In the last couple of years, there have been more than enough valid reasons to drown our collective sorrows in the bottle. Surprisingly, however, instead of opting to drown them in bottles of booze, an increasing number of Canadians are opting for sparkling water.
According to recent stats published by Statista, Canadian consumption of alcoholic beverages (particularly beer) has been declining in recent years (falling 8 per cent since 2010). Meanwhile, sales of sparkling water have soared, with flavoured waters, in particular, on the rise.
As fancy fizzy water companies have begun to flood the beverage market, among the most talked about, and Torontonian, is Barbet, a homegrown brand of plant-based, naturally flavoured sparkling water founded by sisters Katie Fielding and Andrea Grand.
Interestingly, neither of these two siblings are alcohol averse. However, after Fielding, who has epilepsy, experienced a serious seizure in March 2020, she decided to jump on the wagon.
Of course, just because she gave up booze didn’t mean she wanted to give up socializing with a celebratory drink in hand. Yet a protracted search for non-alc alternatives led Fielding to beverages that were either bland and boring or luridly bright and overly sweet. Desiring a more “elevated” elixir, the sisters decided to produce one themselves, one that would have “the same magic of [its] alcoholic counterparts.”
By “magic,” Fielding and Grand meant sparkling water that truly sparkles, i.e., H20 that was neither insipid nor achromatic, but whose resolutely adult flavours and hues would add flair to any glass or gathering. After months of perfecting the ideal potion with the help of mixologists, they launched Barbet in early 2022.
To date, Barbet comes in three suggestively named flavours: Love Bite (grapefruit, ginger and juniper), Light Wave (cucumber, pineapple and lavender) and the sell-out popular Wild Card (blood orange, calamansi and jalapeno). Not content to coast on unusual tastes, Barbet also stresses visuals; both the cans and their contents are highly photogenic and fashion-friendly. To reinforce the brand’s stylish vibe, the launch imagery on Barbet’s website and Instagram was shot by Toronto-based art and fashion photographer, Maya Fuhr.
That Barbet can hold its own at a table with sophisticated alcoholic rivals was always part of the plan. In addition to its appeal to aquaholics, Fielding and Grand also envision non-teetotalers adopting Barbet as an unconventional mixer for more potent cocktails. As they state on their website, “What matters most isn’t a liquid’s alcoholic payload but it’s capacity to elevate a mood or moment.”
Barbet is available for online purchases of 6- and 12-packs (with shipping across Canada) and is available at Toronto retailers including Summerhill Market and GoodGood. It can also be sipped at a growing number of bars and cafes around town.
