I recently wrote an article for Ayrshire Magazine called ‘The Trouble with Being Teetotal’ in which I outlined the frustrations I feel when questioned about my non-alcoholic drinks on nights out. If you’ve ditched the drink in favour of soft options you’ll know what I mean. It’s constant: ‘Why aren’t you drinking?’ ‘Do you ever have a drink?’ ‘You should let your hair down once in a while…’ You know how it goes.
When I shared a link to this article on social media it prompted quite a reaction from people who feel the same frustrations and this led to further discussion around our favourite non-alcoholic drinks. As promised, I’m pulling them together to offer some inspiration here for those who’ve grown bored of the never ending soda and limes. There are so many alternatives now which offer really delicious, refreshing soft options whether you’re mixing vibrant fresh fruit juices with sparkling water or opting for one of the new and exciting alcohol free spirits blended into an eye-catching cocktail. The point is there are more options than ever before – it’s a good time to start experimenting to find your new favourite.
Firstly, I should say that there were a couple of debates on the go throughout this discussion. The first was simply about the best non-alcoholic options out there whilst the second was about the best non-sugary non-alcoholic options: for many of us with an eye on our health we don’t want to consume overly sweet or artificially sweet drinks all night either. So with that in mind I’ve rounded up what I think is a fair selection across different price points to offer some inspiration for anyone looking for some new and interesting non-alcoholic options.
First up let’s look at the non-alcoholic versions of some favourite alcoholic drinks. Top recommendations were as follows:
Guiness 0 - no further introduction needed here. It rates highly as a convincing non-alcoholic alternative to the real thing
Estrella Galicia 0 – all the smoothness of a classic Estrella with none of the alcohol. This one’s particularly refreshing with bold flavours. A little bit sweet / a little bit bitter…
Erdinger alcohol free – a thirst quencher with added B vitamins for an extra health boost.
Nosecco – the go-to for a glass of fizz: refreshing, fruity and full of alcohol-free bubbles!
Wolf Blass Zero – a dark, fruity shiraz with a smooth finish, rated highly as a non-alcoholic alternative to a classic shiraz.
Captain Morgan Spiced Gold Alcohol -Free Spirit – ‘all the fun and flavour without the alcohol’ as the Captain himself says. Just add your usual mixer.
Seedlips - a distilled non-alcoholic spirit in 3 distinct ‘English Garden’ flavours: herbal, citrus and aromatic. Just add ice and your usual mixer for a long, refreshing alternative to gin.
Now let’s take a look at some recommended tonics, sodas, cordials and fermented options:
Dash – no sugars, no sweeteners, just lots of fizzy, refreshing fruitiness. Flavours include peach, lemon, raspberry and grapefruit.
London Essence – refreshing, creative tonics, sodas and gingers. Tonics include blood orange and elderflower and grapefruit and rosemary flavours, sodas include roasted pineapple and aromatic orange and fig and gingers include spiced ginger beer and light ginger ale.
Nojito – here’s one to make at home. Ginger beer (London essence?), fresh lime juice, fresh mint lightly crushed and a whole lot of ice. Doesn’t get much better on the refreshment front.
Pure Earth kombucha powders – an innovative solution if you’re going somewhere with few soft options. Carry a couple of these with you and just pop them into a glass of water. The grapefruit is particularly refreshing.
Rapscallion sodas – Ginga Ninja, Burnt Lemon, Dry Lime, Cranachan… ‘sophisticated adult soft drinks’ crafted from raw, fresh and unprocessed ingredients and made in small batches. A bright new take on soda made right here in Scotland.
Slange Var – Loch Katrine water flavoured with lime juice, fresh ginger, cider vinegar and Scottish artisan honey. 100% alcohol free and 100% natural.
You + I Kombucha - contemporary healthy drinks made using organic, natural ingredients. Flavours include black cherry, ginger, lime seat salt and lavender. Fermented, effervescent loveliness that’s good for your gut health too!
Hopefully there’s some inspiration in there to shake things up a bit when you’re out and about. There are so many more recommendations but this is a starting point. Looks like my old favourite Soda and Lime could be on borrowed time.
