Coming up

Speaker 1 1:12

this mid-range category is actually what a lot of people are looking for . It's just quite unknown . Everyone looks at low and low and expects it to be kind of under one percent type of thing , and then they look at the full strength , but there's this gaping middle ground , which is actually where most people would want to be .

Speaker 2 1:31

Hi hi Lono Nation and welcome to this week's conversation on the Lono Drinker podcast . Today I'm talking to the lovely Mr Russell Lamb , who is the founder of 6% , a new wine range that has come out to bridge that middle gap for those who are looking to enjoy the flavours of full-strength wine without the alcohol of full-strength wine . Russell's wine is made in Bordeaux , one of the premium winemaking regions in the world .

Speaker 1 1:58

And I'm really interested to know how the whole process is coming about , how he's developed this wine , how it's been received over there and yet at home as well as his thoughts on the low and light range and where they fit in today's moderating society .

Speaker 2 2:13

So I'm really excited to hear Russ's point of view . And , russell , thank you very much for joining me . How are you doing today ?

Speaker 1 2:20

I'm all right . Thank you , Not bad . Very excited to be on the cast . Thank you for bringing me on .

Speaker 2 2:24

Oh , it's great to have you . Great to have you . I've spoken to a couple of mid-range producers and I'm really excited always to get them on , because I think this is an area that we don't get to talk very much about . Regular listeners will know that I've often spoken about the fact that the moderating middle seems to sometimes get the quietest voice , even though we're the majority of people are actually , you know , looking at just tapering their drinking in some respect . So I definitely want to get into your thoughts on how all of that can help people who are looking at changing their drinking habits . But first of all , I always like to start with a little bit of the founder's backstory . So start where you'd like to start . But what was the inspiration that led you to create a 6% Wine in the first place ?

Russell's story

Speaker 1 3:18

um , so very much kind of what you've just said . Really , there are a lot of people who are just looking for to moderate their alcohol consumption . So , uh , about six , seven years ago , um , my wife gabby and I who's the who's also a co-founder of six percent um , we were out , uh , we were out drinking at nice restaurants and going out for nice meals . We were going out to the pub . We found that we loved wine , we loved the taste of wine , but it was quite a snobby environment and we were kind of semi-restricted to how much we could drink . So we actually set up a wine tasting and events company just to kind of take the snobbiness out of wine . We ran that really well for about five years and then but during that time we actually consumed quite a lot of wine , as we were wine tasting quite a bit , and that was during lockdown .

Speaker 1 4:08

At the same time and I think everyone's consumption kind of went up a little bit and we started asking the question well , hang on a minute , we love the taste of wine and we genuinely love what wine creates . It's a bit of an art form to create something like that , but why does it have to be so restricting on the high alcohol levels . We can only drink so much of this thing without kind of really feeling bad the next day . So we looked around the world to see if quite literally around the world , to see if there was anything in the mid-range or slightly lower . There wasn't anything . So we partnered up with some fantastic producers , which took us a long time to find over in Bordeaux , and for the last two years we've been working on our recipe to make sure that we kind of have the best tasting wine with half the amount of alcohol and half the amount of calories at the same time amazing .

Speaker 2 5:03

I love that . I always love , uh , founder stories that start with the founders trying to solve a problem that they themselves are facing , because you know that those are the brands that are really made out of passion . Someone goes , look , this isn't good enough , we need to do something about this and how can we make it better ? Um , your , so you had your wine tasting company , um , and so , yes , I can imagine that in those tastings quote unquote I mean , I've been in hospitality for a long time . I've I've seen many , um , uh , spittoon buckets . I haven't used many tasting , because people do , don't you just like oh great , it's a taste , it's wine . Just why would I spit it out ? Let's drink it . And it's very easy on something like that to find yourself getting very , very merry very , very quickly because you don't realize how much you're having , do you ?

Speaker 1 5:51

yeah , I completely agree with you .

Speaker 1 5:52

And um , yeah , having been on quite a few of these things and you can feel yourself getting married , and I think that we found ourselves not only in that position during the , during these tastings , but actually kind of everyday life , like we , we , we would like to go out socializing , kind of where that's inside pubs , in like with alcohol and without alcohol .

Speaker 1 6:15

But when you go out socialising with alcohol in general , I don't know it sounds a bit stereotypical , but I quite like beer and Gabby really likes wine and I can have a few beers , but she could only have one wine or so and she's very restricted on that and that's unfair . Why isn't there something that creates that ? Why is that restricting and it's not very inclusive at all . Is it so the fact that there wasn't a product there to make it inclusive , to make kind of have that , have that product there to , so that everybody has an option ? Um , meant that we kind of went out and tried to , as you say , solve the problem , to come up with something for us . Um , I'm also type one diabetic , so half of the amount of calories , which is half the amount of sugar , is a very good thing for me if I want to drink the drink that I like .

