NINE ELMS Picks Up Two Wins At No And Low Taste Awards
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George Taylor
- 17th August 2020
- 7 minute read
Drinks company, NINE ELMS, have just announced their two award wins at this year’s Imbibe ‘No & Low Taste Awards.’ Their ‘NINE ELMS No.18′ drink picked up trophies for ‘Best No & Low Wine / Wine Alternative’ and ‘Best Food Match No & Low.’
The London-based brand’s first drink, No.18, is an intricately crafted, non-alcoholic wine alternative that has been designed to complement good food. No.18 isn’t intended to emulate wine, but to offer a non-alcoholic alternative.
Produced following a carefully developed recipe, using an innovative combination of traditional and contemporary drinks-making techniques, NINE ELMS No.18 has an intriguingly complex, yet balanced, taste profile — derived from the botanical infusion of 20 different flowers, herbs, spices and the juice of 4 types of berry. This combination allows it to pair with a broad range of rich, savoury dishes.
“Emerging from supple, inky, minty complexity, this uplifting concoction first pouts with a full-bodied, berry freshness, then culminates in a reassuringly (and strikingly lengthy) spicy, bitter aftertaste. Pour it into a broad glass to fully appreciate its deep scarlet colour and pair with a charred tomahawk steak.“
Douglas Blyde, Food and drinks writer at The Evening Standard
Available in a 750ml bottle, NINE ELMS No.18 allows restaurants, hotels, caterers and bars to bring guests of all persuasions together, catering to those who choose not to drink alcohol or who are simply reducing their consumption, whilst allowing them to maintain the margins expected on an alcoholic drink.
No.18 is available at world-class restaurants, such as The Clove Club, The Frog, and Berners Tavern. You can also find it on the No and Low drinks lists at high end bars such as The Standard, London.
NINE ELMS No.18 is the only non-alcoholic drink specifically designed to complement good food, so these awards are a fantastic endorsement of its complex but delicious taste — something that was reflected in the judges’ comments:
“Really interesting and complex and would go well in the red-wine moment.“
Laura Willoughby MBE, founder of Club Soda and Chair of Judging
“Deep ruby colour. Minty and herbal aromas. Red plum and vanilla flavours initially, followed by herbal, pine-y aromatics. Lovely, juicy structure, nice weight and texture, long finish – feels very like a red wine, although the pine-y, herbal character moves it towards a vermouth. Could work really well served with food. I can imagine this tasting good alongside rich, savoury or meaty dishes.“
Christine Parkinson, Drinks Consultant, and co-founder of Brimful Drinks/Former Head of Wine at the Hakkasan Group
“Very innovative approach to tackling the tricky problem of non-alcoholic red wine. Complex and well-structured,“
Shilen Patel, co-founder of Independents United and CEO of Distill Ventures
The Founders said:
“We are incredibly proud to have won the Imbibe No and Low Taste Award 2020 in the Wine/Wine Alternative category with our innovative NINE ELMS No.18 ‘velven’, made from an intricate blend of berries and botanicals. It outperformed all non-alcoholic wines to take the trophy – in fact the judges were so impressed by NINE ELMS No.18’s sophisticated ability to complement good food, that even they created a new ‘Best Food Match’ award for it.“
You can find out more about NINE ELMS here.
