Description
Founder Bethan Higson has worked in the wine trade for many years and is always in search of complexity and balance in her drinks. When she became pregnant, she turned all of her attention and skills to finding a non-alcoholic drink that was bold, flavoursome and not too sweet, finding inspiration from the world of drinking vinegars. These concoctions have a rich history which dates back to Ancient Greece and were very popular in London bars in the 17th century. Mother Root is an award winning, alcohol-free aperitif supercharged with apple cider vinegar. The process is inspired by traditional methods of aperitif wine making; maceration, blending and sweetening for balance. But rather than using wine, Mother Root uses organic, benefit-rich ACV. The vinegar used by Mother Root is a blend of dessert and cider apples (Discovery, Worcester, Cox, Bramley) to create a tart and sweet combination. Made in the UK, it is aged for four months to allow it to mellow, after which Marmalade’s signature ingredient is added – dried bitter orange peels. These are left to macerate for 6-8 weeks, creating a deeply bitter but fresh and vibrant flavour. Once the peels are removed, the liquid is left to settle for 2 weeks. The result is a clarified citrus liquid which is blended with fragrant cardamom, grassy green tea, and demerara sugar. The blended liquid is then bottled and goes through pasteurisation, which caramelises the sugar creating the deep, burnt sugar character that complements the bright, citrusy flavour.
Brick red in colour, Mother Root’s Marmalade Switchel is an intensely concentrated, bright, and bitter drink. The nose is defined by a botanical blend of Seville orange, with acetic acid and top notes of fragrant cardamom. On the palate, Mother Root is complex, with a racy zip of apple cider vinegar, intense bittersweet orange, balanced with a deep burnt sugar note. Green tea adds a herbaceous character, as well as body to this warming and intense aperitif.