Zero-Proof Gifting: 5 Spirit-Free Cocktail Gifts For Your Friends
Cocktail gifting has over time evolved to become more inventive, imaginative and slightly intriguing too. For mixology experts and amateurs alike, gifts for making cocktails are much more than a bottle of a premium spirit put together with a mixer and a sweetener. Now, cocktail gifts are all about exploring the personality of the giftee so the resulting drinks can be tailor-made to suit their preferences.
And many times, hampers put together with such customisation in mind can simply be presents which contain some thoughtful elements essential to blend drinks, without necessarily adding spirits to them. Such zero-proof gifting alternatives are excellent options for mixologists who experiment with different non-alcoholic mocktails or for those cocktail experts who like to work with diverse, slightly innovative ingredients.
Read on below to know more about some of these zero-proof, non-alcoholic gifts that you can present to your friends interested in the art of blending both cocktails and mocktails:
Small-Batch, Homemade Syrups
One of the most interesting and flavourful elements that you can use to build a zero-proof gift kit is syrups infused with different fruity and herbal flavours, prepared in small batches at home. These flavour accents build a lot of pronounced tasting notes into cocktails and mocktails, lending them much complexity and sometimes even a pop of colour. Think kokum syrup for its bright maroonish, purplish hue, or hibiscus syrup for its light pink colour. Also go for herbal and spiced concoctions like a mint-infused simple syrup or a ginger-turmeric-cardamom syrup, as much for their aroma as for their flavour.
Tea Hampers
Confused? Well, when you are building a cocktail-adjacent, zero-proof gift kit, a tea tail hamper can just be the drama you need. Freshly brewed tea can either be served by turning it into a mocktail with the addition of lemon or passionfruit syrup or it can be used for building cocktails with deep, earthy flavours. Either way, a tea hamper complete with loose-leaf tea, dried rose petals and cinnamon sticks for garnishing, a honey stirrer, a mini-infuser or a quirky tea cup can imbue a dainty, sophisticated effect into your gift hamper.
Also Read: Curate Personalised Cocktail Gifts That Are Going To Wow The Receiver
Garnishing Kit And Flavoured Ices
Among the different trends in contemporary mixology, one which stands out is a focus on garnishing. Putting together a zero-proof kit is made easier when garnishes can be the theme of the gift box. Add edible flowers and glitter, dehydrated fruits, bundles of fresh herbs and citrus slices and fashion them aesthetically to build this garnish gift box. You can also place flavoured ices infused with tropical fruits like watermelons and muskmelons and certain edible flowers and peels in an insulated box. Alternatively, place silicone ice trays in the hamper along with recipes to make flavoured ices.
Sweet Mixer Box
Another zero-proof gifting theme could be putting together a box complete with different mixers essential for building cocktails and mocktails. Such a hamper could include ube or rose-flavoured syrups for their colour, spiced hot chocolate, a coffee decoction, coconut cream, condensed milk and other ingredients required to build creamy, frothy milkshake-like drinks. Sweet-forward flavours in the form of white chocolate, sprinkles and candies will add a bright pop to the spirit-free hamper.
Fermented, Fizzy Drinks
And the most trending and chic element to add to this zero-proof gift box would of course be fermented drinks like kombuchas or shrubs which are witnessing a growing popularity among mixologists. These elements can be used to build flavourful cocktails and mocktails both. Combine these fermented drinks with fizzy essentials like non-alcoholic sparkling apple cider, ginger beer or ginger ale and tonic water. Also include elements like fermented pickles and kimchi to bring a zingy effect into the gift box.
Drink Responsibly. This communication is for audiences above the age of 25.