Speaker 2 7:04

That's a really important angle . Actually , I think a lot of people recognise the sugars that are involved in wines and full-strength alcohol in general . It has almost as much per gram much calories per gram as fat and people don't realize that . And so when you start looking at your intake and you start going , oh , I'm dieting , oh I'm slimming down , for you know , you just went to a lovely wedding people always try to look nice and trim for that and but you don't realize that the drinks that you're necking on the weekend are seriously impacting to that calorie count . So I think that's a really good

Beer vs Wine

Speaker 2 7:41

point .

Speaker 2 7:41

Another good point I love that you made actually was the difference between the beers and the wines , because you're right , it is always , you know , a pint of lager for the fella and a glass of white for the lady , and it's that sort of stereotypical thing . But more women do tend to drink wine and more men do tend to drink beer , and I , when I would go out , I would always want to match my friends for their drinks . It's drink for drink and obviously if you're drinking a glass of wine which has a lower amount of liquid but has more alcohol , you can't match a fella drinking a pint for pint , for pint for pint , without getting absolutely rotten within a really short amount of time . And then we wonder why we're always falling over . But absolutely , if you've got a glass of wine that's 14 and it's like the third of the liquid of a pint , which is only four percent , you're gonna get pissed .

Speaker 1 8:32

Yes , quite frankly , quite frankly , yes , that is , yeah , quite frankly , that , quite frankly , yes , yeah , quite frankly , that is the case , and like there's one person's going to be falling out of that door , and I think that you're 100% right . What people have actually started to now flip to is if you want to stay in a location , if we're talking about , like , the entree , and we're talking about let's just kind of talk about going to a pub . For the moment , although socialising doesn't have to always revolve around alcohol or anything like that , pubs need to change their menus to make sure that they are more inclusive . End of story . Um , but like when , if you are in a pub , you might be in there for an extended period of time , and if you're just nursing one small drink , that's just a little bit unfair . And people do want to buy to , to kind of have a few more things while they sat there with something in your hand , and it's just a natural human thing to do so .

Speaker 1 9:25

25 of people are now going out a zebra striping , which means they'll kind of have an alcoholic drink and then a non-alcoholic , then an alcoholic , then a non-alcoholic , just so they can kind of continue that drinking throughout the an extended period of time but to your point , they're not just kind of sat there with one small glass and this is where I think that six percent kind of comes in this mid-range alcohol .

Speaker 1 9:48

It means it's actually more of a headache to drink full , full strength no , non non-alcoholic full strength , non-alcoholic , full strength , non-alcoholic than it is just to kind of have a great tasting drink that you can sit there and suffer away at without too much of the kind of the worry and anxiety that sits in the back of your mind and you can genuinely enjoy your social situations . And that's kind of really what we brought it to the market to be . And then , just for our consumers and customers , the feedback seems to have been really good on this point that it tastes good . And taste is absolutely key because people aren't going to drink it . If you don't get the taste right , there's a concept , but if you don't

Making 6% wine

Speaker 1 10:27

get the taste right it's pointless , and that's why it's taken us two years to get to this point .

Speaker 2 10:52

Absolutely so . Talk to me about those challenges then . So you know , in making a 6% wine , I'm not a winemaker myself , despite the experiences that I've had around people who do , but I know it's a complex process just to make we'll call it , traditional wines . That your average sort of challenges that you're looking at , then , when you're trying to make a 6% wine that gives the body and the flavour , particularly a red , because people are quite demanding of red wines , aren't they ? They're not particularly forgiving about a red wine not tasting as they expect it to be . So what sort of challenges have you faced trying to bring this to market ?

Speaker 1 11:13

Very good question it . It is in all . I think you had a podcast before and just kind of reference back because they are some really good casts that have , uh , that have come before this . There's one with the le cap guys who who've got a five percent rose now , uh , they referenced at the same time that actually , when you have , when you take the out , alcohol is in , the alcohol is in the sugars . When you take the sugars out and when you take the alcohol out , you lose the flavor . And that is true , you completely lose the flavor .

Speaker 1 11:43

And actually , the way that we do it , we have gone to Bordeaux , which is a nice big , so you start off nice big and bold for flavors and then we reduce , using quite innovative technology and even more innovative techniques to bring that down . So we actually , in order to get to where we are , we take full-strength Merlot , strip it all the way down to zero and there's a bit more in this and then we blend it back up to 6% . So actually , with our wines , there's minimum intervention over and above the normal process . So we literally have full-strength wines that have been taken out and the premium grapes that come out of Bordeaux and we take those premium grapes , produce them to full-strength wines , use this new innovative technology in order to bring it down but retain those flavours . Now , other ways that people do other products do kind of put flavour back in is by pumping more sugar in pumping artificial flavors . We don't do that . We try to keep it as natural and as authentic as possible in that month , as minimal intervention as possible .

