Ireland is a place which gives plethora of options to satisfy the drinking taste buds. Even with the recent popularity of no-lo alcoholic drinks, people are not left stranded.

Yes, all the big alcoholic brands have jumped on to to take a pie of this growing market category. The brands have been competing to come out with clutter breaking ads to promote their 0.0 offerings.

Amidst all these, quietly a bar was opened in May, 2019 in the famous Capel Street (Time Out has rated this in the list of the coolest streets in the globe) of Dublin. The bar was named after the famous non alcoholic cocktail – The Virgin Mary.

“We’re the world’s first luxury wellbeing bar group dedicated to inspiring people to ‘drink different’, creating a host of mindful drinks to restore, revive, excite and surprise.” says TVM.

The founders of TVM Dublin, along with their in house mixologists, lined up a great list of non alcoholic cocktails. Though the pandemic did impact and slowed down the expansion plans, they never looked in despair.

TVM in fact looked at global expansion, grabbed an opportunity of opening a premium bar in Abu Dhabi and by end of Dec, 2021 it was up and serving. A great strategy to enter a market where the main stay is non-alcoholic drinks.

However, to hit a high in the Ireland market, TVM had to think different.

In Oct 2022, The Virgin Mary Bar launched a refreshed menu. A menu which they preferred to call as a Mood Boosting Menu containing 17 mood boosting alcohol-free cocktails which uses natural highs to create a euphoric experience. An amazing list of new brand names, combinations and a touch of mood boosting element added to each drink. This was created by TVM Beverage Director Alex Morrel. TVM says “these new drinks will take you on a flavour journey filled with natural highs to stimulate the palate, mind, and body”.

The detailed menu can be found on their website. From the list, the ones that caught my attention:

• TVM Milk Punch : Clean G Rhubarb, Wild Eve, Theenk Tea AfternoonMadness, Roasted Coconut, Honey, Lemongrass, Curry Leaf, Clarified Milk, Lemon. Mood Booster: Ashwaganda to induce a calming bliss – you’ll float away.
• Burnt Spritz : Nona Spritz, Gimber, Burnt Citrus, Chamomile, Lemon, Italian Orange Soda. Mood Booster: Korean Ginseng to ignite energy and get the party started.
• Fresh AF: Sea Arch, Peppermint Cold Brew, Cucumber Cordial, Fix8 Ginger & Turmeric, Damiana ‘Joint’. Mood Booster: Damiana to act as a natural aphrodisiac and flirty heart opener.
• Smokey Dandy: Three Spirit Livener, Crossip Dandy, Theenk Tea Morning Glory, Smoked Rhubarb, Blood Orange Tonic, Oak Smoke Droplets. Mood Booster: CBD Oil to enhance social stimulation and lower inhibitions.

I did try the ‘Fresh Af’ minus the damiana. It was good and am sure it will hit a nice high with people with the damiana add on.

TVM has now expanded to one of the most discussed city among the CR7 football fans. TVM opened their Riyadh outlet in Dec 2022. Looks like a great timing and with the Riyadh cup scheduled to take place on 19th Jan 2023, the friendly game where it will be a dejavu to the El Classico days where CR7 and LM10 dominated all the headlines, TVM will have an amazing opportunity to cater to a huge audience. Also considering the Vision 2030 , this is an apt time to enter and position themselves in this market.

The strategy of TVM has been really great. Vaughan Yates, the founder along with marketing director Nicola Connolly have positioned TVM as a well being bar. The idea of drink different is used aptly depending on the market. While , it gives an opportunity to drink different in Ireland with the little highs minus the actual alcohol, in Middle East , where TVM is a premium offering , gives the customers a chance to try something different which is not usually seen in that market.

As per the people at TVM, the mood booster gives people a lighter feel and not the actual highs got from other ‘mood’ boosters.

The non-alcoholic market is still in its nascent stage and will definitely go through many changes before finding its customers and markets.

Think different and Drink different…!!!

(The drinks at TVM Dublin has a mix of 0.5% ABV.)

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(Be drink aware )