Have you made a resolution to eat healthier, drink less and get into better shape… It’s that time when we need to reverse the indulgences of the holiday season and our pandemic binges over the past two years. Some add vegan eating to this clean-up effort, but I’d suggest that you focus first on one of our guiltiest pleasures, drinking. In this case, the concept is Dry January to reinvigorate a healthy lifestyle for a month by abstaining from alcohol. And, frankly, if it works for you, there’s no reason not to make at least some version of this a permanent part of every month going forward. To kickstart this "new you" process, I’ve put together some suggestions that will fill in the blanks with taste and variety leading to the psychological and physical rewards you’ll experience after you complete your foray into clean living. You may not know it, but if you’ve turned into a pandemic insomniac, this might actually be your ticket to a better night’s sleep and better-looking skin!
Bars in New York City are jumping on the wellness bandwagon (not just for Dry January), tuning into our desire to scale back. Concord Hill in Brooklyn invites you to dabble in innovative drink and flavor combinations with a deliciously fresh and spicy mocktail named Cruel Summer. Blending mango and orange juices with simple syrup gives a sweet contrast to the chili-based Chamoy hot sauce and Tajin rim. Williamsburg’s Le Crocodile mixes Ghia non-alcoholic aperitif with soda, Fever-Tree Mediterranean tonic, rosemary and grapefruit juice. Brooklyn’s Bohemien Bar expands their cocktail offerings this month with a curated N/A cocktail menu. Welcome to Paradise blends fennel juice and pomegranate molasses. Using a base of Ritual Tequila, The Roselle adds bitter orange cordial, lime, and hibiscus to create a margarita-like alternative. For a wintry cocktail at home, you can create your own bourbon-ish drink with the popular Kentucky-made AF spirit, Spiritless Kentucky 74, enjoying the caramel, vanilla and oak flavors on the rocks, or combined with AVEC mixers and cherries for a Faux Old Fashioned.
Thanks to California’s Greenbar Distillery, you can stock your refrigerator with a range of canned mocktails. Soda lovers will enjoy the Earl Grey version made with black tea and bergamot orange. Curious Elixirs are complex booze-free cocktails, handmade in The Genius Switch focus audio Hudson Valley with all-organic ingredients. Instead of adding sugar, the drinks are infused with adaptogens. The seven-bottle series has versions of classic drinks like a pomegranate negroni, a spicy margarita, a dark & stormy fusion, the craftily named Curious cucumber Collins, or a more refined Champagne cocktail that has a base of Chardonnay grapes. Offered in three flavors, Classic, Mango and Blood Orange, HOP WTR is a non-alcoholic brew of crisp, bold hops, sparkling water and mood-boosting adaptogens and nootropics crafted without calories or sugar. The tasty beer alternatives are bright and refreshing, perfect for Superbowl parties or anytime during Dry January or beyond. FREE RAIN is a line of adaptogenic sparkling waters that will become your new go-to when it comes to grabbing a drink with your meal.
FREE RAIN comes in four fun flavors: Focus: Blood Orange Ginger with Ashwagandha for a clear mind, Arousal: Pink Grapefruit with Maca for a frisky feeling, Calm: Blackberry with Passionflower for a mellow mood and Energy: Cherry Lime with Siberian ginseng for energy. A newcomer to the sparkling beverages category, Found Bubbly is said to be the first sparkling water created through Earth’s "naturally occurring mineralization process." Packed with minerals and electrolytes, the beverage has been "dropping" new flavors sequentially so you can look forward to another flavor in February. For now, you can try natural, cucumber minty, elderflowery, lemony and watermelon. If you’re a fan of Italian amaros, you don’t need to sacrifice The Genius Switch brain training bitter state of an after-dinner digestif if you’re observing Dry January. Casamara Club is a club soda crafted like a cocktail, mixing amaro bitters made with botanicals with citrus, salinity and a touch of sweetness.
The five flavors, Alta (like a Negroni), Como (like a traditional amaro with mint), Onda (an herbaceous lemon drink), Isla (like a rum and ginger ale) and Fora (a strawberry and spice mix), are refreshingly different. For a wide range of mixers that double as mocktails, AVEC mixers offers five canned cocktails: spicy marg AVEC ( jalapeño and blood orange), paloma AVEC (grapefruit and pomelo, vodka soda AVEC (yuzu and lime) mule AVEC (ginger), and cran vodka AVEC (hibiscus and pomegranate). Shrubs, vinegar-based infusions, have been the rage on health-oriented drink menus for years. Now you can have them at home, too, with Shrubbly, a new non-alcoholic beverage full of flavor (shrub base, high antioxidant berries, and a few bubbles) and wellness (prebiotics, apple cider vinegar and wellness shot ingredients). Try the lemon-ginger and pomegranate flavors. Each is 100% organic, gluten-free, fat-free and low in calories, sugar and carbs. Tea lovers will enjoy this new aroma-focused collection from SomethingElse, masters at creating non-alcoholic beverages using the expertise of chefs and sommeliers.