Prohibition in the US was a hotbed of invention for drinks. Most of it happened under the radar in speakeasy bars but restrictions inspired new non-alcoholic concoctions too, which could be enjoyed outside of the illicit boozers. The mix of apple cider vinegar, water and sweeter known as a Switchel gained in popularity as people added in flavours like ginger to give the drink a familiar kick and burn. But generally, alcohol in its purest form doesn’t bring a whole lot of flavour to drinks. What it brings to the table is texture and mouthfeel that gives the drinker the experience of enjoying a liquid with depth and complexity. That classic burning sensation you feel when drinking spirits? That’s your pain receptors tingling not your tastebuds. Mother Root achieves this same experience by using ingredients with natural bite, texture and a whole lot of flavour.
Apple cider vinegar is how we bring bite back into non-alcoholic drinks. Our founder Bethan is a self confessed acid-fiend, and when she worked in the wine trade, she couldn’t get enough of the zingy white wines of cool climate regions like the Loire Valley or Germany; wines that have a tart sourness and flavour intensity that seizes the senses. This physical response to the taste and experience has been given a name in the wine world: crunchy. Drinks writer Danny Chau in this Punch article explains, “‘Crunchy’ has become the descriptor du jour for high-acidity wines that, according to those in the know, produce a jolting effect not unlike biting down on a Granny Smith Apple.”
‘Our founder Bethan is a self-confessed acid-fiend, and when she worked in the wine trade, she couldn’t get enough of the zingy white wines of cool climate regions like the Loire Valley or Germany; wines that have a tart sourness and flavour intensity that seizes the senses.’
As a fermented ingredient, the upside of vinegar is that it has a lot going on in terms of flavour but, like alcohol, it also has the power to build flavour itself by supercharging other ingredients. It’s great at stoking the fire of the ginger notes and brightening the bitter orange in Ginger and Marmalade, so the hero flavours of our drinks can really shine through.
The apple cider vinegar we use to make Mother Root is a blend of various different cooking and dessert apples, to create a tart and sweet combination that’s fresh and balanced. It’s aged for four months to allow it to mellow into a bright, light, citrusy flavour. Organic and made in the UK, our ACV champions some of the nation’s favourite apples: Discovery, Worcester, Cox and Bramley. All varieties you could find in your local veg or farm shop this month.
‘The apple cider vinegar we use to make Mother Root is a blend of various different cooking and dessert apples, to create a tart and sweet combination that’s fresh and balanced. It’s aged for four months to allow it to mellow into a bright, light, citrusy flavour.’
One of our favourite apples in the ACV blend is the Bramley. A well-known cooking apple and the star of many autumn puddings. Uncooked, Bramley apples have a sharpness that seems to fill and coat the inside of your mouth, suspending your tongue in a sort of crisp, puckering choke-hold. It’s the tart one and brings most of that crushable crunchiness.
If you do one thing this week, buy yourself a bag of apples. Eat them as they are, bake them into something sweet, it’s the season for getting into all things crisp and crunchy.
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