Adaptogens are the star of the show with their spirits alternatives, too, with different blends that put you in whatever mood you’re looking for. Blended with soda it had a rich, herbal, molasses-y, almost savory flavor, which comes from its cacao, lion’s mane, and damiana. This one would be excellent with ginger ale or beer for a dark ‘n’ stormy vibe, and it has tons of B vitamins, too, so you can feel great about drinking it.

The Pathfinder Hemp & Root Non-Alcoholic Spirit

Micro-dosing involves regularly taking sub-perceptual amounts of psychedelic substances (generally 1/20th to 1/10th of a recreational dose) which doesn’t invoke the hallmark hallucinatory effects. Instead, it can enhance creativity, focus, and emotional balance over time. Taurine is one of the two primary “anti-aging” amino acids, and it has gained recognition for acting gently who are the most famous alcoholics on the body while exerting wide-ranging effects. Overall, it’s a nice blend of relaxation without sedation combined with improved cognition and energy levels. Picamilon is an excellent choice for those seeking a balance between tranquility and mental alertness without resorting to substances that may come with unwanted side effects.

Traditionally, Matcha tea is made from green tea leaves that have been stone-ground into a soft powder by hand. This is sifted and whisked with a specialist tool with hot water to make the beverage. However, as the drink has become more popular over the years, everyone has started selling it in all its forms. Stop by your local coffee shop and you’ll it as one of the suggested healthy alternatives to coffee as it also contains naturally-occurring caffeine. In grocery stores, you can find Matcha tea sold in bottles and cans in the takeaway section. Or, you can buy traditional supplies online relatively affordably.

Zero calories and zero alcohol, DASH’s mixed pack contains 4 lemon, 4 raspberry, 4 blackcurrant, and 4 peach-flavored drinks, all made with low-wastage wonky fruit and veg for flavor. And this is about as close to healthy alcohol as we can get for now. So as much as avoiding alcoholic cocktails is easy in a bar, restaurant, or at home, be sure to check the ingredients before ordering if you’re concerned about having sugar cravings down the line. And a healthy gut microbiome can have all kinds of broader health benefits.

A fresh, citrusy, slightly odd spirit

1. If you’re looking for a premixed sparkling version, try Fiore Frizzante, Figlia’s convenient cans of Fiore and sparkling water.
2. The color and texture of the drink is a rich red, thanks to dates and plum extract — but don’t worry, it’s not sweet or syrupy.
3. Curious Elixirs offers eight booze-free cocktails with daring, unusual flavor combinations.
4. Other taste testers in my cohort, however, named this as their favorite gin and tonic replacement, so there’s a lot to say here about personal palate.
5. The flavor of Casamara Club doesn’t come on strong and, with just 4 grams of sugar, isn’t anything you’d really crave after a long day or for a celebration.
6. Three Spirit Social Elixir ($40 for a 500 mL bottle at the time of publication) reminded us of an amaro or fortified wine with notes of mushroom, forest floor, red wine, plum, sage, and yerba mate.

You swish the liquid around in your mouth for about 30 seconds before swallowing. You’ll start to notice that the familiar background noise of stress starts to recede; your thoughts aren’t bouncing around as much anymore. The effects of taurine are more subtle than some of the others on this list. When I consume taurine, I notice an overall sense of calmness and relaxation wash over me without feeling intoxicated or impaired. Yet it also acts as an agonist for GABA receptors, which helps regulate mood and reduce feelings of anxiety and stress.

Kombucha

And when I do, I strategically damage mitigate with advanced supplementation and habits. I began weighing how to smoke moon rocks the night’s fun against the next day’s discomfort. The Good Trade editors endorse products we’ve personally researched, tested, and genuinely love.

Sparkling water with flavorings

Cayenne pepper extract grants the spirit a needed kick, elevating it from fruit juice to spicy watermelon margarita. We loved the heat of Livener, can alcoholics eat food cooked with alcohol but some tasters found the drink a bit too sweet to drink straight. Poured over ice, the flavors blend and the sweetness mellows, creating a more dynamic and subtle drinking experience. Our tasters found Livener uncomplicatedly delicious, but those who preferred more challenging, herbaceous drinks found it underwhelming.

The brand focuses on the feeling their drinks give you, with options like Lightwave (a “portal to peace”), Actual Sunshine (an “immunity and beauty booster”), and Kin Bloom (for “heart-opening joy”). The flavor is still great, though — the latter was a little carbonated with a refreshing, lightly sweet herbal taste with a subtle white grape juice flavor, too, that made it reminiscent of wine. The caffeine-free blend has adaptogens like L-theanine and ashwagandha, while some of their other blends are “lightly caffeinated” (50 milligrams or less). They each have their own blend of different adaptogens and nootropics like reishi or tryptophan so you can perfectly curate your vibe — which is why we highly suggest one of their variety packs. They make two non-alcoholic aperitif blends, too, designed for mixing. Three Spirit Livener tastes of punchy and slightly funky fruit, with notes of watermelon and mixed berries.

Some tasters said it smelled and tasted of mouthwash and aftershave, but those flavors mostly mellowed out into a pleasant piney taste once we mixed it with seltzer or tonic. Seedlip Garden 108 and Pentire Adrift are somewhat similar—both are clear, bright, vegetal spirits—but Garden 108 is sweeter, less tart, and more subtle. It’s not all health benefits though, many brands sell the beverage with a fruit twist which makes the alcohol alternative a perfectly refreshing drink on warm days.