As the excesses of the festive season have now passed, I and probably you too, start thinking about January. Will you be doing Dry January and avoiding alcohol as one of your resolutions? Or will you be embracing Dry Ginuary? This post will cover the #DryJanuary option, so read on for inspiration on what to drink to avoid alcohol and some suggestions on lower alcohol serves to try too. Personally I’m doing try-anuary – so trying new things and *attempting* to drink less! (Updated January 2023).
*Full disclosure: some items included in this post were given to me for free – I will always disclose this by the item name. This post also includes affiliate links, which produce income for the blog at no extra cost to you, these are all clearly marked by the link*
Dry January – inspiration for low and no alcohol drinks
I decided to include some ideas for Dry January socialising, as well as lower alcohol alternatives that I’ve tried recently:
Dry January
I’ve done a dry month before – my sober September. For me this was more a check in with my body and to ensure that I don’t have any dependency on alcohol. I’ve seen various relationships ruined by people’s dependency on alcohol and with so much always available to me (due to the nature of the blog), I think it’s sensible to check in with myself from time to time.
Other people do Dry January as a personal challenge or to give their livers some time off after hitting the booze hard over the festive period.
Whatever your reasons the trend for drinking lower alcohol or no alcohol drinks is showing no going away. People are looking to remain social, without their only options being soda and juice to drink. So I’m updating you on some newly released products you can try:
Kashmiri Tea House Elixirs [gifted]
2021 continued the trend of tea in all forms, so get in early with the Kashmiri Tea House Elixirs. The Elixirs come in three different flavours – Rose, Saffron and Pomegranate. The Rose and Pomegranate are cold brewed with green tea, so are lightly caffeinated. The Saffron is caffeine free, but the addition of honey to sweeten makes this the only non-vegan drink of the range.
The recently launched Elixir range from Kashmiri Tea House
I tried the Rose Elixir and it’s a refreshing fragrant drink, I particularly liked the cardamom notes with the rose. As this one is made with green tea, then it’s a day time drink for me (I can’t do caffeine later than afternoon). I drank it cold from the fridge, but it would also be great over ice or try this recipe for a longer drink:
- 100ml Rose Elixir
- 100ml Fever Tree aromatic tonic water
- Ice to the top of the glass
- Garnish with a spring of rosemary, slightly bruised to release the aroma and infuse into the drink
You can buy the Elixirs online from the Kashmiri Teahouse for £11.25 for 3 or try them all with a mixed pack of 6 (2 of each flavour) for £22.50.
Saicho sparkling tea [gifted]
For a sparkling wine alternative I enjoyed Saicho sparkling tea. I drank the jasmine green tea one, which went really well with the dim sum we had at Chinese New Year.
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Buy Saicho Jasmine Sparkling Green Tea from £10.99 a bottle from Saicho Drinks directly.
My friends also rate Nosecco as a non-alcoholic Prosecco alternative.
Nine Elms no. 18 [gifted]
Created as a non alcoholic accompaniment for food – it’s not a ‘wine’ replacement per se – but looks very much like a glass of wine.
Fruity berry flavours are balanced with botanicals to create a tannic drink with depth of flavour that works well with food – especially meat/proteins.
No it’s not a wine replacement, but it goes beautifully with food (like wine does!)
I really want to play more with this product as I could see it adding versatility to non alcoholic cocktails – watch this space.
Buy Nine Elms no. 18 from Master of Malt for £19.95.
Ps I don’t recommend Jukes as a wine alternative, read more about that in my Instagram post here:
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Sea Arch – “distilled spirit” not gin
I’ve not actually tried this ‘spirit’ yet. However it appeals to me as it’s not trying to sell itself as a non alcoholic gin (what an oxymoron!), but instead focusing on the flavours. Does Coastal Juniper appeal to you as much as it does to me?
Sea Arch – a non alcoholic distilled spirit
The inclusion of sea kelp, samphire and blood orange along with juniper and other key gin botanicals, such as cardamom and angelica, makes this a complex drink. Perfect with served long with tonic or for creating non-alcoholic cocktails, I think this would be a great addition for any non drinker.
Buy Sea Arch non-alcoholic distilled spirit online at Amazon [affiliate link] from £21.89.
Sipsmith’s FreeGilder alcohol free ‘gin’ [gifted]
Whilst Sipsmith make many many many delicious alcoholic spirits, this is their first foray into a non-alcoholic one. Using lots of different techniques they have created an alcohol free drink that works with tonic as a gin replacement, it’s not too bad to taste neat either. It has the same limitations as other non-alcoholic ‘spirits’ in that you miss the mouthfeel that the alcohol adds. However I think Sipsmith have done a good job in creating a liquid that has some complexity and depth of flavour. One to try as a gin replacement in cocktails for sure.
A seasonal serve for this time of year!
Buy FreeGlider from Sipsmith’s for £22.50
Duchess non-alcoholic G&T [gifted]
The Duchess non-alcoholic G&T has been around for a while. In fact they have developed their range from when I first tried it. It now includes 3 options: The Duchess Botanical, Greenery and Floral. Made in South Africa, many of the flavours used in creating the range are local.
