Table of Contents<\/strong>:<\/p>\n <\/p>\n It’s that time of year already! While alcohol consumption is up during the holidays, it may be time to rethink your relationship with alcohol for the month of Dry January<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n \t\t\t\t What the heck is “Dry January,” you ask? For some people (such as regular drinkers who maybe partied a little too hard in December), it’s abstaining from alcohol through the entire month of January in order to reset.<\/p>\n Many people go dry on weekdays only during this period of time– so don’t think it’s all or nothing if you’re not quite ready to give up your glass of wine! Yet for others, they turn a dry month into a yearlong lifestyle of focusing on nonalcoholic drinks.<\/p>\n Or maybe you are pregnant (or your partner is) or sober, but you’d still like to enjoy a creative cocktail. Whatever the reason– whether you’re a moderate drinker who just wants to rethink your alcohol intake, or you’re ready to live a sober lifestyle– you shouldn’t have to give up your favorite drinks completely<\/a>.<\/p>\n Since excessive drinking has been on the rise during the pandemic, we really want to focus on how to make delicious, spirit-free cocktails and enjoy other beverages such as nonalcoholic beer and wine. Whether you view it as a health trend or a way of life, we have you covered for what non-alcoholic drinks to enjoy in January and beyond.<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n What am I even talking about? Yes, there really are spirits that are still carefully-crafted while leaving out the booze. We’ve had the benefit of trying many samples, and we even host company-wide monthly happy hours where we make our favorite cocktails– sans alcohol– using Seedlip<\/a>, one of these alcohol-free spirits.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n \t\t\t\t You’ll notice a couple of our recipes below call for what looks like booze, but it’s actually a craft, non-alcoholic, distilled “spirit” that you can use in place of alcohol.<\/p>\n Now, don’t expect it to taste like actual liquor. These alcohol-free spirits have their own distinct, often earthy flavors that approximate– but don’t actually mirror– the flavor of alcohol.<\/p>\n My husband and I have gone dry recently (well, I’m more like dry-adjacent) and therefore have lots of experience in the NA space. Here are some of our favorite recommendations:<\/p>\n Of course, we’re not saying you can’t have a cocktail every now and then, but we’re all about balance here at A Bar Above– Heck, you can use our bar tools<\/a> to make any sort of mixed drink, so it definitely doesn’t need to have booze in it as far as we’re concerned!<\/p>\n Sometimes referred to as virgin cocktails or mocktails (a common term that I’ll use throughout this article for the sake of familiarity and Google searches), let’s explore some delicious alcohol-free cocktails.<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n \t\t\t\t One of the most-searched mocktail recipes, this refreshing drink is a fun way to skip the alcohol without cutting out flavor. And without alcohol, it’s super<\/em> simple!<\/p>\n While you could theoretically add a non-alcoholic spirit in lieu of vodka (the spirit traditionally used in Moscow Mules), the ginger beer will really dominate the drink anyway, so it\u2019s a bit of a waste to add anything else.<\/p>\n However, if you wanted to add even more sweetness (and you don’t mind the sugar) to a slightly spicy ginger beer, you could add 1 oz of simple syrup. Honestly, it’s mostly a ginger beer mocktail with some lime for extra flavor; however, it’s a refreshing, non-alcoholic option all year long.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n \t\t\t\t Photo by Tatyana Vega via Unsplash<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n This fun mocktail mojito recipe comes from our resident bartender, Rob Harrah, and brings a little flavor to the non-alcoholic experience. While a classic mojito includes white rum, you’ll notice there is no substitute here, as there is already enough going on in the flavor department.<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t Brought to you by Rob, this non-alcoholic mixed drink calls for either one of two expressions of Seedlip<\/a>, depending on which you prefer and\/or what you have on hand.\u00a0<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t A zero-proof marriage somewhat between a gin and tonic and a cucumber martini, this very refreshing summer mocktail is great all year round.<\/p>\n Of course, with liquor alternatives, you can sub them into your favorite traditional cocktails as well, but hopefully these mocktail recipes are inspiring enough to get you started.