ABSTINENCE Signature Mocktails

ABSTINENCE Non-Alcoholic Spirits can be used to make delicious drinks that are low in sugar, calories or alcohol. Here are 6 mocktails to try.

The art of mixology has a long history, dating back to the 1800s

While combining different alcohol and spirits was not new, this was when the term

‘cocktail’ came into being. And with this new and exciting concept came some of the

classic drinks we know and love today. These include the Old Fashioned, Daiquiris

and Martinis, among others.

Over the years, the range of cocktail offerings has expanded and they are well and

truly cemented in drinking and regional culture. From sipping caipirinhas on a

Brazilian beach to enjoying negronis under the Mediterranean sun, mixed drinks are

a way to taste the flavours of the world without having to leave your local, or your

living room!

No alcohol, no problem!

In recent years, people have started to take more of an interest in their health and

wellbeing. This has lead to many making lifestyle changes that help them to live and

consume more consciously.

According to the 2020 Cocktail Trends Report there was a 42% increase in internet searches for the term ‘mocktail’.

Drinks with lower alcohol content were also trending on search engine, Google, last

year. This shows that mindful drinking & is becoming more popular, with some even make a permanent switch to non-alcoholic beverages.

Lowering or limiting your alcohol intake can come with an array of health benefits.

These include more mental clarity, better quality sleep, improved immunity and more balanced weight. But it’s not just the alcohol content that can make conventional cocktails and mocktails a health hazard. It’s also the abundance of sugar.

So much sugar.

When it comes to options, cocktails and mocktails don’t stop at the classics. More

and more drinks have continued to be created over the years, using a wide range of

spirits, mixers and ingredients. From fruit juices to coffee and even confectionaries,

today there are few limits to what expert mixologists can create.

But with the addition of new flavours and more variety came *plenty* of sugar. Many

drinks today are mixed with sweet fruit juices and syrups which contain high

quantities of sugar. And we now know the dangers associated with

the overconsumption of this sweetening substance. Sadly, many of the drinks we

know and love would be considered an overindulgence, with the average piña colada

– a summertime favourite – containing around 314 calories and 13.5 grams of sugar .

This doesn’t mean, however, that people in the pursuit of a healthy lifestyle have to

forego sundowners. ABSTINENCE Spirits allow you to craft low-ABV, low-calorie

and low-sugar cocktails and mocktails that contain the distinctive notes of the Cape

Floral Kingdom.

Want to start sipping smarter without compromising on taste? Here’s how to make

low-alcohol, low-calorie and low-sugar drinks and mocktails using ABSTINENCE

Spirits and Aperitifs. All ABSTINENCE Mocktails designed by Chantelle Horn (@chantelle.horn @belladonna.drink.agency).

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LOW-ALCOHOL COCKTAILS

Cape Citrus Cosmo

INGREDIENTS

• 50ml ABSTINENCE Cape Citrus

• 15ml Cointreau (orange liqueur)

• 30ml cranberry juice

• 15ml lime juice (freshly squeezed)

• Orange peel

METHOD

1. Add the ABSTINENCE Cape Citrus, Cointreau, lime juice and cranberry juice to a cocktail shaker with ice and shake until well chilled. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass.

2. Express the oil from the orange peel over the glass and then drop it in to garnish.

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Cape Spice Manhattan

INGREDIENTS

• 50ml ABSTINENCE Cape Spice

• 25ml ABSTINENCE Epilogue X

• 25ml Martini Rosso (Sweet Vermouth)

• 2 dashes Angostura Bitters

• Orange peel twist

METHOD

1. Add ABSTINENCE Cape Spice, ABSTINENCE, Epilogue X, Vermouth, and bitters to a mixing glass with ice and stir until well chilled.

2. Strain into a chilled coupe glass and garnish with an orange peel twist.

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Blood Orange Negroni

INGREDIENTS

• 30ml ABSTINENCE Cape Citrus

• 30ml ABSTINENCE Blood Orange Aperitif

• 30ml Martini Rosso (Sweet Vermouth)

• Orange Peel

METHOD

1. 1. Add the ABSTINENCE Cape Citrus, ABSTINENCE Blood Orange Aperitif and Vermouth to a mixing glass filled with ice. Stir until well chilled.

