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William Grant launches cascara-infused vermouth
William Grant & Sons has launched a sweet vermouth infused with cascara, the outer fruit of the coffee berry, called Discarded.
Discarded vermouth is infused with cascara, a waste product in coffee production
Cascara is a waste product in coffee production and each year billions of tonnes of the by-product are either sent to landfill or recycled as fertiliser.
Discarded was the brainchild of the brand ambassador team at William Grant & Sons, spearheaded by Joe Petch, global brand ambassador for Monkey Shoulder, who first became accustomed with cascara through a barista friend.
“Two years ago, one of my barista friends gave me some cascara, which I started to experiment with and blend with a variety of vermouths,” he said.
“What I found was that cascara is deep, complex, rich and fruity in flavour, which makes the sweet vermouth more accessible and versatile in mixology.”
Discarded is made by steeping cascara in alcohol and then blending the infusion into the base of a fortified wine along with other botanicals.
Tom Stannard, global marketing manager, innovation at William Grant & Sons, said: “We live in an age where single use is increasingly untenable. What others have wasted we have welcomed and made the distinguishing feature in Discarded.
“On the nose, Discarded is deep, rich and aromatic with an easy natural warmth. The taste is full and sweet and the indulgent fruity notes merge with the characteristic bitter notes of vermouth, which dominate the clean, lingering finish.”
Discarded will first launch in the UK on-trade, including The American Bar and The Beaufort Bar at The Savoy, Duck and Waffle, Shoreditch and London Grind, The Connaught, Scarfes Bar, Bourne & Hollingsworth, Scout, Oblix, The Blue Bar at The Berkeley, and The Lanesborough.
In keeping with its “don’t discard” ethos, the brand hopes consumers will find ways to reuse their Discarded bottles once they’ve been finished, such as turning it into a vase, candle holder, bottle lamp or pre-mixer.