The name gets the laugh, the taste gets the surprise: FICKEN alcohol-free is sweet, berry-led and slightly tart. And the bottle has a catch hardly anyone knows about: once open, it only keeps for three days.
Last updated: 12 September 2026
What is FICKEN alcohol-free?
FICKEN alcohol-free is a ready-to-drink berry drink in a 70cl bottle, served like a shot. The manufacturer, EFAG from Laupheim, labels the drink alcohol-free. One bottle gives 17 shots of 4 cl (40 ml).
💡 By the way: we sell the bottle in a set with four ski boot glasses on Miniski that you hang round your neck – FICKEN alcohol-free + 4-piece Miniski set.
What is FICKEN alcohol-free?
FICKEN alcohol-free is the alcohol-free version of the FICKEN original: same name, same berry direction, labelled alcohol-free by the manufacturer. It's served just like the original: ice-cold and in a small glass.
What sets it apart from the juice shots you mix yourself is the effort. The bottle is ready to go, tastes the same every time and has a name that someone at the table is guaranteed to trip over. Mixing your own works too, of course: eight recipes from spicy to creamy are in our guide to non-alcoholic shots.
What does FICKEN alcohol-free taste like?
Sweet with a tart edge, berry-led, with notes of currant and gooseberry. The original is a jostaberry shot with 15% vol. and, as a spirit, is only sold to over-18s. The jostaberry is a cross between blackcurrant and gooseberry, and that's the direction the alcohol-free bottle takes too: according to the ingredients list, it contains fruit juice concentrates from currant, gooseberry and lingonberry, plus flavouring – but no jostaberries.
According to the manufacturer, the result tastes "almost like the original". What's missing is the burn in the throat. That's exactly why serving matters: the colder the shot, the less the sweetness pushes to the front.
Ingredients, sugar & calories: what the label says
The ingredients: water, sugar, fruit juice concentrate (currant, lingonberry, gooseberry), glucose syrup, acids (malic acid, citric acid), flavouring. It's also vegan, gluten-free and free from colourings.
The label gives the nutrition values per 100 ml. Converted, one shot has around 34 kcal and 6 g of sugar:
| Nutrient | per 100 ml | per shot (4 cl / 40 ml) | per bottle (70cl) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Energy | 84 kcal | approx. 34 kcal | approx. 588 kcal |
| Carbohydrate | 19 g | approx. 7.6 g | approx. 133 g |
| of which sugars | 15 g | approx. 6 g | approx. 105 g |
So one shot brings roughly as much sugar as two sugar cubes. Topped up with water it tastes less sweet, but the sugar in the glass stays the same.
How many shots in a 70cl bottle?
A 70cl bottle gives 17 shots of 4 cl (40 ml) or 35 shots of 2 cl (20 ml) – a pub would pour 28 singles of 25 ml or 20 of 35 ml from it. Planning takes one simple formula: guests times rounds, divided by 17, then round up. For bigger groups we also sell the bottle as a six-pack.
| Group | Shots of 4 cl (40 ml) | Bottles |
|---|---|---|
| 4 people, 4 rounds | 16 | 1 |
| 8 people, 2 rounds | 16 | 1 |
| 12 people, 3 rounds | 36 | 3 |
| 20 people, 2 rounds | 40 | 3 |
The maths only works if every glass holds the same amount. Our ski boot glasses are calibrated to 4 cl (40 ml), which is why it adds up: 17 full shots, and the last 2 cl (20 ml) is still enough for half a shot – who gets it is settled by rock, paper, scissors.
Once opened: three days in the fridge
Once open, the bottle keeps for three days in the fridge, says the manufacturer. Unopened, the best-before date on the bottle applies. Unlike the original with its 15% vol., there's nothing here to slow spoilage down, and that changes your planning.
So plan around the evening, not around your stock. The rule for a weekend in a mountain hut: only open the next bottle once the first is empty – instead of starting three on Friday that are still standing half full in the fridge on Tuesday.
How to serve it: ice-cold in a 4 cl (40 ml) glass
Put the bottle in the fridge a few hours beforehand, but not in the freezer: without the alcohol of the original, the contents freeze solid in there, and a glass bottle doesn't always survive that. Cold, it tastes less like juice and more like a shot – knocked back in one.
- Neat: ice-cold, 4 cl (40 ml), everyone at the same time.
- Long: one shot in a glass of mineral water turns it into a long drink. Tonic works too, but brings its own sugar.
- Mixed: the mixing ideas for the original work without alcohol too.
The ski boot glass sits firmly in its binding, clicks audibly into place and looks every bit the mountain hut, even when there's nothing strong in it.
Drivers, early risers, Dry January
According to the manufacturer, FICKEN alcohol-free is ideal for drivers. In practice, everyone reaches for it who doesn't want alcohol today but still wants in on the next round: people who'll be on the slopes early the next morning, athletes in training, anyone doing Dry January. The round stays a round because everyone has the same glass in their hand.
And then there's the gift angle: whoever hands over the bottle gets the laugh before it's even open. It goes down especially well where part of the group isn't drinking anyway, say on New Year's Eve or at a hen or stag do. How everyone toasts together at midnight is in New Year's Eve without alcohol. How a hen or stag do works without the booze, we explain in our guide Hen and stag party without alcohol.
One bottle, four places
17 shots are enough for four full rounds for four people, with one left over for the host. That's exactly the round the SwigSki3000® is built for: four wooden modules, each with its own ski boot glass, slotted together into one ski. Taken apart, the modules fit in any bag and even in hand luggage; the bottle travels better in your suitcase. Four raise it at once, the bottle stands in front: that's the photo that lands in the group chat the next morning. Add the four glasses from the set on their lanyards and you've got eight places, and the bottle covers two rounds.
And the original?
If you're after the original with 15% vol., it's only sold to over-18s, in EFAG's shop. We sell the alcohol-free bottle on its own, in packs of six or twelve, or in a set with four Miniski including binding and glass, if you want it to arrive as a gift with the kit already included.
Frequently asked questions
What does FICKEN alcohol-free taste like?
Sweet with a tart edge, berry-led: currant, gooseberry and lingonberry, plus flavouring. It tastes almost like the original, just without the burn.
How many shots are in a bottle?
A 70cl bottle gives 17 shots of 4 cl (40 ml) or 35 shots of 2 cl (20 ml).
How long does the bottle keep once opened?
Three days in the fridge, says the manufacturer. Unopened, the best-before date on the bottle applies.
How much sugar and how many calories are in a shot?
A 4 cl (40 ml) shot has around 34 kcal and 6 g of sugar. The label states 84 kcal and 15 g of sugar per 100 ml.
Is FICKEN alcohol-free really alcohol-free?
According to the manufacturer, yes: it labels the drink alcohol-free. It's also vegan, gluten-free and free from colourings.
What is a jostaberry?
A cross between blackcurrant and gooseberry. According to the ingredients list, FICKEN alcohol-free contains no jostaberries; it recreates their taste from currant and gooseberry, with lingonberry added.
Sources: manufacturer information from EFAG GmbH & Co. KG, Laupheim – product page FICKEN Alkoholfrei (party-kneipe-bar.com), brand page (partyschnaps.com), FICKEN original (efag.com); serving tip from a retailer (conalco.de). Nutrition values per 100 ml according to the manufacturer; per shot and per bottle converted by us. As of: September 2026.