Some rules are meant to be questioned

The start

Verboten started in Pretoria in 2020. Two founders, technical precision, and a refusal to accept that brandy has to taste the way brandy has always tasted.

What came out of it was a spirit smooth enough to make you question what you thought you knew about premium drinks.

A quiet rebellion

Verboten is German for forbidden. The name is a promise about restraint: nothing leaves this house unless it earns the label. South African soul, a German sounding surname, and an Afrikaans undercurrent for the ones who know.

Today Verboten is not just a spirit. It is a quiet rebellion in a glass.

What we make

The flagship is a three year brandy, matured in oak and finished in French casks, bottled at 43%. Made to a standard, not to a schedule.

Brandy & Cola is the same spirit with its collar loosened. Pre-mixed, canned, and served colder than strictly necessary at the markets and events where we pour.

Alongside the brandy there is NYX, a liquorice liqueur in the Greek style, and a blood orange gin. Both are bottled at 750ml and poured on tap at the markets and events where we set up.

A beer is in development. It will announce itself when it is ready.

Where to find us

• Quality bars that know their stuff.
• Restaurants that care about what they serve.
• Events worth showing up to.
• Direct to your door when you order online.

Where this goes

From Johannesburg to Berlin, Amsterdam to Cape Town. Verboten is for everyone who knows that the best traditions often start with someone breaking the rules.

Because some traditions are meant to be whispered, not shouted.