Highlights From The Northern Restaurant & Bar Show 2023
Wild finds, no and low goodness and no hangovers...ish
Last week, I was hanging out at the Northern Restaurant and Bar Show (NRB) in my home city of Manchester and there were lots of interesting drink brands to check out.
Here are some random observations and products that caught my eye and will reveal how much of a drinker with a writing problem I really am.
Pod. Pea vodka
Vodka isn’t my thing, but I’m always on the hunt for interesting ingredients and this pea vodka represented by Ten Locks was a wild find.
Subtle vegetable notes, snap sugar, banana and the expected pea flavour made this one of the smoothest vodkas I’ve ever tasted.
Not planning to be converted to a vodka disciple any time soon, but this was a good product for challenging my expectations.
West Cork Glengarriff Series: Bog Oak Charred Cask Irish whisky
Now, this was something. A triple-distilled single malt Irish whisky matured in sherry casks and finished off in bog oak charred casks for between 4 - 6 months.
A firecracker combination of vanilla, wood, black pepper, star anise and rye reminded me why Irish whisky is such a special category, as I found out at last year’s NRB too…
5 Walla Chai Tea Cream Liqueur
I have a love/hate relationship with cream liqueurs. Bailey’s is a drink I won’t go near with a ten-foot barge pole but this particular liqueur made me put down the pole and get my head out of my ass.
I was glad I did.
The 5 walla is blended from cinnamon, clove, cardamom, ginger and vanilla and has branding inspired by traditional Indian matchboxes. It’s a smooth all-rounder and a versatile ingredient for cocktails.
Kome Biru
Anyone who’s been reading this newsletter long enough will know Japanese drinks are my thing and I had to sneak an obligatory product in here.
Today, it’s a Japanese pale ale created by the Japanese conglomerate Zen-Noh and brewery Yeastie Boys.
Brewed from Koshihikari rice and three types of hops, the beer is crisp and reminds me of floral ginjo sake.
The no and low category keeps on soaring
Another stand out this year was the increased number of no and low brands and I worked my way around Everleaf Drinks, The Small Beer Co, The Alcohol-Free Drinks Company, Anon Drinks, VandeStreek beer and Drop Bear Beer Co to name a few.
The flavours and tasting experiences of every company differed massively from each other, which goes to show that non-alcoholic beers and spirits have come a long way since the days of products that tasted like dry boots left out in the sun.
There’s a sophistication in brewing and distillation techniques and complex flavours that make the category one of the most exciting around and will continue to bring in new consumers as it evolves.