Dark and Stormy

Ginger does the heavy lifting here, and it is genuinely fiery rather than politely warm. Underneath sits a brut beer character with citrus running through it and a delayed spiced rum note that only shows up on the finish. The spice cabinet behind that is deep: cinnamon, cardamom, clove, nutmeg, ginger and chilli, with natural vanilla and oak standing in for barrel time. That oak and vanilla trick is what makes the rum idea land at all, since there is no spirit in the bottle to carry it. Monday builds the drink from distilled botanicals and carbonated Australian spring water, sweetens it with stevia, and lands sugar free, alcohol free and gluten free with nothing artificial added. Bottles come in fours, eights and 24s, ready to pour. Ice and a thick wedge of lime is all it needs. If you like your ginger beer aggressive, this is your bottle in the range.