2. Strain into a glass filled with large ice cubes and garnish with an orange peel.

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LOW SUGAR + LOW CALORIE MOCKTAILS

Fynbos Cooler

INGREDIENTS

• 25ml ABSTINENCE Cape Fynbos

• 25ml ABSTINENCE Lemon Aperitif

• 200ml soda

• Lemon peel twist

METHOD

1. Combine ABSTINENCE Cape Fynbos and ABSTINENCE Lemon Aperitif in a tall collins glass.

2. Add ice and top with soda. Garnish with a lemon peel twist and serve.

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Citrus Cooler

INGREDIENTS

• 25ml ABSTINENCE Cape Citrus

• 25ml ABSTINENCE Blood Orange Aperitif

• 200ml soda

• Orange peel twist

METHOD

1. Combine ABSTINENCE Cape Citrus and ABSTINENCE Blood Orange Aperitif in a tall collins glass. Add ice and top with soda.

2. Garnish with an orange peel twist and serve.

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Epilogue X & Soda

INGREDIENTS

• 50ml ABSTINENCE Epilogue X

• 200ml soda

• Lime slice

METHOD

1. Pour Epilogue X over ice in a tall glass and top with soda.

2. Add a slice of lime to garnish and serve.

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ABSTINENCE has crafted a collection of award-winning non-alcoholic spirits and aperitifs that take inspiration from the biodiversity of the Cape Floral Kingdom. Click here to shop the range and make some mocktail magic.

Mindful Drinking: Prepare for Dry July & Transform Your Life

Following in the footsteps of Dry January and Sober October, the upcoming Dry July serves as encouragement to take a break from your regular social and drinking habits. It is a term coined in Australia and has now become an integral part of the mindful drinking movement, a movement that has illuminated the dependency on intoxication in our lifestyles and in turn helping people fight back.

What is Dry July?

The Health and Wellness movement has taken off around the world and people are getting more out of their lives. An opportunity to take a break and reset your relationship with alcohol could prove to be one of the most impactful decisions you will make this year.

As daunting as this might sound, it offers up irrefutably powerful benefits for both your

body and your mind. When practicing abstinence from alcohol, you are essentially

eliminating high levels of toxins (and intoxication) to your body.

The important thing to remember is that even small steps in the right direction are better than no steps at all. It’s called Restoring Balance, and it’s the ethos that we live by at ABSTINENCE.

Making more mindful drinking choices does not have to mean you are missing out on all of the complexity of social occasions and interactions. In fact, you are taking back tomorrow by smashing your goals.

Benefits of embracing Dry July

Some of the most resounding, scientifically-proven benefits of a short bout of Abstinence include:

• Better quality sleep

• More Alert

• Heathier and better-hydrated skin

• Improved concentration

• Increased productivity

• Loss of weight

• Lower Blood Glucose Levels

• Decrease in Cholesterol

• Financial Savings

• Improved Mental Health

Even more, promising to know, is that the abovementioned benefits start kicking in from as little as 1 week of Abstinence.

Won’t abstaining from alcohol make me want to drink even more?

Overall, people tend to improve their relationship with alcohol in the six months following a dry month. This means that through regular, dedicated mindful months (Dry January, Dry July, Sober October) you are restoring the balance in your lifestyle, social interactions, and your health. Many people choose to designate a certain number of sober days, or have occasional sober weeks going forward. It’s a transformative experience with giant ripple effect of better choices.

Taking a month off alcohol doesn’t mean you have to settle for belittling mocktails, fruit

punches, or soft drinks. Take the journey of abstinence with ABSTINENCE NON-ALCOHOLIC SPIRITS & AND APERITFS and rethink your next drink. 

Shop our award winning range here and prepare for Dry July the right way!

ANOTHER IMPRESSIVE MEDAL HAUL FOR ABSTINENCE

This time in the San Francisco World Spirits Competition, May, 2021

The San Francisco World Spirits Competition (SFWSC) is one of the most prestigious and established spirits competitions in the world. With entries from 20+ countries, it’s a truly international affair.

The 2021 SFWSC saw a 20% increase in total entrants, to 3,800, up 20% over the 2020 competition. Roughly 40% of the entrants are from the US, with the balance of 60% international. Particularly exciting for the No and Low Alcohol sector is the inclusion of the category for the 2021 Judging process, making this the inaugural year for the category. Only 8 Double Golds, 10 Silvers and 11 Bronze Medals were awarded in the No and Low Alcohol Category.

