Non-alcoholic drinks startup Lyre’s has enlisted augmented reality (AR) to educate people about its products and party like the “social animals” that are its brand mascots.

‘Social Animals’ have been created to match each character featured on the alcohol-free spirits bottle, with the AR animating them to tell the story in the virtual Lyre’s Impossible Bar via a QR code on the bottle neck.

Lyre’s is named after that legendary Australian mimic, the lyrebird, the critters kept coming as the business created drinks with the distinct flavours of gin, whisky, vermouth, amaretto, absinthe, rum and others, as well as a range of ready-to-drink pre-mixed non-alcoholic cocktails, from an Amalfi spritz to rum and cola and G&T.

The business was founded in 2019 and in November last year raised $37 million on a $500 million valuation. Its range is now available in more than 60 countries.

Lyre’s chief marketing officer Paul Gloster said the Impossible Bar was all about learning how to craft the perfect alcohol-free tipple with the guidance of a Social Animal.

“Lyre’s makes its easier than ever to take your favourite drink and make it a Lyre’s non-alcoholic, using new technology to bring the brand to life,”he  said

“We wanted to push the boundaries of what is possible from a marketing perspective, put the consumer in charge and expanding our digital interactivity, using Alexa and augmented reality to add more brand depth and information to make it a practical experience, not just a cool bit of tech. Both pieces lead to the ‘how,’ showcasing drinks and recipes that we know people around the world will love, using Lyre’s non-alcoholic.”

The Lyre’s Impossible Bar follows on from the introduction of advice from Amazon’s Alexa to keep the cocktails flowing.

By saying “Alexa, open make it a Lyre’s”, people can follow Alexa’s prompts to make their favourite cocktail, sans booze, at their own pace. The Amazon platform will even play background music to help set the mood.