Introducing NINO Drinks | Featured In The JOMO Wine Club | Sober October Edition

Q: Hi Maximilian! Welcome to the first ever JOMO Wine Club Box. We couldn’t think of a better way to kick things off than to be able to showcase the wonderful LILY. Can we start with an introduction to NINO Drinks? 

Yes, sure! NINO is the first sparkling tea-based wine proxy crafted in Switzerland. Instead of simply removing alcohol from wine, we’ve taken a different approach. With deep respect for wine and its cultural significance, we wanted to create something that captures the experience of drinking sparkling wine - the complexity, the body, the occasion - while offering a new taste experience. We work with blends of high-quality teas, herbs, fruit juices, spices, and other natural ingredients to build a layered and sophisticated product. LILY, for example, is our sparkling “white” - crisp, elegant and a little floral - and has recently won a gold medal at the World Alcohol Free Awards in London, which was a huge milestone for us. NINO is still a very young brand, co-founded by Mudi and myself. Mudi comes from a finance background and leads our strategic direction, while I (Max) bring in my experience as a food scientist to develop our recipes. We launched just last year, and it’s been amazing to already see the excitement our drinks are creating.

Q: Can you tell us about LILY, what we can expect and why you think this will become your hero product?

LILY is definitely our crowd-pleaser - and for good reason. From the moment you see it in the glass, it signals celebration. With its fine bubbles and bright clarity, it visually evokes something between a Prosecco and a Champagne. On the nose, you’re greeted with vibrant citrus and elderflower notes, followed by a subtle hit of aromatic hops. We actually used a dry-hopping technique borrowed from beer brewing to create that. Taste-wise, there’s a crisp acidity that keeps it refreshing, balanced with gentle fruit notes like white grape, apple, and pear. It’s light, bright, and incredibly easy to drink. What makes LILY special - and likely to become our hero product - is its accessibility. It doesn’t demand deep wine knowledge to be enjoyed. Whether you're toasting something big or just sipping with friends, LILY fits right in. It’s inclusive, joyful, and effortlessly elegant.

Q: What is your favourite way, setting and occasion to enjoy LILY? 

What I love most about LILY is that it really fits in everywhere. If I had to pick two favourite occasions, the first would be brunch. You still want something bubbly and festive in your glass, but maybe you're not in the mood for prosecco or Champagne, especially if you’ve got a full day ahead. LILY brings that same sense of occasion, without the crash. The second is at evening events - dinner parties, gallery openings, concerts - any social moment where you're skipping alcohol but still want to feel part of the vibe. LILY lets you hold a beautiful glass, have something genuinely complex and satisfying to drink, and feel completely in the mix. At the end of the day, LILY shines when it’s shared with good people. Whether it's a slow Sunday or a big night out, it brings everyone to the same table - and that’s exactly what we made it for.

Q: Taking a step back for a minute. What is your background? Why alcohol-free wine and what inspired you to create NINO Drinks?

My background is in Food Science and I studied at a very technical university in Switzerland. During that time, I discovered a real passion for the art of brewing, and I was lucky enough to get the chance to run a brewery in a new brewpub venture, thanks to a former boss who believed in me. That experience changed everything. It was the first time I created something people consumed and genuinely enjoyed. Seeing someone take a sip of something you made - and smile - it’s hard to describe, but I knew then that this was what I wanted to do: create products that bring people joy. After university, I spent two years in the pharmaceutical industry, but I kept missing that feeling. I knew I had to build something of my own again. At the same time, the global shift toward health and wellness was becoming impossible to ignore. Like many others, I was starting to be more conscious about what I consumed. I didn’t want to give up pleasure, but I wanted better choices. There were already some great alcohol-free beers on the market. But the wine space felt really behind. The typical de-alcoholized wines didn’t come close to the real experience. And I thought: it doesn’t have to be this way. No matter the reason someone chooses not to drink, they still deserve something complex, satisfying, and social in their glass. That’s the idea behind NINO. We didn’t want to imitate wine, we wanted to create something new that still fits the same moments. Something inclusive, beautiful, and full of pleasure - just without the alcohol.

Q: How does (if it does) Switzerland inspire your brand and drinks?

