Mocktail Summer

Mocktails for summer

With more mocktail recipes and alcohol-free brands than ever, let’s explore the options.

There is a growing trend around the “sober curious” or “California sober” where people are limiting their intake of alcohol or skipping it all together, with Gen Z particularly mindful of their alcohol, consuming on average 20 percent less than millennials.

Now I love wine, and tequila, and some other particular cocktails in season, but as I age I have cut back as well, putting a larger emphasis on my overall health. Luckily there are more options then ever, from recipes to brands - some good, and some not, but here are some ideas I have rounded up and I will update my thoughts on the brands as I work my way through some personal testing. There are plenty of non-alcoholic spirits, canned mocktails, beer, and wine - but I cannot bring myself to taste the latter. (Wine is wine, and I will not be replacing it! So on that note, try Avaline’s wonderful organic wines)

All of the below are very much up to personal taste - they are not supposed to be exactly like the alcoholic classics, and should be experimented with to meet your taste expectations.

Shop the (nearly) full list here

BRANDS

Some nonalcoholic drinks are faux versions of alcoholic spirits, like gin or tequila, which can be helpful when you want that summer taste of a G&T or margarita. As I have not tried them all, I checked out recent taste test reviews from the New York Times and Food & Wine, while adding in a few of my own These were some of the top picks that did not necessarily mimic, but held their own in terms of complexity and uniqueness.

MIXED CANNED DRINKS / MOCKTAILS

• Recess Zero Proof Craft Mocktails: Mojitos, margarita, and more

• Seedlip trio: grove, garden, and spice - good with soda

• Herbaceous spirits Pentire Adrift: dry, clear spirit, good with tonic

• Aplós Calme and Aplós Arise: also good with a little seltzer and lemon

• Wildfred’s non-alcoholic bittersweet aperitif

• Ghia: Mediterranean-inspired aperitivos

• Figlia Fiore: Fruity, spiced, and good with soda

• Three Spirit Livener: watermelon and ginger notes

• St. Agrestis Phony Negroni

• Ritual Zero-Proof Rum + Gin

• Monday zero alcohol gin

• Optimist Botanicals Smokey Spirit

• Spiritless Kentucky non-alcoholic bourbon

• Curious Elixir No. 2: Good to mix margarita style

• Cut Above zero alcohol Mezcal

• Dr. Zero bitter cocktail

• Roots Divino Aperitif Bianco vermouth

• Lyre’s coffee ‘liqueur’ style

• BEER: Athletic Brewing Company or Go Brewing Non-Alcoholic Beer

• *While not actually mocktails, there has been a huge rise in gut-healthy, soda alternative drink brands like Poppi, Olipop, Mayawell, and a host of kombucha brands like Rowdy Mermaid and Liquid Remedy

CELEBRITY

It’s not just the celebrity tequila brands taking over the market, but the many non-alcoholic options too. For example, the following offer canned mocktails and non-alcoholic drink brands:

• Mingle Mocktails by Bethenny Frankel (who previously created ‘Skinny Girl’ cocktail line) - available in both bottles and cans

• Mixoloshe Lychee Martini by Zayn Malik

• De Soi from Katie Perry: “A range of non-alcoholic apéritifs” - try the De Soi Très Rosé

• Betty Buzz by Blake Lively (her husband Ryan Reynolds used to own the gin brand ‘Aviation’) - I categorize these more as sodas, but they sell them as mixers

• Kin Euphorics by Jen Batchelor & Bella Hadid

• Almave from Lewis Hamilton: “A non-alcoholic spirit distilled from Blue Agave, perfect for sipping or mixing. The first non-alcoholic Blue Agave spirit made in Jalisco, Mexico”

• BEER: Ted Segers Non-Alcoholic Beer by Dax Shephard

TESTING

According to The Kitchn, after a lot of testing, these were their favorite specific canned cocktail substitutes:

• Best Margarita Mocktail: Recess Zero Proof Lime “Margarita”

• Best Mojito Mocktail: Ish Non-Alcoholic Mojito

• Best Negroni Mocktail: St. Agrestis Phony Negroni

• Best Spritz Mocktail: Ghia Sumac & Chili Le Spritz

• Best Wildcard Mocktail: Mockly Eye Opener Booze-Free Cocktail

• Best THC Mocktail: ayrloom micro Honeycrisp 

• Best Budget Mocktail: Spindrift Nojito Sparkling Water

• Worth the Splurge Mocktail: Figlia Fiore Frizzante

RECIPES

I have been testing various mocktail recipes, to mixed results, but am outlets with a full range of refreshing summer mocktails for you: NY Times Cooking, AllRecipes, Tasty, Food Network, Town & Country, Bon Appetit, Good Housekeeping, Womens Health, Delish, Good Food, Women’s Day, Oprah Daily, Pioneer Woman

Do you have any favorites you want to share with me/us? Drop me a note

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