Sylva

I’m Ben, I started Sylva because I love trees, making things & wanted a drink to sit, sip and slow down with. I’ve been making non-alcoholic spirits, aperitifs and bitters for over ten years and whilst I’m very proud of all my liquids (and you shouldn’t have favourites) Sylva is my holy grail. The challenge of starting a one of a kind distillery & maturation laboratory amongst woodland and turning humble materials like grain and wood into delicious sipping spirits has been and continues to be absolutely exhilarating and terrifying. As wild as it sounds I really do think the next frontier of flavour is in our trees, and the more I learn the less I know, and more questions I have – what a privilege! We’re at the beginning, we’re small, we’ve lots to figure out and improve but already being stocked in world famous places like Selfridges & Michelin * restaurants from London to Copenhagen to Los Angeles. It’s a dream [& difficult!] start. Plus, we’re in the process of opening our lab in The Hudson Valley in New York State. Lots more to come...

Welcome. Perhaps you stumbled upon Sylva through curiosity – drawn in by our dark, sipping spirits made from trees. Perhaps you’ve already spent time sipping our liquids. Or perhaps a bottle found its way to you as a gift. However you arrived, we’re glad you’re here. Slow down. Stay a while. Swipe to get to know us… Thanks Ben

Introducing our new release Sylva Orchard. This is an exploration into British fruit wood & barley, a changing of season ode to harvest and a personal trip down memory lane to my first childhood “business” selling plums and apples to our village and days on the combine with my grandfather. This is fruit-forward with whispers of smoke and bags of berry, biscuit and Bakewell tart. Easy over ice or long with soda. We really wanted to make this one special; net positive pale malt barley from within an hour of the distillery, apple wood from the iconic Worcestershire orchards, plum wood from a family of growers in Wales, cherry wood from our wild cherry trees that we gently smoked using cherry wood coals and even distillates from our orchard’s 2024 prunings (apple, pear, plum) and spring 2025 foraged cherry blossom. Very excited to see what you think! Available from our website or Selfridges or Berry Bros & Rudd & available for trade allocations. Thanks Ben

Today, we’re leaning into the art of slowing down, listening to the whisper of wind through the trees and the first notes of morning birdsong. Take a moment for yourself today.

The Grain Room... Small in size, big in significance. Alongside trees, our aged non-alcoholic spirits are made from foraged and locally sourced cereal varietals. We use various preparation and extraction techniques to capture as much complex base grain flavour including malting, toasting, roasting, smoking, vacuum distillation and gravity percolation. A never-before approach for never-before liquids.

During these warmer days, we find ourselves reaching for long, refreshing drinks. Sylva Highballs are made for spring. Orchard is now a permanent release and we’ve brought it to the US. Available from our website.

Some things are worth slowing down for. Our Common Ground by @slowways_ brings together craft and heritage skills gathered from a 1,300-mile walk across Britain. The kind of work that takes patience. The kind of work we understand. On until 30th May at art’otel London Hoxton. Our founder @seedlip_ben will also be hosting the Makers’ Table on 14th May – a conversation with makers, thinkers, and people who still believe the hands know something the head doesn’t. Book your spot via link in bio.

Making is thinking with the hands. Wood remembers every touch. Every cut. Every decision. Sylva is shaped by patience, care, and respect for materials. From tree to glass, nothing is rushed. Nothing is wasted. To make is to participate, not to extract.

A forest practice is a way of being. Happy Earth Day.

The Maturation Lab... Surrounded by meadows, waterways and forest, our first countryside lab sits on the grounds of a Benedictine Monastery and Mill. It’s an idyllic backdrop that contrasts the cutting-edge equipment & progressive thinking happening inside. We work with a range of preparation and extraction techniques to draw out complex base grain flavour – malting, toasting, roasting, smoking, vacuum distillation and gravity percolation. And at the heart of it all, our bespoke sonic ageing process: using oxygen, pressure, heat and ultrasound to extract every last note of flavour, colour and character from wood. A never-before approach for never-before liquids.

It’s time to reset your algorithm.

Spring calls for a Sylva Highball.