Photo via Siren Shrubs
The word “shrub” might immediately bring to mind the bushes on your front lawn, but in the craft cocktail world, shrubs—non-alcoholic, tangy syrups made from fruit, herbs, spices, sugar and vinegar—are a mixologist’s best friend, adding sophistication to classic cocktail recipes and pops of interesting flavors to non-alcoholic drinks.
Shrubs date back to America’s colonial era and were originally a way to preserve fruit, says Layne Cozzolino, who with her friend, Mindy McCord, founded Steven’s Point-based Siren Shrub Company in 2018. “They (the colonists) would add vinegar to fruit so it wouldn’t spoil,” she explains. “After you strained off the solids, you added sugar to it and then had a syrup to add to water.”
People used shrubs as a hydrating drink while working in the farm fields. Shrubs also appeared in some of the first mixed drinks in the public houses. When refrigeration became normalized, shrubs went out of fashion, but they made a comeback with today’s craft cocktail movement.
Cozzolino and McCord had always experimented with food to sell under Wisconsin’s “pickle bill,” which allows limited sales of certain home-canned foods without a license. In 2015, Cozzolino tried a recipe for shrubs she found in the New York Times. While she was pregnant, her husband brought home a three-pack of shrubs from Michigan. Soon she, along with McCord, began experimenting with shrub recipes.
Unexpected Flavors
“We realized we were on to something,” Cozzolino recalls, adding that their shrubs were a hit at farmers markets and parties. “With salsa or pickles, you have to really set yourself apart, but with shrubs, we have niche.” They began exploring ways to turn their shrub side hustle into a larger business. They found a co-packer and began marketing the Siren Shrub line in their first flavors, tart cherry and basil.
“Basil was an unexpected flavor, but a friend of ours has a farm and she had lots of basil that she wasn’t going to use. She let us pick it, and when we began experimenting with it, basil ended up being an interesting, vibrant flavor.”
They currently have five flavors in the Siren Shrub line: maple ginger, strawberry, basil, rhubarb and tart cherry. Because their business depends upon on-premises sampling at events, Cozzolino says the pandemic forced them to get creative. In addition to doing online cocktail workshops via Instagram, they canned a new sparkling shrub product line. Sparkling Shrub is a shrub mixed with sparkling water, available in tart cherry or basil as a canned, ready-to-go beverage.
Versatility and Popularity Among Non-drinkers
Cozzolino attributes shrubs popularity to versatility. “You can use them in a cocktail, or simply add them to sparkling water. You can cook with them—they make awesome marinades and vinaigrettes, or use them in a quick pickle recipe,” she suggests.
Their popularity of shrubs in the non-alcohol beverage space may be due to the vinegar in the shrub adding a slight bite to the beverage, which creates a different experience than one would get from a simple syrup or a sugary beverage. It’s less tarty than kombucha.
“Non-drinkers also want something special besides lemonade or soda, but they don’t want to stump the bartender or feel like a burden because they’re asking for something without alcohol.” Cozzolino affirms that why someone chooses not to drink is nobody’s business, and “it’s about inclusivity and creating a cocktail environment where everyone feels comfortable, regardless of alcohol preference.”
Siren Shrub held a series of workshops via Instagram during Sober October. They also partnered with Top Note Tonic, In Milwaukee, and Tapped maple syrup, in Steven’s Point, to create a line of Zero Proof Cocktail Kits with complex, craft ingredients.
For more information or where to buy in the Milwaukee area, visit sirenshrubs.com.
