In this episode of the Food About Town podcast, Chris Lindstrom (@stromie) welcomes Chris Clemens (@cpclemens) from the NonROCaholic (@nonrocaholic) Instagram feed to delve into the world of non-alcoholic beverages. Clemens, known for his deep dives into the beverage scene, shares his journey through a variety of non-alcoholic options, from de-alcoholized wines to zero-proof spirits.
The duo explores the evolution of non-alcoholic drinks, noting the significant advancements in quality and variety over the past decade. They kick off the tasting with Lyre’s (@lyresspiritco) Dark and Spicy, a ready-to-drink (RTD) option that mimics the flavors of a dark and stormy cocktail with a ginger-forward profile and hints of vanilla.
Next up is the Hella Cocktail Company’s (@hellabittersandsoda) Bitters and Soda, an assertively bitter drink that challenges the palate with its complex blend of spices and aromatic bitters. Chris Lindstrom appreciates its boldness, while Clemens suggests it could be an excellent mixer for those who prefer a touch of sweetness.
Finally, they taste Grüvi’s (@getgruvi) Bubbly Rosé, a non-alcoholic wine that surprises with its strawberry candy aroma and Granny Smith apple notes. While Lindstrom finds it a bit too sweet for his taste, he acknowledges its potential as a mixer in non-alcoholic cocktails.
Mentioned in this episode:
NonROCaholic
Website: nonrocaholic.com
Instagram: @nonrocaholic
Lyre’s Non-Alcoholic Spirits
Website: lyres.com
Hella Cocktail Co.
Website: hellacocktail.co
Gruvi
Website: getgruvi.com
Don’t miss out on this fascinating exploration of non-alcoholic beverages on Food About Town!
Transcript
Chris Clemens - NonROCaholic - NA Non Beer Drinks
Food About Town podcast focuses on non alcoholic beverages
Chris Lindstrom: And we are back with another episode of the Food About Town podcast and sitting across from me is the one the only Chris Clemens from NonROCaholic Instagram feed this is the man doing the work he's on the boots on the ground he's doing the hard work of drinking all the beverages he can possibly find i'm.
Chris Clemens: Trying every day as many as I possibly can but now I like have a backlog i'm gonna need some help soon oh no oh yeah.
Chris Lindstrom: Like how many how many are sitting at home that are like on ready to be tasted 25 oh wow yeah.
Chris Clemens: No i've got a serious like I stopped drinking and using drugs because I have problems with addiction yeah and I just like i'm just finding.
Chris Lindstrom: Other things I mean everything you've ever done has been like I can't I have to go as hard as I possibly can I do yeah it's that's like when when we're talking about like what did we see in each other where we had to like be around each other obsession yeah every day always I think that's what it is is like we just have to go deep into wherever we're going with stuff i.
Chris Clemens: Do think we're both pretty passionate about the things that catch our attention.
Chris Lindstrom: Absolutely so this is a little mini series where we're talking about any beverages and chris this episode you wanted to focus on some non beers yeah.
Chris Clemens: I need a little bit of a palate cleanser for sure you know ten years ago when you looked at the non alcoholic options that existed there were few and if you had asked me at that time to guess where we would be on january 1 2024 and the options that would be available I never would have guessed that the things that are currently on this table would be available de alcoholized wine spiritless spirits you know zero alcohol tequilas that stuff was unthinkable just a handful of years ago so it's pretty exciting yeah absolutely.
Chris Lindstrom: And you know it's also gone like the processes have gotten better and better as well because like any wine existed it's existed for a long time but the process just like at the same time killed all the distinct flavors that go into good wine it lost all of that character because basically they cooked.
Chris Clemens: The alcohol off sure and I think what's happening is the more interest that is shown from the general public in dealcoholized or zero proof or any non alcoholic options people now feel more compelled to do it better and there's almost I don't want to say competition because it's probably very friendly but people are being pushed to greater heights of doing things ten years ago you didn't have to work very hard you just kind of put out whatever existed because not a lot of people cared about people are caring about it now.
Chris Lindstrom: Yeah it kind of echoes some of the early craft beer discussion where it's like we don't need to compete we're trying to grow the market for this segment so the options are better for everybody and not just not just the same thing now you can have your lane of non alcoholic stuff that you like yeah you can just have non alcoholic sour beers you can just have non alcoholic ipas and now you can have essentially cans non alcoholic spirit cocktails ready to drink rtd man calling them rtd is just a huge category in general right now in both alcohol and non alcohol I gotta tell you.