Speaker 2 12:50

That's really interesting and I think you make a really good point about what you start with the base . You know you've obviously picked a very bold grape , that that holds a lot of flavor , has a lot of uh tannin to it , so that you can have that . That mouth feel um , because what people want is something that they can feel that they are experiencing the same adult drinking experiences that they were either having before , when they used to drink full strength , or especially , especially , as you say , the sort of of zebra striping or blending approach , which is just generally mixing your drinks , even if you're not being strict , you know , one full , one low , one full . However you're doing it , you don't want to go from having something that's full-bodied and full of flavour to something that's just a bit lacking .

Speaker 1 13:33

I completely agree with you . I completely agree with you because that's what we're here to do and that's why we have a drink . That's why we eat nice food and we have food choices . We have drink choices because we just want to enjoy the scenario . What we don't want to do is suffer with it , like the age-old tradition .

Speaker 1 13:47

Do you want a soft drink ? Well , you're going to have a coke , or you're going to have a or a water . It's just like . It's crazy , isn't it like ? Why do I have to suffer with my flavor and like my experience , when actually what we're trying to do is enhance your experience by reducing the amounts of alcohol , uh , in there , whilst whilst keeping the flavor ? So

The mid-range category

Speaker 1 14:07

, yeah , yeah , I hear you , I completely hear you . This is why I think the the general middle ground this mid-range category is is actually what a lot of people are looking for . It's just quite unknown and there are a number of really good products in this category , but we just I don't think that people really know , know it . Everyone looks at no and low and expects it to be kind of under one percent type of thing , and then they look at the full strength . But there's this gaping middle ground , which is actually where most people would want to be , if they are alcohol drinkers and looking to moderate .

Speaker 2 14:43

Yeah , let's talk about that a little bit then , because one question so I've had a couple of mid-range brands on before and one question I've put to them that I'll put to you has been about our supermarkets . So you know , people go into our supermarkets and I had an article in the magazine a little while ago it was a debate piece about where mid-range drinks belong in our supermarkets , where people should find them , whether they should be in the low and no section so that you know that if you're looking for something that's not full strength , that's where you go , or whether they should be in the full strength section because they are above the government guidelines of the 1.2 percent for low alcohol . As a producer of a mid-range spirit , a mid-range wine , where would you like to see your products sitting ? Where would you like people to know to go to find you when they want something that's right at that sweet sweet spot ?

Speaker 1 15:39

again , brilliant , genuinely brilliant question and a huge and a huge challenge with our industry . Because , like you say , there is a no low section , there is a full strength section , but there's nothing in between . Now , ideally , where we really need to get to is whether that's in a , in a supermarket shelf , and this is like the general mid-alcohol category or lighter alcohol category , um , then whether there's a section on the shelf which is just full of mid-lighter alcohol , um products , or whether that is um , but in what ? In the meantime , while that's not coming , um , we are a wine , quite frankly , we are a wine and we are . We know what we are and and that's why we called ourselves six percent , because we're just going to own this , to say that this is who we are , this is why we are and like the video , you can see the the bottle here .

Speaker 2 16:34

It's very clear that that's a very big six percent right there , isn't it ?

Speaker 1 16:40

I am . So , in order to come up with that design , um and I think people should watch the video if possible . If not , you can see it on our website , which we'll just say later um 66 online . Um , no , the um . The way that I came up with that design actually is I walked down a um supermarket aisle , in the middle , uh , with my phone , and walked a fair amount of pace to see which labels stood out and kind of then we started to build on that because , to your exact point , we are a wine . We're going to be sitting on a wine shelf until we get a mid-alcohol range section and hopefully that that is a design that stands out a little bit more . So , yeah , it's a very difficult point from an awareness standpoint of the category to where do you sit ? How does it come in ? That's why it's pioneering . This is a pioneering product in a category which is kind of completely unknown for the moment . We really need to explore this a little bit more I think you're absolutely right there .

Speaker 2 17:44

I think , first and foremost , you know that the , the government needs to sort out the , the labeling and the systems that we're supposed to use , because everybody is confused . Nobody knows , uh , the difference between the terminology , even the low , the , no , the light , the . You know , it's all it all . It's a bag of worms for most people and , being within the industry , I see it on people's faces when I've given talks and they're like can you explain it ? So I try to explain it as simply as possible , and even then it gets complicated , because when you're talking to somebody about what's considered no alcohol in a pub , it's actually different to what's considered no alcohol in a supermarket shop , and that's different to what's considered no alcohol in a supermarket shop and that's different to what's considered no alcohol coming in , being imported from america or somewhere else . And then you've got your de-alcoholized wines , which aren't the percentage that they have to be means that any wine that's below that percentage has to be marked as de-alcoholized , even if it hasn't been . And then you've got your low , which is 1.2 , but but that's not a law , that's just guidance so people don't have to stick to it .