Switzerland has a bit of a paradox when it comes to drinks innovation. On one hand, it often lags behind when it comes to new beverage trends, which can be very frustrating. But on the other hand, that gap creates an opportunity. Being the first to introduce a completely new category like wine proxies in Switzerland means we get to pioneer something from the ground up. Yes, it involves a lot of education, but it also sparks genuine curiosity. People want to understand what we’re doing, and that opens doors. What Switzerland does stand for - and what inspires us - is quality. That’s something we hold ourselves to every day. We work with a traditional Swiss co-manufacturer who helps us maintain the highest standards possible for our drinks. It’s a big part of why, just six months after launching, we won a gold medal at the World Alcohol-Free Awards. That said, we draw inspiration from all over the world. The UK, in particular, is really ahead of the curve in this space, which makes it even more exciting for us to see NINO featured in the JOMO Wine Club. It feels like we’re building a bridge between emerging Swiss craftsmanship and global non-alc innovation.

Q: You also won a gold medal this year from the World Alcohol Free Awards. Congratulations. For those that don’t know, these awards are completely blind tested and sampled alongside hundreds of alcohol-free wines across the world. Why do you think NINO brought home Gold and how have you managed to really stand out from the others?

We were incredibly proud (and honestly a bit surprised!) to receive the gold medal at the World Alcohol-Free Awards so early in our journey. Awards like these can sometimes feel distant or even political, so I’ll admit I was a bit skeptical at first. But knowing that these wines were blind-tasted by a panel of seasoned experts and judged purely on what’s in the glass, made the recognition feel very real. It was genuine, expert feedback, and that means a lot. We’ve also recently received top marks at a Swiss Non-Alcoholic Trophy which reinforces that we’re on the right track. I think it comes down to nailing the core attributes that make wine proxies work: the acidity, the structure, the aromatics, the bubbles, and the complexity that lingers after each sip. We collaborated closely with French wine sommeliers during development to make sure we captured these elements authentically. But at the same time, we made LILY incredibly easy to drink. It's approachable, elegant, and doesn’t intimidate - even the most dedicated wine drinker can find something to enjoy in the glass. That balance of complexity and accessibility is probably what helped us stand out.

Q: We are pretty honoured to be among the first in the UK to be showing off NINO with it only just landing. Why did you think the UK was an important market to reach?

The UK is actually the very first market we’re expanding into and it feels like the
right place to start. Of course, we see NINO in cities like Paris, Amsterdam, and New York down the line, and the UK - and London in particular - stood out to us from the beginning. There's such a vibrant, fast-moving culture around non-alcoholic drinks here. Innovation is happening at every level: from product development to how drinks are presented and enjoyed. It's incredibly exciting to now be part of that ecosystem. We don’t yet have the resources to have a full team on the ground, going from bar to bar, so partnering with No & (F)Low was the perfect fit. They truly understand the space and the consumers we want to reach and we’re building the brand NINO bottom-up with them. On a personal note, I’ve always loved the UK, and London especially. So having NINO land here first is a real milestone for us. We’re looking forward to learning from this market, gathering feedback, and using those insights to make NINO even stronger as we grow.

Q: Have you noticed any interesting trends looking at Switzerland vs the UK?

What I’ve mostly noticed is that many of the trends we’re seeing in Switzerland actually start in the UK and arrive here a bit later. The UK market feels much more mature when it comes to non-alcoholic innovation. There's a strong culture of experimentation and a real openness to new ideas, especially around functionality - whether that’s adaptogens, botanicals, or other health-forward ingredients. In Switzerland, we’re only just scratching the surface of what’s possible in this category. Regulatory frameworks here can make it a bit harder to launch truly functional beverages, so in some ways, the UK feels like a testing ground for what’s coming next. But that’s also what makes it so exciting to be entering this space now. There are some amazing brands in the UK pushing the boundaries and paving the way. And one day, I’d love for NINO to be seen as one of those brands: helping shape the future of how (and what) we drink, in a more inclusive and thoughtful way.

Q: As we see in the last part of the year with Autumn and ‘social season’, what is your favourite Autumn day and what is your favourite hosting tip?

My 30s are hitting hard - and honestly, I’ve started to really love autumn. It’s the season to slow down a little. The air gets cooler, the city quiets down, and staying in suddenly feels like the best plan. For me, that means gathering a few close friends, cooking something together, and maybe even leaning into Sober October as a nice reset after a busy summer. My favourite hosting tip: Make it easy for everyone to feel included. Set the table with a mix of alcoholic and non-alcoholic options that still feel special. Like that, no one is feeling left out of the moment.