Dry January 2022: Try these delicious alcohol-free and low ABV beers, wines, spirits and canned cocktails

30 December 2021, 19:29 | Updated: 4 January 2022, 14:40

By Emma Gritt

@emmagritt

There are more low/no alcohol options than ever before, meaning taking a break from boozing, or living a wholly abstinent lifestyle no longer has to mean nursing a pint of lemonade at the pub...

Alcohol-free spirits

One of the bestselling non-alcoholic brands in the UK, Everleaf originally launched with Forest, and later introduced Mountain and Marine in November 2020.

Everleaf’s products are anchored to different parts of the natural world, which act as both inspiration for flavour profiles and sources for key botanicals.

• Spirits Kiosk, £18.75

Wildjac's new 0% alcohol Botanical Spirit is the perfect gin alternative for Dry January.

It has bright and zesty citrus notes balanced with refreshing cucumber and herbal undertones with rosemary, sage, lemon thyme and delicate chamomile.

• Wildjac, £19

Dorset’s first gin distillery, Conker Spirit have launched their very own premium distilled non-alcoholic spirit called Bowser Leaf.

It is made with mint, tarragon, patchouli, thyme and basil, and is delicious served over ice with tonic. It's also totally suger-free and has 0 calories.

• Masters of Malt, £18.95

FLUÈRE Original 

FLUÈRE is a luxurious drink for everyone who wants to live a more mindful life without compromising on taste.

Each of their vividly coloured liquids have a balanced floral blend of botanicals produced using steam distillation to carefully extract the natural oils and flavours from the fruits, herbs and spices.

The range includes FLUÈRE Original, Raspberry, Smoked Agave and Spiced Cane, and as they have recently launched smaller 275ml bottles, there's plenty of opportunity to try them all!

• £20 for 700ml or £10 for 275ml, Ocado

Warner’s 0% Botanic Garden Spirits

Warner’s 0% Botanic Garden Spirits is available in two flavours - Juniper Double Dry and Pink Berry.

The Juniper Double Dry is crafted using farm-grown ingredients: lemon thyme, lemon verbena and water drawn from the spring at Warner’s farm.

The spirit has a spicy base, herbal hit, citrus edge and peppery finish.

The 0% Pink Berry recipe was a real labour of love, and after experimenting with 53 different flavours, it is a delicious non-alcoholic alternative to a fruity or pink gin: fragrant and tangy, combining raspberries and blackcurrant sage with a kick from chilli, ginger and Szechuan pepper.

• Warnersdistillery.com, £18

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High Point Drinks

Cornish distillery High Point have created alcohol-free aperitif and digestifs perfect for serving to designated drivers and non-drinkers at dinner parties.

High Point Ruby is a very vibrant and versatile fermented aperitif and is also wonderful served as a spritz with tonic water and lots of ice.

It is a bittersweet citrus aperitif made with hibiscus, lavender, wormwood, pink peppercorn, orange zest and pink grapefruit zest.

For the other end of your meal, High Point Amber is a deeply smoky fermented digestif made from lasag, ginger, clove, vanilla, cacao nibs and gentian root.

It is cold smoked and aged for one week after blending and is best enjoyed with ginger ale or neat over ice with a slice of orange to garnish. 

• High Point Amber, £19.99
• High Point Ruby, £19.99

Tuscan Tree

Tuscan Tree is a non-alcoholic Aperitivo inspired by the orange orchards of Northwest Italy and the Italian culture of “Aperitivo Hour”.

The 0% ABV distilled spirit is infused with real blood orange juice and Italian sparkling wine, alongside a complex blend of non-alcoholic botanical distillates - enjoy it served over lots of ice with soda or tonic, or used as a base for a non-alcoholic Negroni.

• Master of Malt, £12.06

Alcohol-free wines

Oddbird has three premium sparkling non-alcoholic wines ideal for adding some non-alcoholic sparkle to January (or for baby showers!)

The range includes a Blanc de Blancs and Sparkling Rosé wines from France and a Spumante from Italy, which are produced using traditional methods and then “liberated from alcohol” using a unique, patented vacuum distillation method.

• Oddbird Spumante, £8.99
• Oddbird Blanc de Blancs, £10.99
• Oddbird Sparkling Rosé Wine, £9.99

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Mindful Drinkers Hamper

If you are going all in for Dry Jan, then this luxe hamper of alcohol-free cocktails and beer (and snacks!) will keep you busy.