This is the Lyre's dark and spicy ready to drink
Chris Clemens: so since we're talking about the rtds let's start with this Lyre's dark and spicy great so Lyres is a company that does a whole bunch of zero proof spirits they've got amarettos they've got all kinds of different stuff sometimes I don't want to mix a drink yeah and sometimes like just pop in this can in fact I did it last night for new year's eve I did a different Lyres ready to drink I just popped the cap and just started sipping and here's the other thing that I like about this I was talking about this with the owner of The Normal oh yeah Adam Peterson yeah down in Lima because he's got incredible barbecue but he also is really into the alcohol yes he likes his alcohol program
Chris Lindstrom: And either before or after this one comes out I have a ah full hour interview with adam peterson on the feed and I gotta say the barbecue he's doing there is pretty.
Chris Clemens: Excellent stuff yeah agreed so what I was talking about with him was I was like hey man I recognize because he doesn't have a ton of staff he's kind of going bare bones with staffing and it's working and all you got to do is just pop the cap and put this into a glass and I was at a conference for work in knoxville tennessee and ordered one of these Lyres drinks and that's all they did yeah just poured it out of the can and I was happy with it well i.
Chris Lindstrom: Think that's that's a great option like it's really nice to have that available where
Chris Lindstrom: you might not have to do the work but you're having something that your guest might really enjoy yeah like what's coming out of the can so.
Chris Clemens: The Lyre's dark and spicy let me.
Chris Lindstrom: Pass this over why don't you grab me one of those canned glasses oh and thank you sir so what.
Chris Clemens: Appearance already it kind of looks like a soda it doesn't look impressive as a like a highball or some sort of impressive drink so I think with some garnish some really nice ice pouring this out into a glass if your your bar staff doesn't want to be making be making all kinds of fancy non alcoholic cocktails would be easy to dress up for.
Chris Lindstrom: Sure and this is like seems like pretty clearly this is going after that you know ginger forward I mean the smell is ginger forward it is but.
Chris Clemens: For anyone thinking that it's potentially like a ginger beer I do think it sets itself apart from like.
Chris Lindstrom: A mule or something absolutely I smell the citrus I smell the ginger and I think it's trying to go after that maybe dark and stormy obviously by the name yep so i'm interested to see how the rum character comes into this whether it's from vanilla cause I smell some vanilla on it i'm interested to see how the overall profile I like the smell a lot.
Chris Clemens: Me too I love this that's why that's why I brought it.
Chris Lindstrom: Oh yeah there's that vanilla yeah I will say.
Chris Clemens: It drinks a lot like a soda yeah for sure which unfortunately I think a lot of the ready to drink stuff does drink a lot like a soda yeah i'd say overall.
Chris Lindstrom: Yeah overall this kind of plays to me like almost like if you were to define like a ginger lime cream.
Chris Clemens: Soda yeah yeah yeah it's very creamy.
Chris Lindstrom: But that's a very interesting combination of flavors at the same time it's completely.
Chris Clemens: Unlike anything else I say it drinks like a soda because there's a whole bunch of qualities the carbonation the sugar there's a whole bunch of qualities that remind me of that but it's completely unlike any soda that i've had before and it's clearly going after
Chris Lindstrom: A spirit yeah and I think that yeah because i'm reading the ingredients and one of the things is they're using their dark cane dark cane basically dark rum equivalent is what they have as part of this thing and that's really what's driving that big vanilla and some of those caramel flavors is likely from that yeah and if you like a softer like ginger balanced with citrus with a little bit of softness this is gonna be right up your alley yep this is gonna be a similar refrain to some of the other things I want more spice I want less vanilla well but i'd say for a lot of people this.
Chris Clemens: Is great it absolutely is but also to your point this is what's called a ready to drink which is straight out of the can you don't have to do anything but that doesn't mean you can't do something with it you can totally mix this with a few other things absolutely actually you know what we were just talking about and now that i'm thinking about it I might throw some pathfinder in this oh.
Chris Lindstrom: Yeah so pathfinder being essentially a non alcoholic digestive or amaro it's pine pine pine forward and it's.
Chris Clemens: Ah derived from hemp right I believe.
