These products stand far away from craftsmanship and nature. We even found out that most companies are marketing agencies, spending on marketing while not putting effort into the product itself. Almost all non-alcoholic brands just buy their product from a white label industrial food company.

The questions that arise are, how can you spend money on a drink comprising industrial chemicals blended with water? How can you ‘as a professional bartender’ serve a product that has no depth (nor in flavour or the story behind). How can you ‘as a professional sommelier’ provide an experience at the table if there’s no true story behind the product?’ This conformity is against our passion and philosophy. Our passion is too great to create a product like that. In reverse, we only rely on nature for the creation of intense and complex flavours with no preservatives. The results are clean and complex - a true product.

Bôtan Distillery provides a solution for non-alcoholic cocktails and drinks with complex flavour palettes sensed by the aroma, mouthfeel and aftertaste. Additionally, Bôtan based cocktails can be low in sugars and calories, which makes them easily digestible compared to juices and syrup-based blends.

Do you currently work with hotels in the region?

Bôtan Distillery recently launched on the market, and the Middle East is the main focus. We have been in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia for six months with Arabian Food Corporation and the market has had a great reaction. We are listed and closely working with many cool venues - KSA’s hospitality industry is rapidly growing which is amazing to witness first hand!

In the United Arab Emirates, we have just launched with SpecialtyFineFoods and are motivated to introduce the industry to a new category - “Nonalcoholic cocktails”. We’ve always felt that there is a gap between traditional mocktails and cocktails. “In the UK, 61 per cent of consumers want better alternatives when it comes to non-alcoholic drinks” why not in the Middle East? On top of that, we are fully Halal certified so there is no reason not to enjoy it!

What’s in store for the brand this year?

We’re working on developing a new category of sophisticated cocktails ready-to-drink pairings. Our expertise in nature and liquid creation is exceptional. R&D is our DNA. That’s why we keep on experimenting. In short terms, Bôtan Distillery will be your go-to brand for gastronomic, high-quality cocktails and food pairings.

Follow Bôtan Distillery on Instagram (@botan.distillery).

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