Luxembourg, 13 November 2025 – The Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) has delivered a landmark ruling: no beverage without alcohol may be marketed as “gin”, not even if clearly labelled “non-alcoholic gin” or “alcohol-free gin”.
In its judgment in Case C-563/24 (PB Vi Goods), the Court stated unequivocally:
“There is a clear prohibition in EU law on presenting and labelling a beverage such as that in question as ‘non-alcoholic gin’, due to the very fact that that beverage does not contain alcohol. The fact that the legal name ‘gin’ is accompanied by the term ‘non-alcoholic’ is irrelevant in that regard.”
The ruling is binding across all 27 EU member states.
Legal Definition Leaves No Wiggle Room
Under Regulation (EU) 2019/787, “gin” is defined as a spirit drink produced by flavouring ethyl alcohol of agricultural origin with juniper berries (Juniperus communis L.) and carrying a minimum alcoholic strength of 37.5% abv. The CJEU emphasised that the name “gin” is a protected legal sales description reserved exclusively for products meeting these criteria.
The Court also dismissed arguments that the ban infringes the freedom to conduct a business under the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights. The restriction, it said, is proportionate because it protects consumers from confusion and shields compliant gin producers from unfair competition.
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Origin of the Case
German unfair-competition association Verband Sozialer Wettbewerb sued PB Vi Goods over its product “Virgin Gin Alkoholfrei”. A regional court in Hamburg referred the matter to Luxembourg for a preliminary ruling. The CJEU has now settled the question once and for all.
Immediate Industry Impact
The decision affects every zero- or low-alcohol brand currently using “gin” in the EU, even as part of compound terms. Several producers have already moved away from the word in recent years:
- CleanCo (UK) rebranded its flagship product from “Clean Gin” to “Clean G”.
- Lyre’s (Australia) changed its “Dry London Spirit” to “Gin Alternative” during its 2025 global packaging refresh.
- Diageo’s Tanqueray 0.0 and Pernod Ricard’s Martini Floreale have avoided the word “gin” altogether, opting instead for “alcohol-free spirit” descriptors.
The Gin Guild, which represents traditional gin distillers worldwide, has long campaigned against the use of the term on non-alcoholic products and has previously persuaded several brands to drop it voluntarily.
Wider and Global Ripple Effects
- Within the EU: Enforcement is now certain. Brands face relabelling or reformulation deadlines as national authorities implement the ruling, with most changes expected during 2026.
- United Kingdom: Although no longer bound by CJEU decisions post-Brexit, major UK retailers and the Gin Guild are likely to push for alignment to maintain consistency across Europe.
- United States: The TTB still permits “non-alcoholic gin” labelling, but any brand exporting to the EU will have to create separate EU-compliant packaging.
- Asia-Pacific: Markets such as Singapore, Japan, and China import large volumes of EU-bound zero-alc “gin” lines; distributors are already reviewing stock and labels.
What Comes Next?
This ruling fits into a broader EU trend of ring-fencing traditional food and drink names – from dairy terms reserved for animal products to, most recently, meat-related descriptors. Analysts expect similar challenges to “rum”, “whisky”, and “vodka” used on non-alcoholic alternatives in the coming years.
For the fast-growing alcohol-free segment, the path forward appears to be neutral terminology such as “botanical spirit”, “juniper spirit”, or simply “gin-style”. One thing is now certain across the European Union: the word “gin” itself belongs exclusively to the real, alcoholic spirit.
