No & Low – The Prestige Opportunity
There comes a point in the development of most ‘commodity’ categories where mainstream brands start to become supplemented by more prestigious offerings. This is particularly pronounced in the world of alcoholic drinks, where a bottle of wine can now cost anywhere from £5 to £5000 plus, targeting a wide range of drinkers from your average Joe to the ultra high net worth individual with seemingly limitless spending power.
As a category still in its relative infancy, no and low is yet to establish a credible stake within the prestige market – though surely as sobriety and more moderate drinking behaviours continue to increase there will be a demand for it (insofar as there is always a demand for status!). The desire for more prestigious, rarefied offerings will be particularly pronounced within the fine dining sphere, where considered drinks pairings are paramount, forming an important part of the overall experience.
At present, there are a number of obstacles preventing no & low accessing this lucrative part of the drinks market:
- Lack of heritage: the vast majority of no & low brands are new to world, lacking the history and credibility to compete with centuries old Chateaus
- Apologetic tone: it’s difficult to demand a true premium when the category is defined by its ‘non-ness’, as supposed to its additive value
- Wellness associations: functional drinks brands are driving category perceptions around health / wellbeing (which is great!), but the prestige market requires a different set of codes – hedonism, taste, refinement, rarity
So what might a prestige proposition in the space look like? What principles might we need to adopt to build drinks worthy of the tables of the world’s best restaurants?
1. Don’t Obsess over Alcohol Content
Lack of alcohol should not be the primary talking point. The drink should be able to stand its ground with its flavour, ingredients, and process alone.
2. Prioritise Precision
Be specific about where the ingredients come from – not just the country, but the region, the farm, the woods, the field. Describe the liquid with the finesse and detail of a sommelier to emphasise its pairing potential.
3. Foreground the Maker
Where desirable, celebrate the genius of the ‘maker’ behind the drink, to drive trust and credibility. Use their personality and industry pedigree as a way to build more intimate relationships with the discerning drinks consumer.
4. Build a Mythology:
Whilst the drink may not be hundreds of years old, the place that it comes from may well be. Use the stories of the land and its people to build a modern mythology around the drink that adds a layer of mystique and romance.
5. Emphasise Rarity
Scale reduction is a sure-fire way to drive covetability. Create liquid expressions in limited batches, with ingredients available for a restricted time window to create a sense of scarcity.
6. Utilise Aging Techniques
In the world of alcoholic drinks, time is value. Borrow techniques from wine and spirits, like cask-aging, sea-aging, and high-altitude aging, to pre-empt the expectations of the discerning future non-alc consumer.
Whilst the no and low prestige opportunity remains relatively untapped, a handful of smaller producers are already inching their way into the space.
Ama Brewery, the brainchild of fine dining veterans Dani Lasa and Ramon Perisé, is one such example. Their precisely crafted ‘pet nat teas’ – or ‘haute kombuchas’ – take note from the sommelier’s playbook, with their ruthlessly meticulous focus on provenance, process, and tasting notes. Made with single-varietal teas thoughtfully sourced from Japan, Malawi, Sri Lanka, and Taiwan, and water from the Izarraitz Massif in the Basque Country, Ama’s fine-aged cuvée’s effortlessly stand their ground on the menus of the world’s best dining establishments.
Ama Brewery ‘Bat’ - made with Sencha Yabukita tea from Japan
Taking a decidedly more avant-garde approach to their brand presentation, Unified Ferments are another example of a producer who have mastered the language and storytelling required to speak to the fine dining devotee. Referencing the prehistoric origins of both tea production and fermentation – they take an ostensibly ‘new’ category, and reframe it as something with ancient origins. An intelligent strategy for an audience that so deeply reveres heritage.
