Everyone knows there’s a worm in tequila, but the owner of Australia’s first vegan bottle shop says many wouldn’t know about other creatures used in the ‘fining’ process.
Iranian-born Aria Yousefian and his sister Zohreh have opened the Sibling Vegan Bottle Shop in Altona, which stocks – as the name suggests – wine, beer and spirits made without animal products such as gelatin, egg whites and milk.
Mr Yousefian said he currently had three breweries supplying him.
“My stock, especially of wine, is so limited but it’s the quality not the quantity,” he said.
“For beer, craft beers are so much easier to find, but vodkas and whiskies … I just received an email from Arktika [saying] yeah, no worries, our vodka is vegan.”
Mr Yousefian said he became a vegan about eight years ago at age 26 for health reasons.
“For about a month, it was [for health] but then it became about nature … to lead a happy life.”
He said veganism was his life passion – along with heavy metal music.
“For me, the metal and the vegan life just came together and helped me to engage with the world.
“Everyone thinks this is the most aggressive and hateful genre but actually it’s not.”
