Brandy

Grape is the loudest note here, backed by a mellow oak character that keeps the whole thing from reading as juice. ArKay's brandy is fruity and lightly sweet, built to slot into a Sidecar or a Brandy Sour at the same measure you'd pour the real thing. Like everything in the range it starts from spring water and natural flavors rather than a distilled base, which is why a serving carries no sugar, no carbs and no calories. The heat at the back of the throat comes from a food grade compound the company now brands its W.A.R.M. Molecule, originally a capsaicin extract, and it exists to trigger the same thermoreceptors ethanol does. Pour it over ice, lengthen it with soda, or use it as the base of a zero proof after dinner drink. The liter bottle is pasteurized and keeps for about two years.