Chance Clean Cider aims to become Lucky Saint of alcohol-free cider

The cider brand’s 0.5% abv namesake drink is produced at Crumpton Oaks and Kingstone Press supplier Aston Manor, using apples grown in Worcestershire.

It was made by reducing an 8.2% abv cider using a “balanced liquoring-down process” to retain taste and mouthfeel, Chance said.

The finished liquid offered “refreshingly crisp apple, bursts of citrus and pineapple”, balanced by “woody notes”.

Chance is the brainchild of John Logue, formerly a marketing executive at Diageo, BrewDog, Atom Brands and Lucky Saint. It will initially roll out in the on-trade via Kore Drinks, as well as via DTC (rsp: £22/12x330ml). 

There was “opportunity for someone to behave in that challenger space in alcohol-free cider” as Lucky Saint had done to become a top-10 brand in alcohol-free beer, Logue said.

Lucky Saint was “a challenger brand that creates an amazing liquid, with an amazing founder”, Logue added.

“They’ve been really aggressive. They knew the opportunity, and they went after it. I’d love to be in that kind of realm.”

Cider drinkers were “beyond under-represented” in alcohol-free at present, Logue said. 

Alcohol-free cider meanwhile was “over-represented” by fruited expressions, even though “that’s not what most people want to drink”. 

“Nine times out of 10”, alcohol-free ciders were flavoured even though the flavoured cider sector made up only a third of total category sales, Logue added.