Chris Lindstrom: It has hemp in it yeah yep I say that that is one of my absolute favorite na things that i've tried and I still love sharing it with people because it is truly for me that is something that really speaks to me sure in this side of things but like that was soda
Chris Clemens: I think it also speaks to the fact that the non alcoholic scene has gotten really interesting so much like there's.
Chris Lindstrom: So like that option is amazing to have I could also see this with you know putting some fee brothers bidders in yeah whatever direction you decided to go with that whether it be molasses to drive that rum thing forward or old fashioned bitters to give a little bit of those spices they have.
Chris Clemens: An aztec chocolate oh yeah i.
Chris Lindstrom: Could yeah that could be really interesting.
Chris Clemens: so again ready to drink right out of the can I do really enjoy this but if you want to mess with it and dress it up I think you could make something seriously.
Chris Lindstrom: Cool with this yeah i'd say i'm ready to drink this one yeah oh.
Chris Clemens: Man wow have I been have I been too laxed on the terrible dad puns that you're filling in yeah.
Chris Lindstrom: I think we have to like you have to ramp that up our quotient is woefully low on puns these last few mini episodes it's.
Chris Clemens: Been a while since we've sat across from each other with microphones yeah still kind of loosening up and warming up here yeah we have.
Chris Lindstrom: We have seen each other like around town and like I remember you swung over a couple times just to hang.
Chris Clemens: Out and for your 40th birthday happy.
Chris Lindstrom: Birthday yeah man it's been a wild night it really was and it was.
Chris Clemens: That
Chris Clemens: was like a packed room of the who's who of rochester I gotta.
Chris Lindstrom: Say it was it was one of those nights where I love so much about it having so many different people of so many different backgrounds and people have like wildly different passions about things all in the same room together.
Chris Clemens: yeah there was a yeah now that i'm thinking about like everyone was there everyone there I know has some sort of interest that they go like.
Chris Lindstrom: Balls to the wall on yeah and I think the thing i'm gonna remember from that night I think I talked about it on one of the many episodes I did after wash and I didn't expect it and in retrospect it should have it would have made sense to me but was to see my parents get to meet and hear people talk about all the stuff that you know the things i've worked on with them the stuff because they're they're in buffalo and they run the business so they're not here that often I mean yeah they're in town you know once every other year I go.
Chris Clemens: Visit them i've known you pretty closely for well over a decade and I had never met your parents before so.
Chris Lindstrom: Yeah and to have them meet everybody and basically just hold court in the corner and listen to people talk I mean talk about all the positive things that we're all doing together to see the look on their face at the end of the night and have them I think understand like what all the work that's gone into building a life here in rochester that's not just about me it's about all those people it's about all the people have helped me become a better person and to have them feel that for an evening I think they understood kind of where things were but I don't until you feel it sure like that positivity in a room it was that the look on their face I will never forget that it was special I could.
Chris Clemens: Definitely tell they were enjoying themselves yeah yeah they felt great at home in a room full of people they hadn't.
Chris Lindstrom: Met before yeah my dad's got that big personality he'll control a conversation you can see you can see the roots of a lot of what I am from both of them you could tell.
Chris Clemens: That you were related yeah a little.
Chris Lindstrom: Bit I got mistaken on the phone for him many many many times yeah this is a real strong start chris i'm really happy you brought this i'm digging this yeah and I think let's go into the other rtd one that's not the wine I want to go into the other one.
Hella cocktail company is available in whole foods in rochester
Chris Clemens: Hella cocktail company so people and this argument has gone on for years people freak out about whether or not something should be called a mocktail or a craft non alcoholic cocktail so for wherever you fall on the spectrum of that discussion these guys call themselves a cocktail company and this is available I think currently I don't know if it's going to be available long term but it is available in whole foods which which we do have here in rochester so I think where whole foods puts it is in the mixer section okay and that that.
Chris Lindstrom: Kind of makes sense well I mean the whole foods here in rochester I believe that's in the traffic district of rochester area I think that's what they officially call that area of town right one of the traffic district.
Chris Clemens: Yeah not pretty depending on the time of day you go yeah ah I would not try to go to whole foods between like 430 and 615 any.
Chris Lindstrom: Weekday yeah we're not like a traffic heavy city by any means but like that area is straight misery for certain times of day interestingly enough.
