EU court rules non-alcoholic drinks cannot be called gin

Judges in Luxembourg say EU law prohibits use of term ‘non-alcoholic gin’, in case brought by German lobby group

The makers of spirits may be raising a toast to the European judges of Luxembourg after the EU’s court ruled that non-alcoholic drinks cannot be called gin.

Only spirit drinks based on ethyl alcohol flavoured by juniper berries with a minimum alcoholic strength of 37.5% by volume can be known as gin, the court said in a judgment issued on Thursday.