In a candlelit bar in Brighton’s trendy Kemptown neighbourhood, my friend and I are struggling to decide what to order. There’s a long cocktail list to peruse and giant fridges of wine and beer line the bar, packed with drinks available to sample at a table or to take away. Close to the entrance, shelves of spirits with tantalising names such as ‘Sea Arch’ and ‘Wild Eve’ also pique my curiosity.
Fortunately, the bar staff are on hand to advise. They’re used to questions since almost all the drinks on sale are newcomers: members of a rapidly evolving market where alcohol is decidedly absent.
Torstig is Sussex’s only entirely alcohol-free bar and is responding to a growing demand for drinks with low or no alcohol (NoLo). According to alcohol education charity Drinkaware, one-fifth of us are now teetotal, and one-quarter of 16-24-year-olds don’t drink.
The trend is bubbling up across Sussex. Harveys in Lewes, the county’s oldest independent brewery, has won international awards for its low-alcohol Old Ale, while Chiddinglye, near East Grinstead, is host to the alcohol-free Into the Wild festival, whose attendees have included teetotal actor Tom Hardy, reportedly a resident of Sussex.
My friend and I visit on the eve of Torstig’s first anniversary. It’s a weeknight, so, in the hope of keeping a clear head, we grab a table to see if the bar’s promise to make low-alcohol drinks ‘an exciting alternative, not an afterthought’ holds.
Scanning the simple, Scandi-styled bar is like a speed tour of everything interesting that is happening in the alcohol-free sector. In the fridge, a rainbow of different low-alcohol beers (up to 0.5%) sit alongside cans of CBD soda and kombucha; and there’s Guinness 0.0 and low-alcohol legends Lucky Saint and Brulo IPA on tap. There are ‘spirits’ emulating rum, vodka and gin, which replicate the flavour and warmth of familiar favourites, explains bar manager Brodie, and there are other more botanical bases which take consumers in a brand-new direction.
But it’s the cocktails we’re most curious about. Some are mood-altering, claiming to enliven or relax you, others contain curious ingredients such as aquafaba, an egg substitute made from chickpea water which creates a wonderfully silky foam. It’s a constituent of the deliciously sharp Humlum I order, a No-Lo take on a Pornstar Martini served with a sparkling white wine chaser with a delicate rose aroma.
Non-alcoholic cocktails have a totally different chemistry and are ‘definitely the most challenging’ to create, says Brodie, who has mixed drinks in bars for over a decade and is currently enjoying living alcohol-free. Brodie’s cocktails do not disappoint. ‘You’re not lacking flavours,’ comments my friend approvingly, sipping on an ‘Orso’, an intricate taste experience modelled on an Old Fashioned, with sophisticated smoky accents and a warm finish.
The business was founded by Luke Cousins, 36, and his wife Emmi Edwards, 31. She grew up locally, in Storrington, and met Luke through a friend while at Sussex University. Like all the best ideas, Torstig was born from adversity. After contracting COVID-19 in 2020, Luke developed an intolerance to alcohol. When he stopped drinking, Emmi joined him in solidarity.
The couple soon found they were part of a growing group dissatisfied with the traditional − rather boozy − night out. ‘We realised there was nowhere for us to go on dates where we felt included and where we had a really good choice of drinks,’ says Emmi. But it was a visit to a restaurant in Copenhagen, where alcohol-free options made up the majority of the drinks menu, that would cement the idea in Luke’s head. The bar’s Danish name (meaning ‘thirsty’), and the cocktails named after Danish towns, recognise Copenhagen’s role in igniting the project.
At the time, the couple were based in Brighton and felt strongly that it was the perfect place to test the concept of an alcohol-free bar. ‘It’s just got a mindset like no other. It’s incredibly inclusive, welcoming and open-minded,’ says Emmi. The council were also very supportive, eager to help nurture a nightlife culture that was not built around alcohol.
Torstig has a wide customer base, from pregnant women to celebrities, who seem to appreciate the calmer, more respectful atmosphere. ‘People don’t accost celebrities in the same way if they’re not drinking,’ Emmi says. She estimates that at least a fifth of customers have a history of alcohol addiction. ‘A lady hugged me because she hadn’t been out in ten years,’ she tells me. ‘She felt so excluded from the nightlife in the city because she was in recovery.’
