The market for non-alcoholic (NA) drinks is on fire right now. In 2025, the NA business in the United States was valued at approximately $1 billion, according to Nielsen IQ, and things won’t be slowing down any time soon. Given the nature of the exploding market, there’s never been a better time to sample everything that non-alcoholic spirits and RTDs have to offer, but knowing where to start can be a challenge. After all, there are hundreds of brands lining the shelves, displaying their flashy packaging, and promising to alter your mood sans spirits — no one would blame you for feeling overwhelmed. That’s why we tasted hundreds of samples of NA spirits, cocktails, RTDs, and functional beverages to pinpoint the best of the best.
For one of the most robust NA amari we sampled this year, look no further than Amaro Lucano. Established in Pisticci, Italy, in 1894, the brand has distilled amaro from the original top-secret recipe of 30 botanicals for over 130 years, but it only recently added an NA version to its lineup. Amaro Lucano Non-Alcoholic is produced using the same herbal bouquet used for its alcoholic counterpart to create a lush, dark liqueur more akin to Italian amari like Ramazzotti than Campari. You can expect the palate to deliver impressive viscosity and a woody bitterness with lingering floral and cola notes.
Excerpt Taken From: Vine Pair
Author: Marcello Bevilacqua