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n If you don’t want to make your own drinks or are heading to a mocktail party and need something easy to bring along, these zero-proof drinks are about as easy as they come. The cool thing about these, too, is that they usually come in packs of four or more for sharing options.<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t Note<\/strong>: If you allow very small amounts of alcohol during your month of abstinence from booze, you can also add a couple drops of bitters<\/a> to your mocktails.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n If you’re looking for an alcohol-free option that requires zero effort and contains very few (if any) calories– and you don’t want premade “virgin drinks” out of a can– try some of these alternatives when you’d regularly have a cocktail.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n \t\t\t\t This side of the industry has come a long way, so O’Doul’s is not your only option anymore! I asked my husband, the beer expert in our house, to weigh in on some of his favorite craft non-alcoholic beers and also polled our Facebook community groups for their favorite options.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n \t\t\t\t Since Phill (the hubby) loves beer but no longer drinks the alcoholic kind, he’s become a familiar with a lot of options on the market; plus, we receive samples at work every now and then, so we have quite a list for you:<\/p>\n Fieldwork Encore<\/strong><\/a>: According to Phill, “This is probably the best of the ‘Hazy IPA’ category that I\u2019ve had. Fruit forward but balanced. Phenomenal beer.”<\/p>\n<\/li>\n Sam Adams \u201cJust the Haze\u201d<\/a>: <\/strong>Phill says this one is “Probably the hoppiest and juiciest I\u2019ve had, and it has the benefit of being easy to find. I had my first at an airport bar and had to confirm they served me NA.”<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n Our friends over at\n
![\"Photo](\"https:\/\/149347875.v2.pressablecdn.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/Photo-by-Neha-Deshmukh-via-Unsplash.jpg\" "\\"Photo")
<\/span>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n<\/h4>\n
SPIRIT-FREE SPIRITS<\/h2>\n
![\"Photo](\"https:\/\/149347875.v2.pressablecdn.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/Photo-via-Unsplash.jpg\" "\\"Photo")
<\/span>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n
EASY NON-ALCOHOLIC COCKTAILS<\/h2>\n
![\"Photo](\"https:\/\/149347875.v2.pressablecdn.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/Photo-via-Unsplash-2.jpg\" "\\"Photo")
<\/span>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\nMULE MOCKTAIL<\/h3>\n
\n
INSTRUCTIONS<\/strong>:<\/h4>\n
\n
![\"Photo](\"https:\/\/149347875.v2.pressablecdn.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/Photo-by-Tatyana-Vega-via-Unsplash.jpg\" "\\"Photo")
<\/span>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\nSOCAL SODA: A PLAY ON A MOJITO MOCKTAIL\u00a0<\/h3>\n
\n
INSTRUCTIONS:<\/strong><\/h4>\n
\n
![\"Photo](\"https:\/\/149347875.v2.pressablecdn.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/Photo-by-Lily-Banse-via-Unsplash.jpg\" "\\"Photo")
<\/span>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\nBEE’S KNEES<\/h3>\n
\n
INSTRUCTIONS:<\/strong><\/h4>\n
\n
![\"Photo](\"https:\/\/149347875.v2.pressablecdn.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/Photo-by-Taylor-Frieh-via-Unsplash.jpg\" "\\"Photo")
<\/span>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\nTHE CUKE & TONIC<\/h3>\n
\n
INSTRUCTIONS:<\/strong><\/h4>\n
\n
SUPER EASY PRE-MADE, NON-ALCOHOLIC COCKTAILS<\/h2>\n
\n
![\"Photo](\"https:\/\/149347875.v2.pressablecdn.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/Photo-by-Mateusz-Feliksik-via-Unsplash.jpg\" "\\"Photo")
<\/span>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\nMIXERS TO ENJOY WITH NON-ALCOHOLIC SPIRITS AND ALTERNATIVES TO ALCOHOL<\/h2>\n
MIXERS<\/strong><\/h3>\n
\n
ALTERNATIVES TO LIQUOR<\/strong><\/h3>\n
![\"Photo](\"https:\/\/149347875.v2.pressablecdn.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/Photo-of-kombucha-brewing-by-Tim-Oliver-Metz-via-Unsplash.jpg\" "\\"Photo")
<\/span>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n
NON-ALCOHOLIC BEERS AND WINES<\/h2>\n
![\"Photo](\"https:\/\/149347875.v2.pressablecdn.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/Photo-by-Josh-Olalde-via-Unsplash.jpg\" "\\"Photo")
<\/span>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\nNON-ALCOHOLIC BEERS<\/strong><\/h3>\n
\n
\n
NON-ALCOHOLIC WINES<\/strong><\/h3>\n