For many occasions, alcohol is simply part of the experience: when meeting friends, with family, at celebrations – and often in a professional context too. It's part of our culture to raise a toast with a drink and celebrate life.
That's precisely why I wanted to create an alternative that doesn't feel like abstaining. An option for everyone who wants to consciously enjoy: sometimes 0.0, sometimes low – but always with taste and an experience.
The catalyst for this was in 2024, during a holiday in the French Champagne region. Interestingly, it was in the middle of a conversation with a renowned winemaker that I realized what I was really looking for: drinks that feel like a genuine experience – not a substitute. Something that fits the moments when you want to toast, without alcohol having to be the focus.
I was looking for an alternative that was just as compelling as the classics: complex and exciting like a good glass of Champagne, with aromatic depth like a mature glass of red wine – or as sparkling and life-affirming as an Italian spritz on a seaside terrace. Above all, no one should be excluded. Products that celebrate life. Not intoxication. For everyone, not just a select few.
I found nothing that truly met my standards. After many conversations with friends, wine connoisseurs, sommeliers, and experts from the beverage industry, it became clear: if these drinks don't exist yet, then we need to develop them.
This is how SOLIA was born.
