A Scottish entrepreneur is hoping to shake up the soft drinks market with his range of preservative-free and low-sugar sodas.
Gregor Leckie can’t hide his enthusiasm for the brand he created and continues to refine as he shows The Herald round his industrial unit in the Gorbals, Glasgow.
Rapscallion Soda was launched in 2017 when Gregor cooked up the first batch of 4000 serves in his kitchen to sell at a summer festival.
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Now, the gently-pasteurised vegan soft drink range can be bought online or in delis, bars and restaurants across the country.
The hand-crafted collection boasts Ninja, a fiery raw ginger infusion; Burnt Lemon, a charred lemon and coriander seed mix and Dry Lime, a lime and kaffir lime leaf blend.
Seasonal blends and custom couplings are always in the works with Gregor making the most of Scotland’s freshest fare when summer strikes - festival-goers and sun-worshippers can enjoy Pink, a heady blend of rhubarb, pink grapefruit and Szechuan pepper; or Red, a fusion of freshly-picked Scottish strawberries, scotch bonnet chillies and black pepper or go all out with the dessert-inspired Cranachan that combines Scottish raspberries, toasted oats and star anise.
Crack open a can and you’re struck by the strength of the scent and immediacy of the flavour - there is not even a whiff of any the chemical nasties that flood your taste buds when you reach for a standard fizzy drink - and that’s what drives Gregor in his quest to create soft drinks free from preservatives and concentrates.
Natural flavours and scents are extracted from fruit and spices without the use of heat, a pinch of organic cane sugar is added ahead of carbonation before the drinks are canned in Rapscallion’s trademark stubby 250ml cans.
Gregor, originally from South Queensferry, honed his nose for flavour in the bar and restaurant scene of Edinburgh and Newcastle before going global with a move to Australia then New Zealand where he ran cocktail bars, worked in vineyards and studied with sommeliers.
He said: “I never really had a mentor as such, but I always had the opportunity to work with fascinating people. And I just picked their brains, whether it was business or drink development, and I learned so much.”
A self-confessed “nightmare to manage”, Gregor knew that he would one day start his own business and with a move to Glasgow in 2014, the idea for Rapscallion was brewing, inspired by the fresh produce of New Zealand and the variety of non-alcoholic drinks on offer there.
Gregor said: “Having seen the Southern Hemisphere and the respect of fresh fruit and natural ingredients, because you've just got up on your doorstep there and all the drinks menus where everything was literally fresh as a daisy.”
After a stint as a farmer at 14, Gregor knew that Scotland’s natural larder could offer a range of ingredients that could be used to create signature drinks that sing with flavour. While ginger, citrus fruits and some of the spices used are not home-grown, Gregor sources from suppliers across the world to supplement his sodas.
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Tapping into the growing trend for non-boozy drinks, Gregor’s careful formulations are tailored to stand alone or take on a slightly different persona when mixed with alcohol and he has created bespoke blends for some of Scotland’s finest craft gin and whisky makers.
Eco-awareness is an important tenet of Rapscallion, with Gregor conscious of his impact on the environment as a business owner. He sources sustainable packaging - using six-pack rings made from whisky waste- and suppliers, uses as much of every ingredient in his drinks as possible and has plans to invest in an electric vehicle in the future.
He said: “I want Rapscallion to be a sustainable business eco-system. The ultimate goal would be a production facility up in Fife, so we're near all the growers, with solar panels, wind turbines, and using recycled rainwater. We want to cut down on the stuff that ends up in landfill.”
Gregor has big plans for Rapscallion, in Scotland and beyond and hopes that the sodas he has invested all of his time, energy and money in will change the way we drink,
He said:“We just want to be real with people. We're always honest, we're almost brutally honest at times, but the end of the day, we just want to make the best tasting liquids we physically can. If you tell me something can’t be done, I’m just going to work harder.”
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