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At mixologist mecca Bar Convent Brooklyn last wk, alc-alternatives no longer were a novelty but were woven into expansive exhibition halls at makers site called Industry City in Sunset Park, far from hurly-burly of north Brooklyn or Manhattan. Indeed, the well-crafted NA options were so abundant that there was no reason to over-imbibe on the hundreds of alc bevs available for sampling (tho some of us did anyway). It was hard to think of a style or format that wasn't represented, with wine segment one that saw fair amount of activity by cos undaunted by formulation challenges. (Among familiar bev faces we encountered now plying their trade on alc side was Icelandic Glacial cofounder Kristjan Olafsson, whose Wanderlust Spirits venture has added Askur Gin and Lagoon Bay Icelandic Aperitif to its original Helix7 vodka.) Here's a rundown on some of the action we spotted around exhibition floors. Clean Co Heads into Canned RTDs with Sugar-Free, Alc-Free Line UK's Clean Co used Bar Convent Brooklyn as platform for US debut of its first RTDs, fully zero-alcohol and denoted as zero-sugar as well. Packed in 8.45-oz cans, the lineup is starting with Gin & Tonic, Margarita, Italian Spritz and Mojito entries, all attaining the sugar-free goal via stevia as sweetener. They'll be rolling out this summer at $14.99 per 4-pk. Until now the co had focused on 23.7-oz glass bottles of spirits alternatives like Clean V ("mix like vodka"), Clean G ("mix like gin") and so forth, all completely alc-free and priced in $24-29 range at retail. Those entries have cracked trend-setting on-prem accts like Dead Rabbit in NY, along with retail chains like BevMo and Total Wine. Distribution is via natl partnership with Southern Wine in all of US except NY, in hands of Union Beer.Amass Brands Debuts Electrolyte Mixer Line; Pushes Briskly Selling Good Twin Sparkling NA Wine Lately, Amass Brands Group has been coming on strong with sprawling portfolio that straddles NAs, functionals and what it calls "Alcohol 2.0." BCB provided setting for debut of Amass Electrolyte Mixers and intensified push behind Good Twin Non-Alcoholic Sparkling Wine that reps an upgrade over earlier attempt to play in NA wine.Amass had dropped word of the new electrolyte mixers just ahead of show, enlisting as inaugural distributor Michigan's Great Lakes Wine & Spirits for what booth staffers told us is to be mainly an on-premise push for the line, which joins trend of incorporating electrolytes to offset the dehydration that drinking can cause, tho they're also positioned to be drunk on their own. Packed in 12-oz sleek cans, they contain 250 mg sodium, 20 mg magnesium and 60 mg potassium but just 20 calories. Inaugural flavor range is Lemon Yuzu, Salted Grapefruit, Ginger Lime and Sea Salt Club Soda. On DTC site they go out at $39.99 per 12-pk with free shipping. At BCB, the brand was featured in "Between Shifts" wellness activations each day among influential cadre of mixologists, bar operators and spirits buyers who were looking to stay their fittest as they spent 12 hours drinking.As for Good Twin sparkling wine, that's organic entry produced in Italy from regionally grown prosecco grapes and just 3 other ingredients. Over past year it's gone national in Whole Foods and entered specialty operators like Erewhon in LA and Happier Grocery in NY with distribution partners like Serendipity in LA and Union Beer in NY. Priced at approachable $14.99 per bottle at Whole Foods, it plays in tough-to-master segment but has managed to garner top spot among organic NA wines in Nielsen scans, with 35% share of dollar sales, as NA tracker Victoria Watters has reported. Since BCB, Good Twin has popped up on Walmart.com priced at two 750-ml bottles for $35.98. So this affordable entry is going broad, fast.From Oz, Non Brand Offers NA Wine Wannabe That's 'Chef Made, Great with Food' An Aussie brand called Non is among those trying their hand at offering credible wine-alternatives. "Chef made. Great with food," marketing materials promise, heralding founding out of Aussie food scene by entrepreneur Aaron Trotman in 2019. Rather than de-alcoholizing conventionally made wine, Non takes additive approach to creating memorable liquid, borrowing