Speaker 2 19:15

And then we've got this new era , this mid-light , which we're all still trying to figure out . What do we call it , how do we refer to it , how do we label it , where do we tell people to look for it ? So it's all . It's so complicated for the end user , which I think is such a shame , because , at the end of the day , this is all about creating amazing drinks for people to have choices and to be able to go . I don't feel like drinking right now , and I love that you took the proactive approach of going down that supermarket aisle and going right , okay , what is there ? What does it look like ? What stands out to people , because I think we need to just make it as clear as possible so that people know that they have options and they can go and try them .

Speaker 1 20:04

I completely agree with you and I think we are definitely singing from the same hymn sheet . Here's um . It is a case that we need to get this awareness out there and I think where these products sit well , where this kind of whole category sits on the main part is is it's really based around occasionality . So you you in on with our . What we say is part of our kind of branding is we are a brand that goes well with long lazy lunches , long afternoon barbecues , like the midweek drink , and these are things that , from an alcoholic if you do drink , from an alcoholic beverage perspective , if you do drink alcohol , obviously then there are times that you want to moderate . It is that kind of midweek drink .

Speaker 1 20:56

Or sometimes you don't quite fancy a full-strength wine , but you do want to have that wine , and why do you have to make another choice if there isn't that product out there ? And this is what this 6% is there to do is to try and bridge that place and bridge that occasion for people that actually just want that flavor , like sometimes we just really crave a burger , but you're not gonna . So yeah , sometimes you really crave a burger and like , but you can't always eat the burgers , it's quite it can be . It can be quite fatty . So what are you ? Look for other options , and that's kind of what it is . That's probably a bad way to describe it .

Speaker 2 21:35

No , absolutely . I'd have gone with a pizza , but I see what you're saying yeah , yeah , yeah , okay .

Speaker 2 21:43

What are your thoughts on some of the other mid-range products that you see out there ? Particularly , there's gins now that have um that they are full strength gins but are supposed to be served in a very small , uh thin ball size or a tiny spoon . Uh , you know , there are beers now within that sort of um two and a half to three and a half percent range that are coming out now . Do you think that we are at the start of an explosion of this mid-range category ?

Speaker 1 22:17

absolutely . I think we are literally at , I mean obviously I'm going to say that I've just started .

Speaker 2 22:23

No , no , no , no absolutely .

Speaker 1 22:24

But yes , ps anyone , we are going for some investment in there soon as well , so amazing yeah yeah , yeah , um .

Speaker 1 22:35

So . So I think that all the data is saying yes . So 10 ish years ago you've got your seed lips of the world , which kind of revolutionized the no , no alcohol category and the way that humans work , and all the data that is suggesting this is actually you kind of you do flip from full drinking . So then everyone went to no drinking and everyone's like , well , hang on a minute . Well , not everyone , but most , lots of people were trying to say , well , hang on a minute . I just want to find a middle ground , because that's where it's quite nice and this is why I think that people just need to .

Speaker 1 23:08

As soon as they understand this category , it kind of works very well and there are , as you say , different products across the beverage industry are looking at different ways to moderate , like you say , using smaller , more concentrated measure , which is a completely fair way to do it , and that product has been specifically designed to do that . Or you can look at other brands , such as quarter or cut classics , um , in that spirits world , um , that are looking to , um , that are looking to kind of cut the alcohol out whilst retaining the flavor , and two good , very good um spirits as well , um , there are a number of um kind of um distributors and shops and things like that that work out and , um , yeah , I think that that , yeah , there's there's places like club soda and that you can buy , that have a fantastic selection of no and no drinks , and it's it's well worth having a look at absolutely , and I think it's .

Speaker 2 24:07

I was actually speaking to laura the other other day at Club Soda . I popped in to see her and she's also a very big champion of the mid-range as well and she was saying it's very interesting . So people come into the shop and quite often they'll be surprised because she does have a dedicated section I should say they , because it's not just her , it's her and Juicy as well . They do have a dedicated section for mid-range beverages , so you know the sorts of spirits and wines and beers that we were mentioning , and she says that people are often surprised because they expect her to just be low and low .

Speaker 2 24:39

But Laura's approach is one that I think would sit very well with with with yourself , russell , because she's very much about showing people that that a good life is about options , which I think is what we're both saying here that for those who are teetotal for whatever reason and it doesn't matter what your reasons are then absolutely , if you only want alcohol free , then here's a fantastic range of drinks to have . But for those who aren't and who do want something else , she's very happy to provide a selection of those mid range drinks and say look , here are some other things to consider and it's quite interesting because I've spoken to a lot of people in the alcohol free world who are very anti mid range drinks . I wondered if you've come across any resistance to your product from anyone who just doesn't quite get it . Or you know people who think that it's a I've had some refer to as a gateway . You know it's , it's you're . You're just telling people that they should have more alcohol .

