One night while out for a nice meal in London, Ben Branson looked at a menu full of unique cocktails and asked the waitress if they had anything nice but non-alcoholic.
He remembered the sad look on her face before she offered him a paltry selection of fruit juices or sugar-filled mocktails.
It was a lightbulb moment for the British farmer, who two years later would launch Seedlip – the world’s first non-alcoholic spirit.
‘I said “Enough”,’ he told Daily Mail Australia. ‘We can put people on the moon, we’ve got driverless cars, but if you’re not drinking for whatever reason, how can you not get a good grown up non-alcoholic drink? Is that too much to ask?’.
British farmer Ben Branson (pictured) is the creator of Seedlip, the world’s first non-alcoholic spirit. Seedlip just recently launched in Australia
It took Ben two years to launch Seedlip, which at the start he completely created himself from scratch with ingredients taken from his 300-year-old farm
That was in November 2013. Now, nearly four years later, Seedlip is in more than 100 Michelin-starred restaurants all over the world and has just launched in Australia.
It all started with a farm in north Lincolnshire that has been in Ben’s family for 300 years, and a book that was even older.
Ben, 34, has always loved nature and growing herbs, and began to get curious about what else he could create in his own home.
He came across a a 17th century book called The Art of Distillation, which details how to use herbs and distillation to create alcoholic and non-alcoholic remedies.
‘Out of curiosity I bought a little copper still from the internet and began experimenting in my kitchen,’ he said. ‘There was no business idea.’
That is, until Ben had that fateful dinner in a London restaurant four hours away.
That was in November 2013. Now, nearly four years later, Seedlip is in more than 100 Michelin-starred restaurants all over the world and has just launched in Australia
Ben, 34, has always loved nature and growing herbs, and began to get curious about what else he could create in his own home, buying a copper still so he could experiment
Herbs like spearmint, rosemary, and thyme are grown on the farm and used in Seedlip Garden
‘That’s when the obsession took over of me wanting to solve this dilemma of – what do you drink when you’re not drinking?’.
That question would become Seedlip’s official tagline as Ben worked to create something that still felt like a spirit in shape and form – but without the alcohol.
Ben spent a year perfecting the recipes for Seedlip Garden 108, created with peas, hay, spearmint, rosemary, and thyme, and Seedlip Spice 94, made with all spice, cardamom, oak, lemon, and grapefruit.
‘Seedlip Spice was an opportunity to bring a flavour profile that was very aromatic, that had all those brown spice notes that were really earthy,’ he explained.
‘And with Seedlip Garden it was a chance to use ingredients from my farm. We wanted to create something that was very bright and fresh, and wanted to make it really simple so people could create a good drink.’
The goal was to make Seedlip still feel like a spirit for both the home bartender and the professional, blending perfectly with ice and tonic or ginger ale.
‘This doesn’t go in the fridge, this sits on your drinks cabinet,’ he said. ‘It just feels the same, without the problems the next morning.’
Ben sold his first 1,000 bottles of Seedlip in three weeks and the second batch in five days. Soon he was meeting with the best bartenders in the UK and America
Jamie Oliver (pictured) is just one of the famous fans who have flocked to the mocktail
And without the sugar, calories, or sweeteners also found in regular cocktails.
When Ben set out to create Seedlip, he knew he wanted to make something that would stand out among the fruity mocktails always available.
‘In today’s world, people are increasingly looking for natural food and drink and good quality ingredients,’ he said.
‘Typically non-alcoholic drinks start with sugar. But we, as farmers, we love the land and we value the produce from the land. We didn’t want to start with sugar.’
While some may question the price tag of his products, Ben insists he starts with peas that take 108 days to sow, grow, and pick from his garden.
It is the very first step in a process that takes six weeks just to make one Seedlip bottle.
And for those first two years before Seedlip launched, and the first four months afterwards, Ben was doing everything on his own.
He would sit on his kitchen floor, labelling 1,000 bottles by hand as many around him laughed at the idea.
‘You name it, I’ve heard it,’ he said. ‘People would say, that’s never going to sell a bottle, go back to your day job, you’ll never launch this, it’s a crazy idea.’
But those 1,000 bottles? They lasted three weeks when Ben first began selling Seedlip at the London department store Selfridges for £28 a pop.
Four months after the official launch, Ben was invited to Buckingham Palace by the Duke of York and was asked to make Seedlip cocktails for Kate Moss, a huge fan of the brand
Ben said he hopes to continue expanding Seedlip’s presence in America and Western Europe, filling a void for adults who want to take a night off – or don’t drink at all
The next 1,000 bottles sold out in three days. The third installment, made available for purchase online, were gone in 30 minutes.
Soon Ben was meeting with some of the top bartenders in London, and word about Seedlip quickly began to spread.
Four months after the official launch, Ben was invited to Buckingham Palace by the Duke of York – a huge fan of the brand.
But the most surreal moment for the farmer was when he spent two hours with Kate Moss, another major Seedlip supporter along with Russell Brand.
‘Making her Seedlip cocktails was nothing short of extraordinary,’ Ben said.
‘To hear that she loved the product and drinks Seedlip cocktails when she gets home from work is pretty incredible.’
Seedlip is now available in a number of Australian bars and restaurants, and can be purchased from David Jones online or in-store for AUD$50.
Ben said he hopes to continue expanding Seedlip’s presence in America and Western Europe, as well as key capital cities around the world, filling a void for adults who want to take a night off – or don’t drink at all.
Seedlip is now available in a number of Australian bars and restaurants, and can be purchased from David Jones online or in-store for AUD$50