Australia’s first non-alcoholic cocktail lounge, Brunswick Aces Bar, opens its doors to the public tomorrow (Saturday 1 May).
The new venue will be serving a menu of over 100 non-alcoholic beers, wines and cocktails, curated by the team behind Australia’s first zero alcohol ‘spirit’, Brunswick Aces.
Located at 124 Weston Street, Brunswick East, next to the busy foodie district on Lygon Street, the bar is a haven designed using an ‘Industrial Baroque’ aesthetic, to make visitors relax and feel like they’re at home. Customers can sip on one of the many cocktails or beers while sinking into the plush soft furnishings, which offset the industrial functionality of the Brunswick Aces distillery viewable behind the bar.
The team has made the drinks accessible, with wine starting from $6 a glass, beers ranging from $7, spirits or sapiirs and mixers from $11, with cocktails starting from $15, all focusing on great Aussie local produce, with some international premium brands.
The menu will continue to grow and rotate, adding special monthly cocktails, or limited time products imported from overseas producers, to showcase the ever-growing non-alcoholic product category and give customers a reason to keep coming back to explore the menu.
The venue will also be home to the first physical non-alcoholic bottle shop in the country, with sober-seekers able to browse a wide variety of products to take home, including popular Aussie brands like Heaps Normal XPA, Songbird Wine and Ovant, as well as international brands including GNISTA and Vandestreek Playground IPA.
The new bar is open Thursday to Saturday, between 3-11pm, with the bottle shop operating Monday to Saturday, between 11am-5pm. Distillery Tours continue to operate every Saturday 12-2pm.
CEO and Co-founder, Stephen Lawrence said “When we initially announced the new bar back in February, we expected some positive feedback from locals, but we’ve been inundated with messages from far and wide. Moderate and sober drinkers from Perth to Sydney and even the U.S and U.K, have contacted us not only keen to visit, but also asking us to open venues in their home cities.”
“Following the feedback, we also decided to add a physical bottle shop to the rear of the venue. Melbournians wanting to browse can now visit and have this experience. At Brunswick Aces, we want to ensure anyone interested in non-alcoholic products has a great experience, and what better way to do that than to be able to try before you buy. The bottle shop will also be hosting tasting sessions so customers can even sample a few options before deciding what they like.”
“We’re aiming to be the hub of non-alcoholic, not only in Melbourne, but Australia. There is no other space like it in the country where you can come and sample such a large range of what the market has to offer in one place. Many people have to rely on online bottle shop owner reviews and trust their word, with some feeling disappointed when their purchase doesn’t meet their expectations. With Brunswick Aces you are being looked after by a venue like never before.”
The space the Brunswick Aces team has created is multi-functional. The team will be curating a range of events at the bar, including take-overs by other non-alcoholic brands who have never had the opportunity to get face-to-face with their customer base in this style of setting, reader events with sober author and bar ambassador, Jill Stark, with a calendar of events set to be announced soon.
Because the Brunswick Aces brand ethos is to make everyone feel welcome, alcohol drinkers will also be able to come and enjoy the venue, with a single option of a gin and tonic on the menu, using the brand’s two Spades and Hearts gin blends.
Bookings are advised via the website and hello@brunswickaces.com.
