How Renowned SA Master Distiller Danielle Schoeman Created A Non-alcoholic Spirit Called Mahala Botanical
How Renowned SA Master Distiller Danielle Schoeman Created A Non-alcoholic Spirit Called Mahala Botanical. In 2020, Danielle Schoeman, a renowned South African Master Distiller, began trialing various alcohol-free distilled spirits in her Dona craft distillery.
Foraging botanicals from her family farm in the Cape she experimented with various blends until eventually discovering the perfect recipe. Using nine different botanicals, some of which are uniquely indigenous to the Western Cape, she created Mahala Botanical – a flavoursome, premium, non-alcoholic spirit. The all-natural botanicals undergo a triple-distillation process in her custom-built vacuum stills. This ensures abundant flavour and results in a complex, layered finish. The end product is a beautiful premium drink that delivers a sophisticated alternative to alcoholic beverages. From farm to glass, Danielle and her team are involved in every step of the process.
Each and every bottle of Mahala Botanical has been distilled, bottled and hand-labelled on site at Dona distillery in Cape Town. In its year of creation, Mahala Botanical was awarded the Trophy for Best Low/No Alcohol Spirit at the prestigious Michelangelo International Spirit Awards. Free from sugar, alcohol, colourants and artificial flavours. Mahala is also gluten and vegan friendly. It offers health-conscious and mindful consumers a great tasting premium drink – free from alcohol, full of spirit.
Cape Town born and bred, Danielle established Dona Distillery in 2019 with the dream to disrupt the industry with custom built vacuum stills and ambitious goal to bring new and exciting spirits to the local and international markets. By 2020 Doña had won multiple awards including the trophy for the Best Low/No-alcohol Drink, Best Ready to Drink and numerous medals for her spirits at local and international competitions. Danielle sees herself as an ambitious distiller with her vision to produce the highest quality products by continuously innovating and pushing the envelope.
