Best low and no alcohol drinks: wine, spirits and beer for zero-per centers

By now we’ve all realised that going teetotal or practicing mindful drinking isn’t just a fad for Dry January. Across the age brackets, cutting back is on the rise.

There are plenty of reasons why giving up booze, even just for the short-term, is a good idea, for your physical health as well as financial.

Curbing your alcohol consumption can save pounds, calories and drink units, as well as giving your sleep, skin, and general wellbeing a major boost. Not to mention the sweet, novel relief of waking up without a raging hangover on a weekend morning.

Alcohol Change, the charity behind Dry January, said 130,000 people took part in the challenge last year, a number that will no doubt be topped in 2022 as more booze-free brands come to the fore.

Say hello to low and no

If you’re not quite ready to pack away your wine glasses, there is another way to go easy on the sauce: low and no-alcohol alternatives. 

Designed to maintain the fun of drinking without the creeping fear that comes afterwards, they’re perfect for anyone who cut back on booze without feeling left out socially. Think park picnics, BBQs, weddings and parties - not to mention after-work drinks now they’re a thing again.

Low and no-alcohol has been around for a while, and it’s the young who have a real thirst for it. In its British craft beer report, the Society of Independent Brewers (Siba) found more young people favour low-alcohol beer, while 23 per cent of 18 to 24 year olds abstain completely.  

And, market research company Nielsen found that sales of low and no-alcohol drinks have jumped 30 per cent since the first lockdown two years ago as people tried to moderate their home-based drinking.  

There has also been a growing presence of low and no-alcohol, or ‘nolo’, on