production techniques from winemaking, perfumery and gastronomy at its self-operated production site in Melbourne. Austerely labeled bottles adopt numbering system for varieties like Non1: Salted Raspberry & Chamomile, Non3: Toasted Cinnamon & Yuzu and Non7: Stewed Cherry & Coffee. These are marketed as premium items priced at $30 per bottle.Brand has been making considerable headway in US over past coupla years. It started in NY and Calif via distribution partners like Big Apple's Union Beer, added Ill a year ago and then Texas in recent mos, the latter via Southern Wine's Signature div. Retail partners include Binny's around Chicago and Central Market in Texas, while brand has also entered tastemaking on-prem accts like Toca Madera, where a glass commands $13-16.Italy's Freely Sets Up Shop in US with NA Beer, Kombucha, Spirits & Mixers "The Italian drink ritual, reimagined" is premise of new-to-US brand called Freely that just set up US base on Long Island and is seeking distributors for unusually expansive array of non-alc items spanning beer, kombucha, altspirits and mixers. The co launched in Italy in Apr 2025 and had its products in domestic market last Oct, meaning it's moved quickly to attack US market. At heart of strategy, marketing chief Mirka Bau told us, is effort to unlock consumption occasions spanning many dayparts. Crucial to formulation strategy is not just to offer 0.0% items, but zero-sugar ones as well. The altspirits array includes 750-ml bottles of spirits alternatives such as The Spirit of Rum or The Spirit of Tequila along with after-dinner entries like The Spirit of Amaro. Then there are 12-oz longneck glass bottles of beers like IPA, Blonde, Amber and Blanche, the IPA containing just 32 calories, for instance. (To our palate it wasn't particularly assertive by US standards, drinking more like a pale ale.) The kombucha in straightwall glass bottles is offered in versions like Rose, Ginger and Tropical while the glass-bottle tonics go out in Ginger Beer, Mediterranean Tonic, Indian Tonic and other choices. They're all produced in Italy by outside production partners tho co hopes to bring production in-house as biz develops.Curious Elixirs Lineup Now Includes Unnumbered Curious Red Altwine Curious Elixirs, which has built out a suite of non-alc cocktails, has added wine entry called Red that's such a departure that it doesn't even get a number like all the other entries do. Debuting as just Red, it's described as a "sumptuous syrah" using Calif grapes layered with blackberry, French oak, peppercorn and passionflower and infused with kanna and ashwagandha to offer the stress relief and mood boost that some look to alcohol for. By contrast, rest of line goes out under designations like Curious No 8 Mushroom Amaro or Curious No 5 Smoked Chocolate Cherry Old Fashioned; even its foray into beer gets a # as Curious Zero Lion's Mane Lager. They're all packed in stubby 11.5-oz brown glass bottles. Booth staffers informed us brand still goes out mainly via DTC tho it's established retail footholds in markets like NY (via Union Beer), Minn (Bourget Imports) and Tenn (Best Brands).Pathfinder Adds Espresso Tonic to RTD Array The Pathfinder has been riding the espresso martini trend in recent months with Espresso Tonic canned RTD. Entry partners core Hemp & Root elixir with a shot of espresso from Seattle roaster Caffe Vita "for an effervescent tonic powerful enough to open the third eye" that's portrayed on label. The core tonic is complex melding of ingredients like juniper, coriander, gentian, fermented and distilled hemp, wormwood, Angelica root and Douglas Fir extracts. The RTDs go out in 6.8-oz cans at $4.99 apiece or $19.99 per 4-pk. Sweetening is via cane sugar, for 77 calories. "Dispels negativity and quells heebie-jeebies, shivers and despondency," apothecary-style graphics assure. New entry joins Negroni and Spritz in RTD portfolio. By now, Pathfinder brand is in 40+ states, including retailers like Whole Foods, Safeway/Albertsons, Raley's and QFC's Seattle stores.

BAR CONVENT BROOKLYN: Mixologist Mecca Brings Whirlwind of Alc-Alternatives; Clean Co Adds First RTDs; NA Wine a Focus Area for Several; Amass Offers Electrolyte Mixers

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