Speaker 1 25:44

I mean , with any form of change , there's always going to be somebody that doesn't like it . That is a human nature , and there's enough humans in the world to not like something . So you're 100 right that , yes , there has been the odd occasional person that seems to have turned around , and , whether that be because they don't quite understand the product or the nature of what we're trying to get into it , or maybe it's not quite the right fit for them , um , or yeah , they're looking for something slightly different . So if you want to go for a big , bold bordeaux kind of , sit down and you're going to chew through it , wine , we're not the product for you . That's not what we're there to do .

Speaker 1 26:27

And this is the beauty of wine , because , you , there are so many different products right across the world . It's just we are there to do and this is the beauty of wine , because there are so many different products right across the world . It's just we are there , as I say , for the specific occasion . We have this like . It's a beautiful , medium-bodied wine . It's got fruit forward to just kind of keep all those classic Bordeaux , merlot , cavanier , sauvignon characteristics with an element of so you've got kind of black cherries and berries and then it has like a nice little bit of tannins at the end with some vanilla , so it kind of covers everything and people will get that . People get the flavor as they're taking it in .

Speaker 1 27:02

I think that some people just don't quite get the concept and that's fine , to be honest , that's absolutely

1/2 the flavour, 1/2 the cost?

Speaker 1 27:07

fine . Um , the other thing that I have to admit that some people have said , and I'll quite openly say this is well , if it's half the alcohol , it needs to be half the price . And thank you , um , thank you for those not watching the video . There was a , an appreciating nod .

Speaker 2 27:27

Um but I think how do you deal with those ones ? Come on , because this is just it's , it's part of the education piece , isn't it that that people are trying to get this message out there ? Uh , I've written articles about it , I've spoken about it , but it just seems that the message isn't isn't getting there . What do you say to people when they they say well , it hasn't got as much booze , it shouldn't cost as much money .

Speaker 1 27:54

Okay . So the way that I put this back is to say you're in , there is an existing wine range on a shelf in a supermarket . You go in there and those wines range from all different prices based on quality . Ours is set at £12.50 because we are an affordable premium product and it is a genuinely nice tasting product that people will buy . And we use premium grapes to get in there .

Speaker 1 28:19

And , yes , it does cost a little bit more to make because we have the added layer on top of that to reduce the alcohol . So , yes , there are added costs . We try not to pass those on as much , so we can't run a suite spot of 12 pounds , 50 , but if you're looking . But the other thing that's kind of on a very specific note but taking a step out of that is you're paying for an experience , right ? So that is a flavor experience that you are paying for . Now , whether you're drinking a no alcohol product or a mid-alcohol product , you still want it to taste good . So are you going to pay for something that tastes good like we pay more for a nice tasting food . You're paying more for a nice tasting wine , so , and more more for a nicer tasting kind of spirit or something like that . So why would you not pay that time a little bit more if you're going to have the whole experience ? So not still getting good flavor , but you're not going to be falling out of the door , as we said earlier absolutely that .

Speaker 2 29:22

I mean , there are so many things that go into making quality drinks , so one of so one of the complaints for the low-no and light industry in general has always been it doesn't taste as good , it's not as good as , you know , my usual pint or my usual glass . So there's a call for producers to improve the standards , improve the qualities , but at the same time there's a call for the prices to be reduced , and it just doesn't make sense to me , because as you say , when you want quality , you have to be prepared to pay for it .

Speaker 2 29:53

These are people's jobs , people's livelihoods , people's passions , and even though it may be something that's helping you live the life the way you want to , those people still have to pay their rent or their mortgages or feed their children . So we need to be fair , right , first and foremost . We need to be fair . If you want someone to put the time and effort into making something that's great quality for you to enjoy , then pay for that time and effort . The other big thing for me is how much money have we spent on alcohol ?

Speaker 1 30:20

How much money have we spent on booze .

Speaker 2 30:22

I can't even tell you , obviously , the amount of shots that I've had , that I did not want to have or that I did not enjoy , that I've had that I did not want to have or that I did not enjoy . And of course , we've all been there . And that's not to say that everybody makes the same stupid decisions that I did when I was what I call professionally drinking . But you know , we have , we've spent a lot of money on it , and what people don't realize is that what you've spent your money on is the thing that costs the least amount . Alcohol doesn't cost you anything , people .

Speaker 2 30:48

Alcohol is the cheapest ingredient in your glass . It's not what costs the money . What costs the money are the grapes or the grains or the vegetables or whatever your drink is fermented from . It's the processes , it's the time , it's the fact that alcohol is a preservative and it makes things last longer . Alcohol carries flavor , so full strength producers don't have to work as hard as brands like yourselves to make sure that the taste is great , because they've got an extra leg up from the booze that's adding all that flavor . So I think it's still the education piece , isn't it ? It's still just getting people to understand what they're paying for , and I will say that , if you are prepared to spend money on a full strength alcohol drink , the worst thing that can happen when you spend money on a low , no or light drink is that you don't feel any different . The best thing that can happen is that you have a fantastic night and you feel great in the morning . Yeah , that's worth the spends , isn't ?

