NON HQ

NON is a Melbourne-made range of chef-crafted, fully alcohol-free 'wine alternatives' founded by Aaron Trotman in 2019, made from real ingredients using culinary techniques in a purpose-built facility rather than by de-alcoholising wine. In 2023 the brand opened NON HQ at 79 Taunton Drive, Cheltenham - billed as the world's first non-alcoholic cellar door, a lab-style tasting room where the whole point is that nothing on offer contains any alcohol.

The experience runs as intimate guided tours on the first Friday of every month, 9am to 4pm, with eight one-hour sessions capped at ten guests each (group discounts for parties of eight or more). For A$50 per person you meet the makers - the chefs, food scientists, bartenders and winemakers behind NON - do a flavour workshop in the NON kitchen, go behind the scenes of production, and finish with a guided tasting of the range paired with cheese and charcuterie. Every guest leaves with a complimentary bottle of NON to take home (RRP A$30).

The range poured spans NON1 Salted Raspberry & Chamomile, NON2 Caramelised Pear & Kombu, NON3 Toasted Cinnamon & Yuzu, NON5 Lemon Marmalade & Hibiscus and NON7 Stewed Cherry & Coffee, each designed around food. Reviewers have described the room as feeling like a modern art gallery and showroom crossed with a distillery, with interiors by Weekdays Design and Jardan.

Honest note: NON HQ is a booking-only tasting and tour experience, not a walk-in bar - you can't drop in for a drink on a random evening. Sessions are limited and reserved ahead via [email protected], so it reads more as a destination cellar-door outing for the alcohol-free curious than a regular night-out venue.