Chris Clemens: And reach across and hand that to you interestingly enough hopefully the folks from whole foods aren't listening once you get into whole foods it's usually.
Chris Lindstrom: Not busy yeah it's also I don't dislike the store I think there's a lot of interesting options there it's very interesting agreed you know buying from jeff whole foods i'm not a huge fan but you know what i'm not immune to going there too and it's also really convenient when you need to return something to daddy bezos and you need to send something back
Chris Clemens: That'S usually when I find myself going oh what cheese do they have but the pricing in comparison is not super impressive yeah I would.
Chris Lindstrom: Tend to agree with that they have.
Chris Clemens: you know what i'm addicted to lately which is maybe maybe I shouldn't be using that term but colloquial terminology the top seeds i'm not famiLyre with they're basically seed crackers oh okay wegman sells them for $7 whole food sells them for $10.29
Chris Clemens: yeah i'd.
Chris Lindstrom: Say that's a slight pricing difference yeah.
Chris Clemens: i'm not great at math but.
Chris Lindstrom: I do know it's more which one is more than the other i'd say like my go to snack recently has been the white cheddar hip peas okay yeah it's a vegan company so there it's all like you know fake nutritional yeast but it satisfies that like white cheddar texture thing you know the basically puffs right I really like those you know who turned me.
Chris Clemens: On to those was michael warren thomas.
Chris Lindstrom: Oh good old mwt shout out to michael warren thomas man it's been a while since i've seen him too
Chris Clemens: I'Ll bet he'd be into doing one of these little episodes and tasting.
Chris Lindstrom: I'D love to have him over constantly.
Chris Clemens: saying we're constantly texting each other and being like look what I found and it's like some sort of beverage.
Chris Lindstrom: Yeah i'm gonna run an idea for you after this I think you're gonna feel really strongly one way or the other that's not like me.
Chris Clemens: At all yeah to feel strongly about anything one way or another i'm.
Chris Lindstrom: Brainstorming names for a new thing I was thinking about doing okay and I think you're gonna really hate it which is gonna make me very happy.
Bat introduces bitters and soda which is completely unlike a soda
Chris Clemens: All right well you do I feel like you do need another new thing yeah.
Chris Lindstrom: I don't have enough things yeah speaking of things I love the smell of this right off the.
Chris Clemens: Bat it's again sort of like the Lyres it is much like a soda but it's completely unlike a soda yeah this is outside of the carbonation in the mouth feel yeah so you.
Chris Lindstrom: Mentioned this is hella cocktail company but the smell of this this is the name is bitters and soda and this is designed to essentially be old fashioned style bitters and we'll call it a brand name supposed to be like an angostura equivalent and soda I love angustura bidders I think those and if you're looking for a purely non alcoholic version ah the version that fee brothers does their old fashioned bidders is a great ah substitute for that I don't think they're exactly one to one because angostura is a very specific thing but I gotta say fee brothers does a great job if you're looking for a purely na experience they're one of the best on the market that.
Chris Clemens: Does that representing local yeah I gotta.
Chris Lindstrom: Take a tour of the facility i've never taken a tour of that place which it feels dumb considering it's like five minutes away from my house yeah.
Chris Clemens: But we have a tendency to do that with everything we have a tendency to assume like because it's nearby we don't really need to make it a priority and then 510 15 years.
Chris Lindstrom: Goes by right i'm really interested to hear your thoughts about this one.
Chris Clemens: You'Re gonna make me go first i.
Chris Lindstrom: Am i'm gonna make you go first listen i'm gonna have very strong thoughts.
This is assertively bitter so when we're talking about bitter
Chris Clemens: As well so this has come up many many times during the 157 times that i've been on this podcast yeah you like super super bold outrageous pretty much everything but flavors yes for sure and I would put this in that category agreed super super in your face mouthfeel I think it's lean I wouldn't say that it's very full bodied or dense like a sugary soda might be.
Chris Lindstrom: And it's bone bone dry super dry.
Chris Clemens: the bitters are a little.
Chris Lindstrom: Much for me it is assertively bitter so when we're talking about bitter so I always put things on a continuum and i'll use the i'll use some of like the wine terms where it's like you know light medium medium plus you know heavy you know strong or high high plus this is right at the high high level of bitterness yeah this is crisply bitter well i.
Chris Clemens: Mean they put that right on the.