It contains:

• 2 x Fungtn Non-Alcoholic Beer
• 2 x Humble Warrior Sparkling Plant Drinks
• 1 x Lucky Saint Non-Alcoholic Beer
• 1 x Dalston’s Alcohol-Free Rhubarb G&T
• 1 x Willys Ginger Kombucha Beer
• 1 x Flora-No-Dora Mocktail with Warners Pink Berry
• The Cocktail Society, £39

Thomas Tipple's Teetotal is a beautifully crafted slimline non-alcoholic cocktail in a can. 

It has a fresh citrus nose with notes of grapefruit and mandarin, which evolves into an aromatic taste punctuated with clean and crisp white wine-style notes. 

• Amazon, 4 x 250ml can, £15

Mocktails

Mocktais are perfectly balanced, premium alcohol-free cocktails that deliver a drinking experience as opposed to a simple alcohol alternative. 

They’re designed to be served with as much care as you would do a classic cocktail, shaken with ice, in proper glassware, and their four flavours wouldn't be out of place in some of the world's fanciest bars...

• Mockapolitan: Their take on the Cosmopolitan
• Mockarita: Like a Margarita, featuring the finest ingredients, spices and botanicals from around the world
• Sansgria: A subtle, sophisticated and not too sweet take on Sangria that will transport you straight to Sevilla
• Mockscow Mule: Sicilian nd Argentinian lemons help to create this subtle, refreshing, and surprisingly sophisticated take on the Moscow Mule

• Drinkmocktails.co.uk, £26.99 for single-flavour or mixed packs of 12 (200ml each)

Beer and cider

Lazer Crush is Beavertown Brewery’s alcohol-free IPA and has been expertly brewed with a new type of yeast to provide its delicious fruity flavour, with only 0.3% ABV created during fermentation.

• Beavertown Brewery, £1.60 a can
  

Smashed create a unique, crisp and lightly carbonated cider that delivers pure refreshment with a perfect balance of sharpness, sweetness and bite.

It is a golden, slightly opaque sparkling liquid with a fresh inviting aroma of English apples - and zero alcohol.

• Smashed, £18 for a case of 12

Lucky Saint is brewed in the same way as Bavarian lager and unfiltered so that it keeps the full bodied character and flavour of regular beer. 

• Sainsbury's, £1.80

Noughty Bear 0.5% IPA

Britain’s oldest brewer Shepherd Neame launched their first low alcohol beer in 2021, and it is a refreshing, light golden beer, combining the pine and spice notes of Challenger hops from the UK, with the tropical fruit and citrus flavours of Amarillo, Cascade and Citra hops from the US.

Noughty Bear has 70 calories and less than 1g of sugar per 330ml bottle, making it the lighter choice in every way.

• Shepherd Neame, £20 for 12 bottles

THE BIG HELLO BOX

THE BIG HELLO BOX is an 8-pack box that features four of Big Drop’s most popular alcohol-free beers.

The box features two of each of Big Drop’s four core award-winning 0.5% ABV beers including the very popular Paradiso IPA, plus Pine Trail pale ale, Galactic milk stout, and Uptime craft lager.

• Available from Jan 3 from Big Drop Brew, RRP £14

Lowlander

Lowlander is a range of unique low and no alcohol beers brewed with botanicals in The Netherlands, and its new canned beers include a 0% Wit Beer, a 0.3% IPA brewed with mango, cardamon and orange peel and a 4% clean, hoppy Pilsner, Cool Earth Lager.

• Lowlander 0 % Wit Beer RRP: £3.30 for 330ml. ABV: 0.0%
• 0.3% I.P.A RRP: £1.50 for 330ml. ABV: 0.3%
• Cool Earth Lager RRP: £2.00 for 330ml. ABV: 4.0%
• Available from Wise Bartender

Brooklyn Special Effects

Brooklyn Brewery's Great Taste Award-winning, low alcohol hoppy brew tastes just like a regular beer - but it’s not.

It is a zesty, amber style beer and a perfect low alcohol alternative to a traditional pint.

• Brooklyn Special Effects, £4 for 4 x 330ml bottles, Tesco

Low Alcohol

Portobello Road Distillery’s Temperance

Temperance is Portobello Road Distillery's award-winning super-low ABV gin alternative.

It is just 0.8% ABV when a double measure is mixed with 200ml of tonic and is a great choice for gin lovers looking to moderate their alcohol intake.  

It is distilled using the same nine botanicals that comprise Portobello Road Gin’s signature London Dry; juniper berries and orris from Tuscany, Spanish lemon peels, bitter orange peels from Haiti and Morocco, nutmeg from Indonesia and cassia bark from South East Asia, as well as a handful of additional ingredients.

It is delicious mixed with tonic and a wedge of pink grapefruit or used as an alternative to gin in your favourite cocktail.

• Amazon, £23