Lifestyle, food and drink, and our family life and travel adventures.
I love red wine, I love Prosecco, I love Gin and Tonics. I love them all very, very much. But alas, it is not good for me to drink all of these tasty beverages on the daily, and so I have been trying to cut down quite a bit, and I am doing pretty well and I am drinking a lot less than I was a few months ago.
A lot of the time though, I still really fancy a drink at the end of a long day when I’m knackered and want to chill out a bit, and sometimes I just want a nice drink to sit and enjoy, that isn’t full of crap and tastes really good.
Now, I’ve heard a lot of negative stuff about non-alcoholic drinks – in the past, particularly, they have tended to be very poor substitutes for the real thing, and people only tend to drink them when they have to.
Even some that have been created more recently do not taste good, so I was intrigued to try Caleño and to be honest I didn’t have very high hopes.
Caleño is a new non-alcoholic tropical free spirit, inspired by Colombia. It’s a tropical infusion of juniper, citrus and spice botanicals, steam-distilled in stainless steel drums. Its key ingredient and signature garnish is the South American Inca berry; sweet, yet tangy with pineapple, mango and citrus fruit flavours. It is also low in calories, has no sugar and is vegan. Unlike other non-alcoholic spirits, Caleño’s focus is not just on providing a great alternative to its alcoholic counterparts, but also on fighting that age-old stereotype that not drinking is “boring”. It is named after “Los Caleños”, the people of Cali, a Colombian city famed for its salsa.
And it is so nice! I have been drinking it as I would a traditional, alcoholic G&T – with tonic, ice and lemon in a tall glass and it has such a lovely flavour. I opened it the other night to try it before I had even taken photos of the bottle, and had to stop myself from drinking too much that night! But completely guilt-free which was nice!
Since then I’ve either drank it that same way, or, I love to alternate with an alcoholic G&T so I still get the feeling and enjoyment I get from drinking alcohol, but without drinking too much and feeling awful the next day. It even tastes quite nice on its own, if that’s your thing.
The signature serve is with tonic – but Caleno have also created some lovely recipes for alcohol-free cocktails in partnership with the ‘Happy Bartender’ Megs Miller which you can find below.
Caleño is the creation of Ellie Webb, who hails from Colombia. On a night out dancing with friends, she became frustrated with the lack of adventurous non-alcoholic options. Taking matters into her own hands, she flew to Colombia and was inspired by the joyful culture, vibrant colours and tropical flavours she encountered. Ellie infused all this energy into creating Caleño.
Ellie says;
“I grew up surrounded by music, dancing, and an upbeat Colombian culture. This has had a big influence on the creation of Caleño, which is here to show people that you can have fun without drinking. Too much of the time, we take the joy out of things, exercising or dieting to the extreme, being less colourful, too serious and not doing the things we love. I believe in living a balanced lifestyle and am therefore so excited to be bringing Caleño to people across the UK”.
I’m so glad that I now have a non-alcoholic option that I really like and doesn’t make me feel like I’m missing out. I do wish it was a bit cheaper, but obviously you get what you pay for, and this is a very good quality spirit that – unusually for non-alcoholic alternatives – tastes really good too.
You can get Caleño from Sainsbury’s and online now, RRP. £18 for 50cl, or £24.99 for 70cl, as well as in selected independents and bars.
Recipes by Megs Miller:
The use of soda rather than tonic showcases the flavours of Caleño and just a dash of citrus and sweet lifts it up. Bright & refreshing!
● 50ML CALEÑO
● 10ML FRESH LEMON JUICE
● 10ML GOMME (OR) 2:1 HONEY
● TOP WITH SODA WATER
● METHOD: BUILD
● GLASS: COLLINS
● GARNISH: LEMON ZEST
Lulo is the first fruit that pops into my head from living in Colombia. It is a stunning fruit! Like a citrus-y sherbet. The anise is a nod to Colombian’s infamous drink Aguardiente. This combo of flavours brings me back.
● 50ML CALEÑO
● 25ML FRESH LIME JUICE
● 15ML GOMME
>● 5ML MONIN ANISE SYRUP
● 5-10 DROPS OF MS BETTERS
● MIRACULOUS FOAMER
● METHOD: SHAKE, DRY SHAKE &
● STRAIN
● GLASS: COUPETTE / NICK & NORA
● GARNISH: STAR ANISE
There are so many types of passionfruit in Colombia, so Caleño has to be mixed with passionfruit! And Colombians are extremely passionate about their dancing. This is the drink to keep you dancing all night long.
● 50ML CALEÑO
● 20ML PASSION PUREE
● (OR 1 WHOLE FRESH PASSIONFRUIT)
● 15ML VANILLA SYRUP
● TOP WITH SODA
● METHOD: BUILT
● GLASS: COLLINS
● GARNISH: NO GARNISH
You can’t go to Colombia without falling in love with the coffee! The tropical notes pair beautifully with the espresso & tonic.
● 50ML CALEÑO
● 25ML ESPRESSO
● 10ML GOMME
● DASH TONIC WATER
● METHOD: BUILT
● GLASS: HIGHBALL
● GARNISH: NO GARNISH
And now I have a lovely giveaway for one of you to win your own bottle of Caleño!
All you have to do to enter is complete the Rafflecopter widget below – good luck!
I was sent a bottle of Caleno for this post, but all words and opinions are my own. See my full disclosure policy here.
Welcome to Birds and Lilies! I'm Lou: mother, blogger and freelance writer. This is my lifestyle blog, where I talk about motherhood, infertility and IVF, beauty, my love for food and wine, as well as my thoughts about stuff, and our real-life and travel adventures.
Contact: [email protected]
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It is inspired by Colombia.
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It is inspired by the country of Colombia – thanks
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Columbia – fab design and I love the idea behind non – alcoholic spirits! x
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[email protected]
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Columbia 💝 Thanks for the great giveaway 🤞
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It’s inspired by Colombia.
[email protected]
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It is inspired by Colombia. It looks so great.
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