Chris Lindstrom: Can yeah ah they are not they're.
Chris Clemens: Not trying to hide it I gotta.
Chris Lindstrom: Be honest like I was surprised at how assertively bitter this was I was expecting it to be half as bitter and half more flavor yeah like.
Chris Clemens: Closer to a soda yeah because.
Chris Lindstrom: I'Ve used a lot of angostura bitters in like just like pouring them into a drink yeah and that has a lot of so gentian root is the.
Chris Clemens: Mean as opposed to just putting drops of them in a drink like most.
Chris Lindstrom: People yeah there is there's a few cocktails that use like heavy pores of that one being the trinidad sour which actually use a full ounce of angostura bitters and gentian root is the big bitter flavor that we get here that's what's driving that harsh bitterness is gentian root and I get a lot of that but this really does have a lot of other spices in it that I was picking up I was definitely getting
Chris Lindstrom: cloves right away definitely and this has so they make their own aromatic bitters this hella company so this has jamaican allspice black peppercorns caraway cinnamon sticks cloves rose hips angelica and gentian root star anise and chamomile and then also gentian root extract on the side just a little bit more so I gotta say if you love bitter or you think it makes you feel better this is right up your alley this is right at the peak of my bitter preference yeah this is assertively bitter this is not that far off from like malort which is a wormwood based spirit okay this plays in that same world this is aggressively bitter yeah which is why.
Chris Clemens: I can see like whole foods putting it in a mixer section yes I could see someone using this as a mixer with a bunch of other things I think the average person probably would not find this to be approachable in.
Chris Lindstrom: A weird way I think this is one of the few we've had where i'm like you know what would be would help this be a little bit.
Chris Clemens: Of sugar yeah I don't think i've ever heard you say that no usually.
Chris Lindstrom: I want dry dry dry I think this would be better with a little bit of sugar so to your.
Chris Clemens: Point I think of everything we've we've had recently this is probably the lowest calorie count right yeah this is ten m yeah ten for what is that a twelve ounce can yeah.
Chris Lindstrom: This is yeah twelve ounce can ten calories and if you like warm spices if you like cloves you like allspice you like that stuff and you like bitter I mean you get you get the star anise as well there's a lot of star anise I think it's a little too much clove for my taste but like this is aggressively bitter I could see just adding a little bit of simple syrup to this like I have a right now in the fridge I have a cranberry pineapple syrup I made okay I could see putting that in there and like the pineapple echoing with those warm spices that could be really good that much acid yeah I think it could work I could see putting acid in here and sugar I actually have a bunch of limes in the fridge that I was thinking about basically just chopping up and just pouring sugar on and just letting all the oils leach out and the juice and everything okay I could see that kind of thing going on here too all right so I could see somebody loving this on its own and I could 100% see this as a single mixer right for something that was sweeter profile which I think is.
Chris Clemens: Probably what most people would would go.
Chris Lindstrom: For with this yeah but really fun i'm really glad you brought this because this is again this is a vision of somewhere that knew what they wanted.
Chris Clemens: To do and it's entirely unlike the alcohol alternatives that we were accustomed to until a few years ago yeah.
Chris Lindstrom: I gotta say i'm liking it more as I drink more of it too.
Chris Clemens: Do you think your palate is changing or the temperature of this is changing.
Chris Lindstrom: Temperature for sure but I think because.
Chris Clemens: The more this airs out in this glass and warms up we're not pouring full glasses yeah so this is warming quicker than it might normally normally yeah.
Chris Lindstrom: I'D say overall i'd say my biggest quibble is cloves because I just don't like cloves that's interesting it is one of those very vanishingly few things I just straight do not like and cloves is one of them I don't think.
Chris Clemens: I'Ve ever known that about you yeah.
Chris Lindstrom: I just generally avoid them we're starting.
Chris Clemens: Off this new year with like unveiling very interesting facts about chris lindstrom yeah.
Chris Lindstrom: I mean I think it's always important so psa it's always important to tell people all the things you hate about everything it just brings everybody together.
Chris Clemens: Especially if you like first meet them yeah try to get as many things out right in the beginning.
This rose is the diametric opposite of a aggressively bitter rose
Chris Lindstrom: Yeah all the hatred right out in the beginning well let's dive into like I would say likely the diametric opposite of a aggressively bitter it sure is aggressively bitter hella cocktail company one this really makes me want to try other stuff they do because I like that they made something very specific and I think they made it exactly the way they wanted it ooh.
