While the broader spirits category treads water, liqueurs and aperitifs are growing—and a new Brooklyn producer is capitalizing on the trend with an unconventional approach to botanical flavor. Atheras Spirits, founded by veteran bartender Ektoras Binikos and designer Simon Jutras, launched in 2024 with a portfolio of eight amari and liqueurs built around unexpected botanicals: fig leaf, bergamot, lemongrass, vetiver, cardoon, and shiso/mastiha. The brand's roots trace to experimentation in the basement of Binikos's Harlem cocktail lounge, Sugar Monk, during the pandemic.
Scaling from Basement to Micro-Distillery Atheras began with self-distribution for its first eight months before partnering with distributor Park Street in January 2026. The brand launched in New York State and expanded into New Jersey by July. The operation has since outgrown the Sugar Monk basement entirely; production now takes place at Bitter Monk, a micro-distillery inside Industry City in Brooklyn that opened in 2024. Revenue and production have both doubled over the past year, according to the company. Atheras is currently in early conversations with another distributor that could expand its footprint to eight states total.
Why It Matters
Atheras represents a shift in how liqueur innovation is happening: not from consolidated multinational spirits houses, but from bartenders designing products for their peers. The brand's focus on layered botanical complexity—rather than traditional aperitivo profiles—signals operators and consumers are willing to explore liqueurs beyond their historical role as digestifs or simple modifiers.
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Written by FBM Publications Editors