At 21 years of age, the SFWSC is also the second oldest spirits competition in the world, and one of the most highly respected at that. Firstly, for the quality of their judging panel, of who all are experts in their fields with decades of industry experience, and secondly for the sheer scope of the different spirit categories that it judges.

Following hot on the success Abstinence achieved at the 2020 Low and No Alcohol Awards in the UK, we are delighted to announce yet another flurry of achievements across our entire ABSTINENCE Non-Alcoholic Spirits and Aperitif range, this time in the USA.

Double Gold: ABSTINENCE Cape Citrus

Fast becoming our flagship product, the Cape Citrus stumped the judges. A Double Gold award is as good as it gets! It signifies that the product received a unanimous Gold Medal from the entire 30 strong judging panel, was tasted again and received a Double Gold. Making it among the finest products and examples of the category in the world!

Silver: ABSTINENCE Blood Orange Aperitif

Hot on the heels of its Gold Medal received from The Low and No Masters in the UK, the ABSTINENCE Blood Orange Aperitif received a coveted Silver for being an outstanding product that shows refinement, finesse and complexity. Making it one of the best examples in its category.

Bronze: ABSTINENCE Cape Spice and Cape Fynbos

With a respective Gold and Silver Medal from the Low and No Alcohol Masters in the UK, the ABSTINENCE Cape Spice and Cape Fynbos both received a Bronze medal from the SFWSC, making them excellent examples of their categories.

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For local trade enquiries contact Truman & Orange:

at info@trumanandorange.com or +27 21 035 16 29

and for general info contact Pierre Strydom:

at pierre@curatedbev.com or +27 71 641 63 27

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About Curated Beverages

Drinks Reimagined

Curated Beverages is a Cape Town based start-up Beverage Company with global ambition. Our sole purpose is to create a small portfolio of brands that are at the leading edge of consumer trends and are simply great tasting products. We currently have 2 brands we are busy taking around the world.

ABSTINENCE: Balance Restored.

ABSTINENCE is South Africa’s first non-alcoholic range brand covering all key occasions, underpinned by a clear purpose of helping preserve and restore the Cape Floral Kingdom. The range currently comprises Aperitif, Spirit and “Sipping”. ABSTINENCE uses the finest ingredients and botanicals from the beautifully diverse Cape Floral Kingdom, the smallest yet most diverse floral kingdom in the world. The indigenous Rose Geranium, Buchu, Honeybush, African Wormwood, Aloe and Rooibos are all part of our product mix, accompanied by a range of complimentary botanicals and spices. Unesco’s World Heritage Committee declared the Cape Floral Region to be of “outstanding universal significance to humanity with one of the richest areas for plants in the world.” To help preserve the natural beauty, ABSTINENCE pursues “Bees and Trees” social responsibility projects through enthusiastically contributing 1% of our monthly sales to the Table Mountain Fund and as active members of the Botanical Society of South Africa. As patrons of Ujubee, ABSTINENCE also commits itself to raise awareness of the importance of safeguarding the indigenous Cape Honeybee (Apis mellifera capensis) living in the wild, to flourish as pollinator of flowering plants including many Fynbos species. Doing our part to live our ethos of “restoring balance”, in both our social occasions and natural surroundings.

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About Our Team:

We are a small yet dynamic team who continuously strive to improve ourselves and our surroundings, and that includes our social habits and interactions. With a wealth of drink industry experience, we are hardworking, highly collaborative and have lots of fun. We are high on trust and hold each other to the highest personal and professional standards. We hold our values close to our hearts & endeavour to live by them.

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Our Values:

Balance- as people, we feel our best when we are in balance. As Humans, we have a responsibility to care for the environment. At Curated Beverages, we are committed to preserving the Cape Floral Kingdom and getting more out of life through healthier choices that impact our minds and our bodies.

Quality- Liquid Excellence first and foremost in all our products. Quality in everything we do. If we can’t do it well, don’t do it at all.

Responsibility- We strive to be good global citizens, as we are all inhabitants of Earth – regardless of Geographic or cultural differences. That means we assume responsibility for the way we live, what we do and the impact we have on others and the planet.

Mutuality- we want to build a sustainable business so we wholehearted embrace “mutuality”. Not only as the right way to do business but the only way for sustainability.

Respect & integrity -Respect for ourselves, others & the planet through conducting our business truthfully, honestly and reliably.

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