BevNET has profiled Botivo, a British non-alcoholic aperitif that is making a bigger argument than its size suggests. Founded during lockdown by Sam Paget Steavenson and Imme Ermgassen, Botivo is a bittersweet aperitif hand-blended in small batches at a farm in Hertfordshire from just five ingredients, among them wormwood, orange zest, and wildflower honey, with no added flavourings or preservatives. The company says each bottle takes more than a year to make. Served long over ice with tonic or soda, it is built to be sipped for the pleasure of it, not endured for the virtue of it.
The numbers suggest the approach is landing. According to Circana data cited in the report, Botivo was up 408 percent year over year across retail in the year to mid-June, and the brand has brought in the digital platform Tipple to run its direct-to-consumer business across Europe. The framing is the interesting part: as the non-alcoholic category matures, Botivo sells pleasure rather than moderation. It positions itself as a premium, hedonistic drinking experience that happens to contain no alcohol, rather than a health product defined by what it leaves out.
The Cr(af)ted Take
This is a small brand, but the positioning is the story, and it is one worth paying attention to. For years, alcohol-free marketing leaned on the language of restraint: fewer calories, no hangover, mindful drinking, moderation. All true, all a little joyless, and all defining the drink by absence. Botivo does the opposite. It asks to be judged on flavour, craft, and desire, the same terms any good aperitif is judged on. Selling pleasure instead of penance is what a category does once it is confident the liquid can carry it.
We have argued before that alcohol-free drinks win when they stop apologizing and start competing on their own terms. A bittersweet aperitif built on wormwood and real bitterness is a good example, because bitterness is a grown-up, pleasure-first flavour that has nothing to do with wellness and everything to do with wanting another sip. The lesson for anyone building drinks at home is the same as the lesson for the brands: lead with the reason someone would actually want the glass, not the reason they are avoiding a different one. The absence of alcohol is the least interesting thing about a good drink.
Original reporting: BevNET →