Chris Clemens: Nice so this is groovy okay spelled.
Chris Lindstrom: With two use I mean sure and also with an I and not a.
Chris Clemens: Y oh wait i'm sorry no it's.
Chris Lindstrom: One u one u but an i.
Chris Clemens: Yeah that's a v versus and you's.
Chris Lindstrom: Are very confusing I mean sharp sharp angles can you edit that out no sharp angles I mean they're very confusing they turn into round angles listen man.
Chris Clemens: I'M getting older my eyes aren't as good as they used to be same I might be close to needing.
Chris Lindstrom: Bifocals oh look at you
Chris Lindstrom: close i'm.
Chris Clemens: Holding out for a little while longer.
Chris Lindstrom: Man I want to see with like transition lenses too.
Chris Clemens: Buy a buick soon.
Chris Lindstrom: Ooh that'd be nice so this is.
Chris Clemens: The groovy bubbly rose this one i'm.
Chris Lindstrom: Actually quite i'm m excited to taste I love the format you know a nice short ah bottle this is what an eight ounce bottle
Chris Clemens: No I think it's ah it's definitely.
Chris Lindstrom: It'S definitely less than a twelve right 9.3 oh perfect no that's nice i'm.
Chris Clemens: With 60 calories yeah i'm excited to.
Chris Lindstrom: Try this one all right so are.
Chris Clemens: You are you basically saying stop holding on to it and pass it across.
Chris Lindstrom: The table I mean yeah it's exactly.
Chris Clemens: What i'm saying all right there you.
Chris Lindstrom: Go so everyone that i've shared this.
Chris Clemens: With has been impressed yeah so we'll see if that stands up to it I really enjoyed this so I got sober at a pretty young age I was a teenager and as a result there's a lot of things that i've never tried like the fully leaded version of okay and rose is one of them sure I never had rose when I was a teenager like we were drinking to get drunk and we would get like anything that we could we weren't going to.
Chris Lindstrom: Rose wine festivals this wasn't like a rose all day situation no or
Chris Clemens: A rose situation where a bunch of men are drinking yeah no it wasn't that at all wasn't that so I don't know how this would compare to a bubbly rose typically but that being said I like this version.
Chris Lindstrom: Yeah so while you're tasting so i'm going to throw out nose at first so rose lives in multiple different worlds so rose can one be very sweet can play on the sweeter side of things where you get into like big strawberry strawberry candy flavors and it plays on the sweeter more you know depending on your preference approachable side of things and then it can also go towards the provence style roses that are you know a little more lean a little more body you know they're rose what's that a.
Chris Clemens: Grown up rose yeah i'd say that's.
Chris Lindstrom: It but it's you know it's more classic and they're doing different ways of using the skins to bring the color and sometimes more lots of different ways of doing rose and on the nose right away this smells like strawberry candy to me.
Chris Clemens: It'S.
Chris Lindstrom: Sweet you remember those the grandparents candies with the wrapper that looks like a strawberry and it's got that goo on the inside do you remember those no come on they're like the little strawberry candy yeah it has a little goo inside like a gusher okay it's.
Chris Clemens: A hard candy all right all right.
Chris Lindstrom: Yeah yeah yeah this smells like that to me there's a little something else going on too but it's a huge strawberry bomb huge strawberry candy bomb a little bit of raspberry candy too like strawberry and raspberry candy is.
Chris Clemens: This i've recently learned of a tasting term that I don't like oh great but cloyingly sweet i'd say.
Chris Lindstrom: The nose would indicate that that's a possibility yeah you can't smell sweetness technically you can smell indicators of sweetness sure but you can't technically smell smeet smeat m boys and girls how many of.
Chris Clemens: These non aa drinks have you had.
Chris Lindstrom: Today yeah boys and girls if you need health to get you through your day enjoy a nice serving of smeat it has everything a growing child needs smeat it's for the children.
Chris Clemens: Eat.
Chris Lindstrom: A meat sandwich so this to me does indicate that it's going to be sweet but I until I taste it I won't say for sure isn't.
Chris Clemens: That typically the case with most roses I mean I know we've discussed the fact that there are different types of roses but the most popular or common rose would be something i'd m say.
