With another holiday season behind us and the start of a new year, many people choose to use this time to take a step back from alcohol consumption. “Dry January,” which—as the name implies—one voluntarily decides not to drink all month, has been on the rise for years. For me, I don’t love the term “Dry January” because it infers both a lack of something as well a temporary impulse.
To me, a “Spirit-free Start” feels more optimistic—a chance to think critically about your habits and rituals, and maybe discover some new ones. After January you may not decide to stop drinking entirely, but you might change your relationship with alcohol. Lowering the number of days you imbibe, the number of drinks you might consume in one evening, and discovering some interesting new spirit-free options is a great way start to a new year.
One of the factors that has helped me transition in this direction are the delicious low-alcohol (AKA low ABV) and spirit free options that have risen to prominence on the market. My personal taste runs on the herbal, earthy, and low-sweetness side of things, so the drinks I have been attracted to tend to steer clear of sweet sodas or bizarre clones of real booze. Think ingredients like hops (from beer), earthy herbals (from amaro and apertivos), simple syrups (made from sugar and other real ingredients) and even low ABV options like vermouths.
I think a unique flavor profile is also an important factor in replacing alcohol—part of what makes a cocktail great is how it pulls your tastebuds in new directions. It’s typically a pretty big contrast from the things you may drink during the day. So when you’re looking to replace booze, the stand in needs to be something distinct from say the fruity sparkling water you guzzle at your desk.
Carbonation is also an important factor in a good spirit-free drink. Bubbles help replace the “heat” of alcohol on the tongue while also “lifting” the flavors of the drink on your palette. I also think there’s something beautifully efficient about using bitters in sparkling water—a little bottle of bitters is small, doesn't waste space, and packs a lot of punch.
Finally I think it’s important that your spirit-free drinks are a bit of an investment. If they are as cheap as something you may drink during the day, then they don’t have that same sense of value as a bottle of liquor might have. You savor the things you invest in because they aren’t something you have all the time.
For this year’s “Spirt Free Start” I collected some of my favorite offerings to share. These tend to lean towards botanical, earthy, bittersweet flavors—but complexity and uniqueness rise above any specific categorization! Some of these are RTD (ready-to-drink) some are bitters that can be dropped into sparkling water (and after January, your cocktail as well).