Speaker 1 31:48

it . Amen to that , yeah , and if we're talking about the continuity onto the next day , then I think that there's there's no argument really , is there ? So if you still get the flavor and you still get most of your day the next day , the next day back , whereas you're kind of easy to understand , way to people , is difficult , frankly , it's difficult , and I think that the way that this consumer market works is if it tastes good and I can see the benefit , then I'm going to , then then I'm going to be happy with it . So again , kind of flipping back onto where . Where we come from , as six percent , our branding is very simple .

Speaker 1 32:40

So the third co-founder of ours is um jason senate , who is um . He's ex marketing and innovation directors at some tory , per , pernod , ricard and Diageo , so he's kind of held quite senior positions in all of those . So he runs our marketing and commercial side and alongside Gabby who runs brand , and he's also our chief wine officer , which I think is probably the coolest name ever Great title , yeah , wine officer which I think is probably probably the coolest name great title , yeah , um , so the so ?

Speaker 1 33:14

so the way that we pitch this is we call it full flavor , half the alcohol , half the calories , and what we're trying to get across there is is just to work on people's logic . Ah , that makes sense , well , if I can still get the flavor . But actually there is enough information out there to say that drinking too much is a bad thing . People know that , people understand that . But what they don't want to give up is is the , the flavor of the experience . But what we're trying to get to the get across to them is actually we're going to enhance your experience because you don't get so sloshed and you keep the flavor . So it becomes that no brainer option . And that's the way that we try to approach it with people to try and keep it as succinct as possible .

Speaker 2 34:01

Yeah , because you're right . It's hard to put all of that information on a bottle isn't it ?

Speaker 2 34:05

So there'd be a lot of reading to be done , but I do like your message , I do like your branding , I like that it's it's clear , you know what you're getting and actually I found that with a lot of the mid-range uh producers out there , you're working very hard to make it clear to people what this is . Um , and I , and and I want to stress that because it it's important for me to reassure to to those who are , uh , choosing to abstain completely , that this isn't , um , about people not understanding what's in their glass . It's not a bottle , you know . It's not about being on a shelf within the low no section , because every founder I've spoken to is , by the way , in the mid-range .

Speaker 2 34:43

I said they don't want to be in the low and no section . They want to be in the full strength section , clearly late . Well , they ideally like to be in their own section no section . They want to be in the full strength section , clearly late . Well , they ideally like to be in their own section . But if they can't be in a mid or a light section , they'd rather be in the full strength section , but clearly noted as a lower percentage in alcohol , because it's not about tricking people into drinking full strength drinks . It's not about people not realizing what it is . It's about saying when you want to have a drink , but you don't want to have as much alcohol , come and have this , and this is where you find it , which I think is fantastic yeah , and it's very difficult .

Speaker 1 35:18

So you either come . You either come to the mid-range category from a zero percent and you did mention there it's about your . It's the gateway drink , but if people don't want to drink it then they won't drink it . So if you're a no-alcohol drinker , there's some fantastic products out there . But to try and convert the people that don't drink alcohol in general , they will come and try ours and then that's good . But I think the vast majority without excluding anybody the vast majority of people that are going to be interested in the products people that drink too much , they've got the awareness that , or they drink a lot of alcohol , they've got the awareness that it's not too good and they're just looking for that , that product which is going to help them moderate a little bit more . Um and and again . We are very inclusive and available to all um it's and we just want to enhance people's lives . As simple as that yeah , yeah , exactly .

Speaker 2 36:15

You're not targeting the non-drinker saying you didn't like full strength , come and give mid-strength a go . You're targeting the full strength drinker saying did you know that you didn't have to drink full strength ? All the time is that . Is that what I'm hearing you say ?

Speaker 1 36:29

um , to an extent , yes , but I mean there are there . There are also cohorts within the no alcohol . You either completely abstain 100 from alcohol , end of story , or they you do the zebra striping or flipping between and it just helps you kind of that , that whole category of people that are looking to kind of balance out their alcohol consumption within their lifestyle . It's a balanced lifestyle option excellent , excellent , um .

Speaker 2 36:54

So you've got the one at the moment , which is the , your lovely , lovely red which I have tasted , by the way , just just to clarify , and I did really enjoy

More to come from 6PERCENT?

Speaker 2 37:01

it . And you know , for me , what I thought was really lovely was that , that mouthfeel that was , you know it . Just , it still had that body and it still had those tannins and it was , oh , that's really nice . I'm not a big drinker anymore , obviously , um , but I'm quite happy tasting alcohol . I'm quite . My husband still drinks . I'm always having a sip of what he's drinking and I was like if he was drinking that , I'd definitely have a couple of sips . So I thought it was really well made and well balanced , and I definitely see that you're going for that balance . So I thought you did a really great job , um . So obviously , my next question is what's next ? Will there be more ?

