It’s estimated that 15.5 million people in the UK will abstain from drinking alcohol this month as part of Dry January 2025. It’s a figure that has been growing year on year, but many of those won’t make it to the end of the month, giving up on their promise.
It doesn’t help that Blue Monday, the supposed worst day of the year, falls in the middle of the promised period of abstinence. The truth is, January is a tough month, and the temptation to open a drink mounts as the days tick slowly by. After all, many of us turn to booze to relax, unwind or entertain ourselves.
If you’re thinking of pouring out a stiff one there are alternatives that are alcohol-free but still contain functional ingredients that can help fix what ails us. The non-alcohol sector is growing rapidly in the UK, and brands are keen to offer mood-altering alternatives that provide some of the fun and none of the morning after. Before you reach for the booze, consider trying one of these functional drinks that can keep your Dry Jan on track.
Collider
Collider is a non-alcoholic drink made with functional mushrooms and adaptogenic botanicals that aim to recreate some of the relaxing effects you expect from a lager. Billing itself as a mood-boosting beer without the hangover, Collider contains a combination of L-Theanine, Ashwagandha Root and Lion’s Mane mushroom extract to promote calm.
Smiling Wolf
Smiling Wolf produces an enticing range of non-alcoholic spirits designed to replace vodka, gin, rum, whiskey and everyone’s favourite red aperitif. Not only do these products look enticing enough to take pride of place on the swankiest of back bars at your favourite cocktail joint, they contain a unique blend of mood-improving ingredients that are known to promote the increase of alpha brain waves, serotonin, dopamine and endorphins.
Nuwave
Nuwave produces both a non-alcoholic lager and a hazy pale ale, packed with functional ingredients to recreate that social feeling such as Maca Root, Lion’s Mane Ashwagandha Root and Guarana. Nuwave also includes biotics to improve gut health. Studies show there is a connection between the gut and the brain, a healthy gut can improve mood, anxiety, and depression.
Impossibrew
Impossibrew is another non-alcoholic beer brand using a patent-pending mixture of L-theanine, Ashwagandha and various other active ingredients to recreate “all of the things we like about drinking, while eliminating all of those that we don’t”.
Developed with Dr Paul Chazot, Bioscience Professor and Chair of Pharmacology at Durham University, Impossibrew is low-calorie and gluten-free and has won awards for being the best-tasting alcohol-free lager and pale ale.
The Pathfinder
Styled after the tonics and medicines of yore, The Pathfinder is a mysteriously branded drink made from fermented and distilled hemp root that contains no alcohol or cannabinoids.
While the brand makes no claims to enhance mood, the ingredients include wormwood, angelica root, ginger, sage, juniper, saffron, orange peel and wild-crafted Douglas-fir, as well as natural terpenes. The end result is a drink that tastes fantastic.
Roar
Roar is a Lion’s Mane Mushroom IPA from Exhale Nutrition that promises “a bold and refreshing taste while promoting cognitive clarity and focus”. Roar claims to be the UK’s first mushroom IPA, and the brand behind the drink also produces a Reishi Mushroom Stout if you’re a fan of the black stuff looking for something different.
Veto
Veto is a small batch alcohol-free vegan lager created by Justin Bone, a sober influencer who has a growing TikTok following.
Veto comes in two simple styles, Pause and Play, with the latter containing the same amount of caffeine as an espresso. Perfect if you’re looking to replicate that first beer buzz without the hangover.