Chris Lindstrom: The vast majority of it is this plays very much of a strawberry.
Chris Clemens: Strawberry soda to me but in fairness there's something additional in there that I recognize is trying to indicate that there was alcohol in here yeah.
Chris Lindstrom: I do like the little skin tannin at the end there's that little drying on your palate as it finishes it's.
Chris Clemens: Drier than a strawberry soda for sure.
Chris Lindstrom: Like a lot of the flavors indicate that huge strawberry raspberry flavor I do like that little tannic finish cause that makes me want to go back for another sip if that wasn't there one sip and i'd be done because I need that I need that
Chris Lindstrom: return I want that I want the palate to make me want to try it again like when we're talking about like almost not quite diametric opposite like the bitters and soda is so dry and so bitter that hm like unless that's something you love it's hard like going back for another sip isn't because you went through a journey you're just going to get more and more and more of that thing when you have something where you go on a journey as you taste it sometimes it makes you want to go back first because it finishes different than it starts and then you want to experience that journey again and this has a little bit of that going on for sure almost gives me some of that like granny smith apple taste too god damn it chris did I jump in.
Chris Clemens: Front of you you did so like for anybody that knows me i'm not like a tasting nerd I like to think that I am but i'm really not yeah and I was just thinking to myself like there's a little bit of apple in here but don't say it because that's probably wrong and he's gonna like make it seem like less awkward that you're wrong cause he's really good at like not making.
Chris Lindstrom: Me feel bad most of the time.
Chris Clemens: Right I get some apple out of this well I understand where you get.
Chris Lindstrom: The apple from I do do that.
Chris Clemens: But it's not actually there yeah but it turns out i'm right i.
Chris Lindstrom: Gotta say now that i've gotten to granny smith apple this is like tons and specifically granny smith apple because it has that little bit of like almost malic acid granny smith apple thing going.
Chris Clemens: On I would say granny smith that had been picked maybe three days.
Chris Lindstrom: Ago oh yeah not two because that would be far too fresh it has it's had a chance to like equalize its flavors shockingly this is very granny smith apple forward i'm liking it more now that it's that but it's.
Chris Clemens: Well the temperature might be changing too.
Chris Lindstrom: Yeah i'd say it's halfway in between like fresh granny smith apple and joey rancher green apple okay yeah so it's like halfway in between sure so i'm going to use that same phraseology that you said that I use that's annoying and pedantic is I which one which one is many I could see lots of people really enjoying this yeah definitely I am not one of those people this is not the kind of profile I want out of this but that's why I brought it so I will be one of your lone exceptions of people that don't like it but at the same time I don't hate it by any means I think it's successful in what it's doing yeah definitely it's.
Chris Clemens: Just not what you're going for it's not your interest in in tastes and flavors I like it better.
Chris Lindstrom: As it's warming up too yeah it plays a little more acidic okay so I would almost want this i'd almost want it closer to room temp okay like lightly chilled instead of like fridge cold i'm liking the acidity more and i'm liking the finish more as it's warming up so for me if this was my option at a party I would let it sit for a couple minutes before I started to drink it yeah.
Chris Clemens: Quick shout out to the union tavern in seabreeze who's probably got one of the most impressive lineup of zero proof spirits and non alcoholic options at a restaurant maybe that i've ever seen they use this or they use a lot of groovy products maybe not this one but they use a lot of groovy products in some of their mixed drinks that they'll make so you might find that you enjoy this bubbly rose more when it's been mixed with a few.
Chris Lindstrom: Other things no and I think that makes complete sense because some of those aspects could go really well like in like in a gin based cocktail right if you're using like the na gin with the juniper then maybe a little bit of something else to go in a different direction you know like a little bit of bitters or something else yep I could see that working really well yeah yeah and i've heard lots of good things about the the union tavern I have not had a chance to go over so this gives me another excuse to go visit them in person yeah also not that far from here no minutes up the street very cool man so i'm glad you brought these this was our non beer episode chris if people want to learn more about non alcoholic beverage options in rochester and all over the place because almost everything's a national distribution where can people find your stuff so they can learn.
Chris Clemens: More about it nonrocaholic.com and on Instagram.
Chris Lindstrom: I'M nonrocaholic that's awesome chris thanks so much for coming over it's been great spending part of an afternoon talking about beverages with you and we'll be back next time with another episode of the Food About Town podcast.