The bar is also a popular dating spot. ‘That’s possibly women-led,’ says Emmi. ‘They definitely feel less vulnerable in a space where alcohol is not consumed’. With its caring, friendly bar staff and neighbourly feel it is also a hit with the LGBTQ+ community, who feel safer there. ‘Most hate crime occurs when alcohol is involved,’ says Emmi.
The bar’s inclusive ethos is reflected in the predominantly vegan menu. I try a vegan egg nog, a seasonal special concocted by Brodie. It’s a creamy mix of sweet vanilla and spicy nutmeg and it comes with a smoking cinnamon stick, wafting the subtle scent of incense across our table. My friend has less of a sweet tooth so has opted for a Tumbol, a take on a Negroni with a lovely bitter kick and a chilli-like burn. We’re both quite surprised by the complexity of all the different taste notes. ‘There are lots of layers,’ my friend remarks.
Neither of us is teetotal, but that doesn’t make us atypical clients. ‘We’re not just the space for people who don’t drink,’ Emmi explains. Many clients make Torstig part of their night out to moderate their drinking, and Emmi and Luke have seen a surprising peak between 10 and 11pm when people want to extend their evenings but the pubs are getting rowdy. With alcohol a known carcinogen, clientele like the health aspect, too, and it’s nice to know there’s no hangover in the morning.
Following the success of Torstig in Brighton, Luke and Emmi are opening a pop-up bar in Hoxton in January to test the appetite for No-Lo in London. If that is successful, the couple see no reason why the concept shouldn’t go country-wide. ‘It’s creating that alternative night out which has never existed before,’ Emmi says.
Five Sussex destinations for delicious low-alcohol drinks
1 Only With Love Lewes Brewcafe
Cafe by day and taproom by night, this friendly venue created within Malling Community Centre on the outskirts of Lewes has a wellbeing focus both in terms of the community-building it does and the products it serves. Alongside Only With Love Brewery’s beer, you’ll find its funky range of alcohol-free drinks. Try a rhubarb and custard kombucha, a hop-based soda, or an award-winning mango pale ale.
2 Gung-Ho, Brighton
With a focus on sustainability and locally foraged ingredients, this neon-lit bar boasts three cocktail menus. ‘The Apothecary’ menu is entirely alcohol-free and offers a health boost, with many of the ingredients chosen for their antioxidant or inflammatory qualities. There’s a relaxing aphrodisiac on the menu, too, proving that alcohol-free can still be a bit naughty.
3 The Ivy Chichester Brasserie
Bringing a touch of 1920s glamour to Chichester in 2022 (and to Brighton’s Lanes in 2018), The Ivy complements its vast menu with an unusually broad mocktail menu which includes a creamy bubble tea and several tangy spritzes. If that doesn’t appeal, revive yourself with a green juice or their homemade ginger beer.
4 Rockwater Hove
For cocktails with a view, this stylish establishment overlooking the beach is a great destination. Non-drinkers are well catered for with a range of cold-pressed juices and non-alcoholic cocktails such as the citrusy ‘solstice’, and ‘midnight bramble’, described as ‘the great outdoors in a glass’. The bar area opens right onto the beach, while the roof terrace is ideal for a romantic sundowner.
5 Heritage by Matt Gillan, Slaugham
Fine dining is also embracing the low-alcohol trend. At Heritage, in one of West Sussex’s most picturesque villages, you can expect at least six mouth-watering courses, all – if you like – with a non-alcoholic pairing. The bar loves experimenting with non-alcoholic spirits: fat-washing, smoking or infusing them with various flavours. The cocktail menu has four alcohol-free options, which change seasonally. Autumn featured a drinkable ‘pumpkin & pecan pie’, while a mandarin curd ‘martini’ was added to the menu over the Christmas period.
The Ringkobing
- 50ml Lyres Amaretti
- juice of half a lemon
- 2 dashes of alcohol-free bitters
- 1 dash of agave
- 2 bar spoons of aquafaba
Pour all the ingredients into a shaker. Dry shake (without ice), then wet shake (with ice). Strain and pour into a glass. Rub orange peel around the rim and garnish with an orange slice or maraschino cherry.
