| Type | Non-alcoholic spirit |
|---|---|
| Origin | Pacific Northwest |
| Introduced | 2021 |
| Proof (US) | 0 |
| Flavor | Botanical |
| Ingredients | Hemp, juniper, saffron, wormwood, angelica root, Douglas fir, orange peel, ginger, sage, sugar |
| Website | drinkthepathfinder |
The Pathfinder Hemp & Root is a hemp-infused non-alcoholic spirit. It has developed a cult following due its reputation and occasional scarcity.
The beverage is made using fermented hemp seeds, [1] which are then distilled in 16th-century style copper pot stills. [2] The process is similar to the creation of traditional spirits like whiskey or tequila, with hemp as a substitute for grain mash. The beverage is then infused with various botanicals, [1] including juniper, saffron, wormwood, angelica root, Douglas fir, orange peel, ginger, and sage. [3] A proprietary yeast strain is used to prevent the production of alcohol during the fermentation process. [4] It contains no alcohol, THC, or CBD. [5]
It is served both neat, on the rocks, or as a shot. [2] It is also commonly used to add complex, bitter and botanical flavors to both alcoholic and non-alcoholic cocktails like whiskey sours, [1] negronis, [6] spritzes, [7] and americanos. [8] The beverage was included in Nicole Schaefer's Portland Cocktails: An Elegant Collection of Over 100 Recipes Inspired by the City of Roses. [9]
In January 2025, the company released The Pathfinder Negroni, a premixed nonalcoholic cocktail containing Pathfinder. [10]
The brand was founded by Steven Grasse, founder of Quaker City Mercantile, Chris Abbott, founder of Mr. Moxey's Mints, and Guy Escolme, a former Diageo executive. [1] The drink was developed as a distinct type of beverage based on ingredients found in the Pacific Northwest. [3] It was inspired by the history of snake oil salesmen, apothecarial medicine ( materia medica ), and the occult in the Old West, [11] which was considered the "Golden Age of Cannabis". The bottle and packaging was based on historical bottles of cannabis-based remedies with labels like "Pain Destroyer" that were sold in the Old West during the 19th century. [12] The beverage was inspired by the botanical infusions and elixirs popular in that time period. [8] It was intended to taste like a drink that "could have existed in like the 1850s" and includes ingredients with supposedly medicinal properties. [13]
The beverage first debuted at Life on Mars bar in the Capitol Hill neighborhood of Seattle in late 2021. [8] [14] It subsequently developed a cult following among bartenders. The high demand for the beverage created occasional scarcity, with Kirsten Fleming of the New York Post as the "Pappy Van Winkle" of non-alcoholic beverages. [15] Sarah Kate of Some Good Clean Fun described it as "one of the most popular and sought after non-alcoholic bottles in North America." [16] In 2022, cocktail and mocktail workshops based on the beverage were hosted at Art in the Age in Philadelphia. [17] As of 2024, it began to be distributed in the United Kingdom. [18]
Lee Sherman of The Alcohol Professor wrote that Pathfinder's bottle "is reminiscent of a bottle of snake oil from a bygone era and the earthy, smoky, woody smells when you lift the cap conjure mystery and adventure. This is poetry in a bottle." [13]
It has been compared to amaro, [6] sweet vermouth, [19] and absinthe. [13] Penelope Bass of Imbibe magazine compared the beverage's flavor to an amaro, while noting that its botanical ingredients closely resembled a traditional gin, and observed that its color was reminiscent of a cola. [7] Adam Bloodworth of City A.M. described it as feeling "luxe", and wrote that "ginger, sage and saffron disrupt the cane sugar to create something like harmony." [20] Christopher Null of Drinkhacker described it as "bittersweet, woodsy and a bit fruity," writing that "In a world of no-alcohol spirits that are largely duds, The Pathfinder greatly impresses." [21]
In 2025, it was included in The New York Times list of "The Best Nonalcoholic Drinks", with journalist Mace Dent Johnson describing it as "strong, bracing, and surprising, with intense bitterness and a fresh pine aroma". Johnson noted that one of the Times' tasters commented that "I feel like I need to have tattoos to qualify to drink this." [22] The beverage has also been associated with the rising popularity of non-alcoholic spirits, exemplified by movements like Dry January. [15] [11] [23]