Whether you're engaging in a dry January challenge this year or not, incorporating some non-alcoholic beverages can help you stay feeling refreshed while you imbibe. The non-alc (also known as NA) market has truly exploded in the past few years as more and more people choose to live sober for mental or physical health reasons, and the variety and quality of the market has improved tenfold. Whether you like a glass of wine to wind down, a beer on the weekend, or a fizzy cocktail to end the night, these alcohol free options will leave you feeling satisfied and clear headed.
How We Selected
We researched the best non-alcoholic beverages on the market including spirits, beer, wine, and cocktails to find the best the category has to offer. We looked to expert sources like Wirecutter, Liquor.com, and Good Housekeeping to find the healthiest, tastiest, and most crave-satisfying options. We also scoured reviews on sites like Amazon to see what customers had to say about these products to pick the best non-alcoholic beverages of 2023.
Best Non-Alcoholic Spirits
Some non-alcoholic spirits can have high sugar content and questionable ingredients, but this gin substitute is free of sugar, has zero calories per serving, and has the look, taste, and smell of gin. It has notes of pine, juniper, citrus, and spearmint paired with earthy, chalky notes to ground it. While you can technically drink it on its own, it is meant to be used in cocktails and tastes the best when mixed.
Though some non-alc spirits will contain 0% alcohol, most will contain trace amounts—though not nearly enough to have any effect. This one has 0.5%—the same as a typical Kombucha. With flavors of carmel, vanilla and oak, it has a very whisky-esque taste, and can even be used in combination with true whiskey if you wish to lower the alcohol content in a drink without eliminating it completely.
The Aperol Spritz was the drink of the summer and we are here to let you know that you need not feel left out any longer. This spirit has flavors of bitter orange which is similar to that of Campari—the slightly headier and more bitter sister of Aperol. It has a pleasant, fragrant scent, and the deep red color becomes a beautiful coral when mixed. Customers and reviewers also noted that Lyre's products—particularly dry spirits—look, taste, and smell just like the real thing.
This spirit is heavy on the herbs, making it a great vermouth or amaro alternative—perfect for making a non-alc version of Emma D'Arcy's fav, the Negroni... Sbagliato... without prosecco in it. But the notes of mint, white thyme, parsley, and eucalyptus also make for a fantastic base when mixed with tonic, soda, or citrus, and is great for cutting the sweetness in sugar-heavy drinks.
Best Non-Alcoholic Beer
These beers come in a range of brews ranging from crisp cerveza to hazy IPA. They're made with clean, natural ingredients and have only 0.5% alcohol and 45 calories. These have been consistently rated as some of the best non-alc beers, and the comments only support this claim, with reviews insisting that you can't even taste the difference between this and the real thing.
While Brewdog makes a few different choices of alcohol-free beer, its most beloved product is the Hazy AF IPA. It can be difficult to get a convincing IPA free of alcohol since the ABV in IPAs is on the higher side due to the brewing process. This one, however, gets pretty close with notes of lemon, grapefruit, and malt, giving it a citrusy, hoppy, undeniably IPA-like experience.
Like IPAs, stouts are heavy on the alcohol, but this one manages to capture the experience of the dark beer without the inebriation. It has notes of caramel, chocolate, and roasted coffee, with a medium-sweet aftertaste. They also make four other brews including blood orange IPA, IPA, peanut butter dark, raspberry gose, and if you want to try them all, you can opt for the sampler pack which has them all.
Best Non-Alcoholic Wine
This Cab brings all the flavors of a dark red wine and has a fruity aroma with notes of cherries, blueberries, currants, and chocolate with a dry finish. It is slightly spicy and has silky tannins which all come together to make it look, smell, and taste like a real alcoholic wine. It's a cost effective option, with the two-pack coming in at only $36.
We won't deny that sparkling grape juice is anything but delicious, but putting it in a champagne glass somehow makes it feel as if you may as well be sipping a juice box. This sparkling chardonnay brings the maturity without the alcohol, and tastes much more akin to real wine. It has notes of apple and pear complete with a fizzy, slightly dry zing, perfect for toasting any celebration while keeping a clear head.
Best Non-Alcoholic Mocktails
Most non-alcoholic drinks simply remove the alcohol and leave the flavor, but this sparkling tonic adds a hint of caffeine, adaptogens, and botanics to help you feel invigorated, uplifted, and stress-free. Besides the feel-good portion to this drink, it also tastes great with a blend of ginger, orange bitters, hibiscus, and citrus.
A margarita sans sugar and a hangover? Sign us up. This Margarita-inspired bevvy has ingredients like broad-spectrum hemp, ginseng, L-theanine, and lemon balm which help you to feel relaxed, centered, and stress-free. This drink is delicious on its own, or it can be used as a mixer for a more complex mocktail. Recess also has six other flavors to choose from which you can try in its sampler pack.
These sparkling beverages were designed so that they could be enjoyed alone or used as a mixer. They come in five different flavor options and are made with real botanicals and fruit juices with minimal added sugar. Avec is also an eco-conscious brand that uses supply chains and ingredients that significantly decrease its environmental impact.
Before joining Runner's World, Gabrielle Hondorp spent 6 years in running retail (she has tested top gear from shoes, to watches, to rain jackets which has expanded her expertise—and her closets); she specializes in health and wellness, and is an expert on running gear from head-to-toe. Gabi began her journalism career as a Digital Editorial Fellow for Runner’s World and Bicycling Magazine, and has since advanced to a Runner's World Editor specializing in commerce. She has a double degree in English and Media and Communication from Muhlenberg College where she also ran cross country and track.