Speaker 1 37:36

thank you , that's very kind and , uh , that that kind of feedback when you're kicking things off is just sensational . And , to be honest with you , um , and and that is very similar to what we've been hearing across the board um , that people are really happy and satisfied with the taste , which is a good thing . I think it's what you want .

Speaker 1 37:55

Yeah , yeah , yeah , so , yes , next on the card . So we actually launched with the bread , because it's the most difficult to do , it is the most difficult to try and retain those flavours , so we challenged ourselves to push it to that sense . So we've actually got a white wine that's going to be coming out in the autumn . Again , it's a Bordeaux blend Cabernet , sauvignon , chardonnay and a bit of Muscadet . And then next year we've got a Rosé coming out which , again again , is delicious . We'll have that in time for next summer . It's both fantastic wines , really beautiful flavours in their own right . And then , yeah , we'll continue innovating .

Speaker 2 38:40

Excellent , excellent . Would you ever consider doing a sparkling ?

Speaker 1 38:44

We would . Yes , yeah , 100% . So we've definitely started to look into that . Yes , yeah , 100% . So we've definitely started to look into that . That is , the sparkling way of retaining flavors is kind of it's the easier route . I'm a glutton for punishment me , so it's the easier route to kind of retain flavors by putting some sparkles in there . But what we've tried to do is to keep that still product so that we don't . But yes , we , we are looking for sparkles . Uh , looking at the sparkling at the moment as well great .

Speaker 2 39:17

So what I'm hearing you saying is watch this space . Basically there's absolutely .

Speaker 1 39:22

More to come absolutely excited , excited .

Speaker 2 39:24

Well , I definitely want to hear all about those . So make sure , uh , you let me know in the meantime , if somebody would like to go and get hold of a bottle of your fabulous , fabulous six percent , where do we send them to go and make a purchase or to find out more about you guys , or to get in touch , because , also , you mentioned that you will be fundraising soon . So if anyone wants to , uh , speak to you about that , where should they go and find you ?

Speaker 1 39:47

so we

Fundraising

Speaker 1 39:48

are are . So we're heading out for our first round investments . We've got SEIS approval for our seed funding and really what we're looking to do is to find the right investors and partners to work with us to really pioneer this new category . It is to what we've spoken about . We're kind of holding the pen as to what this looks like . The big players haven't really got into this , so we hold the pen now and what we're looking for is really pioneering investors that want to kind of work along with us to push this thing forward , because we're excited , we're keen , we're driven and we've got a good team behind us , um , and we're looking for those . So if anybody , um , if any of your listeners are , are or know of , and somebody that's looking for a good opportunity , uh , feel free to um contact me through the website absolutely .

Speaker 2 40:41

I think you make a really good point there that , um , the big alcohol , they haven't . They've jumped on the low and no um , you know , quite aggressively but they haven't yet realised the opportunity of the mid-range and it is a huge , huge opportunity and it's only going to grow . So absolutely I'd encourage anyone out there in low and no nation who wants to be part of this movement and to jump in on the first floor . I'll put all the links in the show notes below as to where they can get hold of you .

Speaker 1 41:08

Thank you very much . So , yeah , the best place is via our website , and that's 6percentwine . So that's the number six writtenpercentwine . You'll find us on Instagram , Instagram , Facebook , all the usual places at 6percentwine . And , yes , there are , by all means , jump on there . If you use for your podcast listeners , if you use the code GREATSTASTE10 , you can get 10% off , and there's free shipping over £30 as well . So nice little incentive to stock up your cabinets for the weekend . But , yes , so if you jump on there , you can also contact me through the website fantastic .

Speaker 2 41:53

Thank you very much . I will make sure that's all listed in the show notes below and thank you for the discount code for low no nation , so they can go and try some of your fantastic wine as well . Um , now , russell , before I let you go , you'll have heard by now . Thank you for listening to previous episodes . You know that I have my um now infamous barbecue question . Infamous because I've said it is and I'm trying to , you know , make it take off , um , but I love to spread the love for lono-lation and all the amazing drinks that are out there as well . So we are in the middle of summer , she says , looking out of her window , at a dark cloud that's about to break , and you are

BBQ-Q

Speaker 2 42:32

off to a barbecue or a picnic , other than a bottle of the fabulous 6% , what other low no or light drinks do you bring with you that you like to enjoy ?

Speaker 1 42:45

I really like this question and I did have a think about this quite a lot . So the first one I'm taking is a Cup Classics Caribbean rum . It sits in the mid-strength alcohol . It is 20% alcohol Cup rum . It is sensational . It's got all the flavors in there . You can drink it neat . You can drink it with ginger beer . You can drink it however you like . It is just delicious , especially at a barbecue .

