Female-founded wine, spirits and drinks gift guide

Kicking things off are two brilliant bottles of tequila born from a love of a great margarita. Founded by Lucy Smith, Neurita Tequila aims to bring a new life to the world’s number one cocktail, a Margarita. As a long-term lover of the cocktail, something Lucy had picked up on was how tequila so often sits in one of two categories: masculine spirits for men or juvenile, sugary pre-mixed drinks for women. Determined to change how the spirit is perceived, she took it upon herself to create a range of tequila that represented what she wanted; fun and confident made unapologetically with Margaritas in mind. The result? Neurita. A range of two unique Tequilas made from Premium Tequila Blanco.

Neurita might be made for margaritas but the question is, which bottle will you be choosing to make your own margs this week: Citrus or Rosa tequila? The Neurita Citrus Tequila combines Sicilian orange and tangerine fruit extracts with Premium Agave Tequila sourced from Jalisco, Mexico. The result is a beautifully-smooth and citrussy tequila, made for margaritas. Whereas, the Neurita Rosa Tequila brings a sweeter sensation to a classic margarita, due to its infusion with raspberry, strawberry and pomegranate fruit extracts.

Founded by Dutch twin sisters, Joyce and Raissa De Haas, Double Dutch is a premium mixers brand that celebrates the excitement that quality mixers can bring to the drinks market. The brand was inspired by the sisters’ home country, The Netherlands and, through their mission to “never drink dull”, Double Dutch offers new and unique flavoured mixers to the drinks industry.

Taking the top spot for Double Dutch has to be their Exploration Pack – a 10-bottle tasting pack of their core range of mixers. This is the ideal gift for anyone who’s looking to elevate their favourite spirits (or alcohol-free spirits) with quality mixers. The pack includes everything from classic Indian tonic water to ginger beer to a Margarita Soda (just add tequila).

Founded by Ellie Webb, Caleño is a non-alcoholic drinks company on a mission to celebrate the “joy of not drinking” – and encourage others to do the same. The brand began after founder, Ellie, headed out on an alcohol-free night with a few of her friends to find herself feeling utterly deflated by the lack of alcohol-free drinks options available at her favourite nightlife spots. The experience, however, left her thinking. She wondered why choosing to not drink alcohol meant that you couldn’t have fun and enjoy brilliant drinks on a night out. So, she decided to create her own alcohol-free spirits that prioritised great flavour and the vibrancy of her Latin roots.

Celebrate the joy of not drinking with Caleño’s ‘Light & Zesty’ and ‘Dark & Spicy’ (my personal favourite). To discover my thoughts on the two AF spirits, read my full review of Caleño.

Mindful Mixology is a female-founded cocktail company on a mission to deliver delicious bottled cocktails made from quality ingredients, without all the added sugars. Their drinks are all hand-crafted in Norfolk and made with either significantly less or zero sugar. The “mindful” in Mindful Mixology links to the organisation’s mission to do more than just make quality drinks. And, to them, mindful means four specific things:

1. Recyclable or compostable packaging
2. Charitable donations whenever someone purchases a box of their cocktails,
3. Financial support for local bands
4. Drinks that are better for you

To learn more about Mindful Mixology, read my full review of a selection of some of their topic cocktails.

AMANDLA is a female-founded wine organisation by the HER Wine Collection – an entirely black and female-run company championing freedom, power and resilience. The organisation’s mission is to inspire, whilst celebrating the vibrancy of black culture through sharing the collective stories of the women behind AMANDLA.

AMANDLA has a core list of three South African wines: the “POWER” shiraz zinfandel, the “FUTURE” sauvignon blanc and the “FREEDOM” rosé, all of which are available in Waitrose and and Sainsbury’s.