Zero-proof cocktails trend upward in Central Arkansas

Zero-proof cocktails trend upward in Central Arkansas

Zero-proof cocktails trend upward in Central Arkansas

Rhett BrinkleyTHERE’S SOMETHING ABOUT BERRY: Cypress Social’s most popular mocktail is a puree of Luxardo cherries and strawberries mixed with lime and soda water.

One doesn’t have to drink booze to derive pleasure from an expertly crafted beverage served in elegant glassware and garnished with colorful corkscrew-shaped fruit peels or floating wheels of citrus. Cocktails — whether they’re loaded with hooch or alcohol-free — are a vibe.

More Central Arkansas restaurants have nonalcoholic sections on their cocktail menus than you might imagine. These aren’t the Shirley Temples and virgin strawberry daiquiris my teenage friends and I used to order from Chili’s in the late ’90s when we wanted to feel grown up. Today’s no-proof cocktails feature freshly squeezed juices and complex house-made syrups, and bartenders craft them with nuance. So, whether you’re planning a sober October, having a beverage before prom, taking a night off after a crushing hangover or living a life of sobriety, you can still get a really good cocktail in Little Rock sans booze.

Why the zero-proof momentum?

A recent Gallup poll found that the overall drinking rate in the U.S. has been generally steady in recent decades, with older Americans more likely to drink and younger adults drinking less. On TikTok, the hashtag #mocktail has more than 1 billion views.

Some of the local bartenders I spoke with think people are seeking healthier habits as we’re coming out of the pandemic.

“I think a lot of people coped with alcohol heavier during lockdown, and now the pendulum is swinging the other direction into sobriety and sober curiosity,” Little Rock bartender Courtney Stowers said.

Cypress Social’s bar manager, Rob Roy Armstrong, said he created its mocktail menu for Dry January a few years ago, and when February rolled around he decided to keep the booze-free alternatives year-round. This year, Cypress Social won Best Mocktail in the Arkansas Times Toast of the Town poll.

Armstrong said mocktails generated more revenue than he imagined, and that come prom season they’re popular among high school age kids. Arkansas Times reporter Mary Hennigan will often order from the mocktail menu and ask the bartender to add a shot because she finds the mocktail ingredients more appealing. Armstrong said that’s not unusual; some of his customers even order mocktails as shot chasers.

Still, without the bitter bite of the booze component, mocktails have gained a reputation for being sweet, fruity drinks that lack complexity. Part of the challenge for bartenders is creating drinks that can appeal to both drinkers and nondrinkers. What I’ve found drinking mocktails all over town is that bartenders aim to strike a balance between sweet and savory elements.

It’s more than simply omitting alcohol from a cocktail recipe, said Raduno bartender Erica McCoy.

“We’re starting to [see] kombucha or different healthy probiotics,” McCoy said. She recommended I try the Puttin’ Down Roots mocktail at Raduno, which features plantain syrup, lime and muddled mint. When I stopped by the restaurant for lunch one afternoon, the mint wasn’t available, so the bartender substituted basil. It was unlike any flavor combination I’ve ever tried, and I’d give the palate sensation a perfect 10/10.

Brian ChilsonCHEERS: Natalie Martin serves up Raduno’s Puttin’ Down Roots mocktail with plantain syrup.

The cocktail menu at Ciao Baci features a zero-proof category and bar manager Merrick Fagan said the word “mocktail” is omitted by design.

“I call them zero-proof cocktails,” Fagan said. “There’s nothing mock or imitating about them.”

Fagan said that’s part of the reason for the growth of the modern booze-free drink menu. “More bartenders are taking nonalcoholic drinks seriously as a category and putting care and thought into them like we would into our alcoholic offerings,” he said.

No-stigma sobriety

Brian ChilsonMOCKTAIL BAR: Pettaway Coffee has six mocktails on the menu and a growing selection of nonalcoholic beer and wine.

Little Rock’s aspiring go-to spot for mocktails, though, is Pettaway Coffee, which opened in June in the Pettaway Square small business district at 406 E. 21st St. It’s a coffee shop, but Pettaway Square developer Michael Orndorff wants it to be a full-on “mocktail bar” in the afternoons and early evenings.

Orndorff said that after participating in Dry January in 2022 he decided to keep the momentum going. Now approaching two years of sobriety, he wanted to give Little Rock residents more options for taking the night off or quitting altogether.

In addition to six mocktails on the menu, the shop has a growing selection of nonalcoholic beer and wine. Orndorff said he hopes to have the widest selection in town, and the shop will offer monthlong deals on its alcohol-free offerings for Sober October and Dry January.

“It might be super small and negligible and barely talked about, but we’re gonna try,” he said.

Pettaway Coffee does offer regular beer and wine, and Orndorff said there have been a handful of instances when booze-seeking customers have accidentally ordered drinks from the menu despite being designated “N/A Cocktails.”

Orndorff said when he started looking around for alcohol-free options, there were more restaurants in town offering them than he realized. Still, he said, “Nobody was really trying to wear it, like: ‘This is our thing and we’re going to make a big deal out of it.’”

“Has it paid off?” he asked rhetorically. “Not necessarily, but we’re sticking to it, and we’re going to keep making it our thing.”

The 2023 Arkansas Times Mocktail Crawl

The Mangolorian from Brood & Barley

Rhett Brinkley

A blend of mango, lime, cilantro and grapefruit soda, the Mangolorian from Brood & Barley is more than a timely, “Star Wars”-themed name. Created by former Brood & Barley bartender Autumn Deal, the grapefruit and subtle mango flavors are offset by a pleasant spiciness, and I enjoyed switching between the salt rim and a Tajin-inspired “Joe-jin” rim made by Brood & Barley chef Joey.

The Siesta from Pettaway Coffee

Rhett Brinkley

This colorful pink cocktail with “alternative tequila” has fresh grapefruit and lime juices, and it rivals some of the best Palomas I’ve had. I found it impossible to drink slowly.

Puttin’ Down Roots from Raduno Brick Oven & Barroom

Rhett Brinkley

I’d probably choke on my Diet Coke if someone told me a mocktail of plantain syrup, basil (it’s usually served with mint) and lime with soda water would be one of my favorite drinks of 2023, and yet here we are.

There’s Something About Berry at Cypress Social

Rhett Brinkley

Move over, Shirley Temple. There’s a reason why this mocktail is one of Cypress Social’s most popular, and it makes sense why someone might order one as a chaser. A puree of Luxardo cherries and strawberries mixed with lime and soda water would’ve blown my mind as a teen wishing I were old enough to drink. If I worked behind the bar at Cypress Social, these could be habit-forming.

By the Pool Cooler at Ciao Baci

Rhett Brinkley

By the time this issue hits stands, Ciao Baci’s fall menu will be out, and bar manager Merrick Fagan said this zero-proof cocktail might be gone for the season. A refreshing carbonated drink with hints of coconut and cucumber, it was the perfect post-work, no-proof cocktail on Ciao Baci’s lovely Hillcrest patio. No pool necessary.

 

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