It was on the Diageo World Class Global Finals 2018 in Berlin that we were able to taste the new Ketel One Botanical Series. Essentially it’s a low ABV neutral gain spirit, infused with botanicals and we must admit, at first we were a bit sceptical, but in the end we got blown away by the amount of flavour in it. Ketel One Botanical is an expertly made product and it’s going to be hugely popular!

The Ketel One area at World Class Berlin was amazing. Sleek and trendy design, white furniture and a fresh green herb garden against the wall. Ok, you might think, that’s all very nice, but what’s so special about it? Well the tables, for instance, were made out of recycled yoghurt pots. Yes, yoghurt pots, thousands of them. And it’s a beautiful looking, sturdy and easy to clean material. It actually makes you morally feel better sitting at it, knowing that there are people out there who are actively trying to save the planet in a very creative way. And Ketel One especially supports this.

Or look, chairs made from DVDs! How would you like to sit on your favourite movie?

One more to show you the entire Ketel One Kitchen – as they dubbed it.

We were given a tasting by Bob Nolet, whose family owns and produces Ketel One Genever, Gin and Vodka for like 400 years now! After a while the flamboyant Dennis Tamse of Ketel One took over in his own peculiar style, which we can summarise as fast, to the point and commanding you to take a sip, like every 100 seconds or so.

Back to the actual product now: Ketel One Botanical. In one word: fantastic! Technically it’s not a vodka anymore, because it’s only 30% ABV. But that doesn’t matter, because it was meant as a spirit aperitif, an alternative – as it were – to a fruity, dry wine. And it does fill in that job with great success.

The flavour is fantastic, it’s outspoken, but not too overly dominant. It’s perfectly balanced. No sugar is added, so it’s not sickenly sweet. It’s light and refreshing as an aperitif should be and it doesn’t bother you at all that it’s “only” 30% ABV.

But the magic of this product, what really struck me, is the fact that it doesn’t lose anything when you add water or soda. You can dilute this m*****f**er to the brim of your glass and it won’t lose flavour! It was actually designed for this. Add soda or tonic, some ice and done. And while you did that, the ABV has probably lowered to that of a standard wine, so you can drink loads…I mean, several, of these. It comes in three different flavours: Grapefruit & Rose, Cucumber & Mint and Peach & Orange Blossom.

Mind you, this can rapidly become your standard BBQ or garden-party aperitif. So you can forget your horrible home made recipe for sangria, buy a Ketel One Botanical instead.

Cheers!