You can buy the Duchess online from £10.99 for a case of 6 bottles.
Lowlander 0% beer [gifted]
Lowlander have made a botanically brewed beer that’s remarkably sustainable too. Their Wit beer is 0.00% alcohol and made with surplus orange and lemon peels from bars and restaurants that would otherwise have been thrown away.
A citrus explosion in the mouth!
When I tried the Wit beer I loved the citrus flavours that explode on your taste buds. It’s very much a beer even at 0% and very tasty. I can verify that it works well with food, including curry.
Buy Lowlander beers in the UK from Amazon [affiliate link]
Everleaf non-alcoholic bittersweet aperitif
If I wanted to concoct a non-alcoholic negroni I would need to find 3 things: a non-alcoholic juniper flavoured gin substitute (see FreeGider & Sea Arch above), a non-alcoholic vermouth substitute (perhaps Nine Elms no. 18) and a non-alcoholic bitter substitute for Campari. Everleaf may answer the last of these three requirements…
Everleaf aperitif has a nice ring to it!
There has been an attempt at a non-alcoholic pre-mix negroni by Seedlip and Aecorn Aperitifs (the Nogroni), but when I tried that at London Cocktail Week, it fell flat. There wasn’t enough depth of flavour, mouthfeel and bite, this unfortunately is what the alcohol brings to the table normally. I also thought the inclusion of Seedlip Spice didn’t work – their orange spiced drink might have made it taste more classically negroni-esque.
Since I first tried Everleaf Forest (shown above) I loved it as a spritz and it has the mouthfeel and bitterness to replace the bitter in a low or no alcohol negroni, it is a delicious stand alone drink & works in many cocktails.
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Everleaf have since developed two additional drinks – Marine, aimed at gin drinkers and Mountain, aimed at pink gin drinkers. Marine wasn’t my favourite gin replacement, despite Everleaf having a lovely mouthfeel and some depth with the bitter notes. Mountain with it’s strawberry and cherry blossom notes I was surprised to like a lot! Definitely worth trying this range out.
Buy all of the Everleaf range directly on the Everleaf website for £19 a bottle.
Wilfred’s Aperitif
Wilfred’s was a lockdown discovery in 2021 and went down very well (aka didn’t last long). With it’s great combination of rosemary and bittersweet orange it makes a lovely spritz and isn’t dissimilar to Aperol. I enjoyed playing around with it in cocktails too.
Buy Wilfred’s direct from Wilfred’s Drinks website for £19.
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Lyre’s non-alcoholic spirits
Lyre’s not only create non-alcoholic spirits, but bitter and vermouth replacements also. This means that you can create non-alcoholic versions of your favourite cocktails. Perfect to get you through a whole month without alcohol – or even if you just want some booze free days.
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Check out the full range on the Lyre’s website – they have plenty of bundles for cocktails as well as single bottles from £23.50.
Lower alcohol alternatives
Hayman’s Small Gin
Hayman’s put a lot of effort into developing their Small Gin. Designed to taste exactly like a normal Hayman’s London Dry gin when served with tonic, I couldn’t tell the difference when tested!
A tiny bottle of Small Gin – inginious!
Each bottle comes with a thimble to measure a very small amount of the 43% proof spirit. When diluted with tonic in a normal size glass, a gin and tonic is only 0.2 units of alcohol and 15 calories. This is a great option for those who can’t kick a G&T and want to retain that classic Hayman’s taste with minimal alcohol. The options for using this spirit in low ABV cocktails are also limitless!
You can currently buy Hayman’s Small Gin at a discounted £21 at Waitrose online.
Vermouth & tonic
A naturally lighter alcohol drink than spirits, vermouth can be served long with tonic in a spritz style, as well as neat or with ice. I find this is a great aperitif, but for me a spritz suits a hot climate (rather than January in the UK!). However this can be a light and refreshing option pre-dinner.
I usually drink my vermouth in a short, strong serve like this negroni, but they work equally well with tonic and a citrus slice
One I particularly like is Asterley Bro’s English vermouth, both the Estate & Schofield’s Dry. Full disclosure, I invested in them for a 30% discount for life! Find out more about and buy online at their website: Asterley Bros
Nirvana Low Alcohol beers [gifted]
As mentioned above, whilst there are some 0% beers, not all beers that are considered non-alcoholic according to law, are actually completely alcohol free. So these low ABV beers are a tasty alternative to the normal strength beers:
The Nirvana Brewery range is all low alcohol, with some 0% beers too
What will you be drinking this Dry January? Let me know in the comments below!
Pin this image for your dry January inspiration
Denise says
I’m in! My husband and I were just talking about this last night! Pinning!
Katie says
Ah thanks Denise – I hope you find some inspiration!
Tiffany says
This is helpful to know so I can have things ready for my friends that don’t drink year round!
Katie says
That’s very thoughtful Tiffany – I hope your friends enjoy!
Soheila Hakimi says
I am definitely planning on doing dry January this year after the holidays. I did sober October and my body felt so good by the end of it and I even lost a little weight. I think its healthy to take breaks from drinking a couple times a month.
Katie says
I totally agree with you! I like non-alcoholic drink ideas for when you need a break for a while too