Speaker 1 43:12

The second one that I would drink is based on the occasionality element . I was after a run . I was given an Athletic Brewing Golden Ale which is 0% . It's an alcohol-free beer . It is just beautifully tasting and it works very , very well . It's not the the biggest and boldest of flavors , but after doing some form of exercise or going for a run or doing an event or something like that , it is athletic brewing . It is the perfect thing to have afterwards . And and again , because we're talking about occasionality , that one sits with me all the time because I can just taste it and I can see it as I'm running towards the finish line and we have to .

Speaker 1 43:58

I've obviously got to mention the wine as well . I think that the Wednesday's main red sanguine is as a 0% alcohol is genuinely delicious . I also mentioned the cap earlier at five percent . As a rose you've got , you've got to push this category and they are . They've done a fantastic job with um uh , with getting getting the wines out there as well yeah , you're , you're right , the cap have done a a great job .

Speaker 2 44:24

That was the interview with , uh , kieran gandy and um , another lovely chap and and talking about the challenges of producing a wine at this lower percentage and getting it out there to people . So I hope you two are chatting because you know we need founders like you to be sharing the knowledge and and working together to help boost this category and Athletic Brewing . Aren aren't they clever ? Talk about great positioning . They're doing all right .

Speaker 1 44:53

Yeah , just a little bit . Yeah , I mean , they've gone ahead and sponsored some quite big branded events and things like that , and yeah , again , I just think they've done well , very , very well .

Speaker 2 45:05

They've done well . They've become one of the biggest beer producers in the US . It's just phenomenal what they've done and I think that you know when we look and we see you know the UK . We have a habit sometimes of copying what the US does . You know , things we're not copying . You know the trends make their way over here as well , but I think that what we do , which is just something quite unique to us over here in the uk , is that we produce a far greater range of low known light drinks , um , and there's a chance for any of them .

Speaker 2 45:37

Now , if you take out the , the super big players , if you take out the , the diageos and the you know perno ricards and all of those guys , but everyone else there's an equal opportunity for them to get out there and get known and to really put their products in front of people . Whether you're on a position as something that people have alcohol free after doing some exercise uh , you know like there's beer brands out there that that do that or if you're looking to be a wine , that's that that wine times , but not full wine straight . You know there's so many great options and that's why I love this question . I love asking it , because I love it when founders talk about other brands and say look , there are more great things out there and let's support each other . And it's nice because now I've started to make a list and I can see that , you know , it's just going around this person's recommending this one , who says this one , and everybody's getting a shout out and and we need to do more of that , because we just need to let people know that there are more fantastic drinks out there completely agree with you .

Speaker 1 46:37

Um , I am , and , for the listeners , the only thing that I , as a small cheeky , ask , um , is that the best way to get this out there , if you are interested in this mid-op , is just talk about it , tell somebody . If you tell one person , then that's fantastic , because not only are we kind of helping to support these you know kind of upcoming brands , but you're also kind of helping everybody else understand that there are other options out there . So that's only one small ask to your listeners and I think you're right that .

Speaker 2 47:06

I think it's really important , actually , because we need to talk about this more , and the more we talk about it , the more people realize that they're not on their own . You're not the only person who's thinking about reducing their alcohol intake . You're not the only person who wants to drink less during the week and save it for the weekend , or you're not the only person that's like I can't cope with the hangovers anymore . I need to take it down a notch , and that's what I found when I was doing this . You know , I was the ultimate party girl and I didn't think that anybody would get it , but the more people I spoke to , the more they all said you're right , I'd love to drink a little bit less , might not want to give up , but I might want to cut back , and so we just got to talk to people about it and spread the word and share your favorites and make recommendations . If you find something that you like , tell a friend , in fact tell six friends yeah , exactly , and it's your barbecue question .

Speaker 1 47:53

Look , people kind of force you to take something to a barbecue , so people just pick up whatever they got from the thing . Be cool , take something different that people are actually going to talk about and actually go to your point ah , this is exactly what I want . I don't really want to be sat on this big old stuff all day , and what I want . I don't really want to be sat on like this big old stuff all day and I've got a nice meaty barbecue and I want a red wine , but I can't drink a red wine all day , but I can drink the six percent . That's a cool thing to do and it's a conversation center absolutely , yes , absolutely .

Speaker 2 48:19

What are you drinking ? Can I try it ? People want to try these things . Now I've noticed more and more people . If you've got something low , no or light in your hand , more people are interested in trying it than if you just got a new full strength beer . It's like oh , that's another beer , but this , this is interesting amen amen to that russell , thank you so much for joining me .

Speaker 2 48:37

I have loved chatting to you today . Um , let's keep in touch . I want to hear all about those new wines as and when they come out , and get you back on the pod and talk a bit more about how things are going fantastic .

Speaker 1 48:47

Well , denise , honestly , um been a genuine pleasure to have this chat um and , yes , we will definitely be speaking in the future amazing .

Speaker 2 48:55

Thanks , russell .