Shloer Limited Edition Berry Punch

 I’m not usually one for non-alcoholic drinks.

I’d sooner drink water if I can’t have wine (or vodka). But having recently been ill, I’ve begun to appreciate that there is a time and place for a proper non-alcoholic alternative. Water can get utterly boring, plus there is the colour issue. If I’m not careful, with my reputation, at a party, say, people will think I’ve resorted into neat vodka consumption by the tumbler full…(OK, that is a slight exaggeration, but you can see how a mistake could be made, right?)

As if they knew my predicament of not being able to have my usual quota of wine, the people from Shloer sent me a sample of their new Limited Edition Berry Punch. In colour it’s a little like rose wine (acceptable!), but in taste it’s slightly sweeter. They recommend you enjoy it cold with blackberries or raspberries, and I must admit adding the fruit made the whole drink a lot more festive.

Shloer Berry Punch is also quite fizzy, but not too much so. I offered a glass to Daughter who polished it off in no time. ‘Nice,’ was her comment. To me the taste was very close to Finnish ‘sima’ – a lemon drink prepared there for the May Day celebrations. The colour of ‘sima’ is more like ginger beer and so is totally different, something that made the experience of tasting the Shloer Berry Punch quite surreal.

But I liked the Shloer Berry Punch and will definitely stock it as a credible alternative to alcohol. Especially – dare I say it yet – for Christmas.

Shloer Limited Edition Berry Punch costs £2.29 per bottle.
Shloer is also on Facebook where you’ll find little extra inspiration and a Sunday Cookbook.