Christmas Celebrations (Image: Getty)
The latest generation of functional tipples are packed with natural ingredients that help drinkers relax, unwind and perk up – without a drop of hard liquor.
If it feels like people are drinking less these days, you’re not imagining it – the sober trend is here to stay.
Alcohol-free events, such as Dry January and Stoptober in autumn, are now annual staples, sales of alcoholic drinks have fallen by 31 per cent in the past year and searches for “sober curious drinks” have risen by 200 per cent.
But not everyone ditching the booze also wants to wave goodbye to its effects.
This is where “functional” drinks come in. These are alcohol-free beverages offering to help drinkers relax and unwind, or even perk up, thanks to a cocktail of botanicals, stress-relieving adaptogens, brain-boosting nootropics and neurotransmitter-targeting compounds.
I’ve always been a lightweight and in my late 40s my tolerance seems to get worse with each passing day.
I still want to enjoy the relaxing, unwinding effects of a drink but can’t face the headache the morning after.
Could alcohol-free functional drinks be the answer to my prayers? Let’s find out…
Don’t miss… ‘I tested over 100 alcohol-free drinks – these are the only ones worth buying’
Wild Life Botanicals, £16 (wildlifebotanicals.co.uk)
With the tag line, “bubbles with benefits”, this duo of Nude and Blush is a plant-packed ultra-low alcohol (0.5% ABV) fizz alternative, packed with vitamins and minerals (zinc, niacin, vitamin B6 and thiamine).
Herbs such as lemon balm and rosemary, ashwagandha and the plant damiana, which has an aphrodisiac and energising effect, promise to help drinkers feel revitalised too.
The verdict: These sparkling wine alternatives are summer in a glass – fresh, zingy, with a crisp, slightly peachy flavour, reminiscent of a chilled white wine.
Both the Nude and the Blush version, which has riper berry notes, are eminently quaffable.
You wouldn’t mistake this for true bubbly, but a glass evokes the experience of sipping a glass of fizz and feels celebratory. Certainly, after knocking back half a bottle, I started to feel a mild sense of warmth.
I suspect I also benefited from its energising properties as I dashed off to a Christmas event and even stayed later to help clean up afterwards, when I’d usually be sloping off early to bed.
NuWave Mood Enhancing beer, £19 for six (nuwavedrinks.com)
This beer start-up consists of tinnies that are not only alcohol-free, but also offer health benefits thanks to the addition of post-biotics – nutrients and gut-friendly substances that support gut health and the metabolism. They also contain ashwagandha for relaxation, maca root and antioxidant-packed mushroom lion’s mane, plus energising guarana seed.
The verdict: NuWave has two brews, Mood Enhancing AF Hazy Pale and its Mood Enhancing AF Lager. Both beers are full-bodied and the lager has a refreshing, malty taste.
Before I know it I’ve finished a can, and I’m not usually a beer drinker.
The Hazy Pale also impresses with a satisfying, hoppy flavour. My husband, who’s more of a beer aficionado than me, declares it, “the best alcohol-free beer I’ve tried”.
After two cans I felt mildly tipsy – relaxed and aware of the kind of buzz I’d normally associate with an alcoholic drink.
Sentia, £32 for 50cl (sentiaspirits.com)
Launched by professor of neuropsychopharmacology, David Nutt, in 2021, Sentia was devised to create a specific feeling: “When your first drink hits that sweet spot, where conversations broaden, connections deepen and the noise in the room rises”.
The three Sentia blends contain a mixture of plant-based ingredients that is scientifically proven to activate gaba, a neurotransmitter in the brain that’s responsible for a feeling of relaxation and sociability.
The verdict: Sentia feels like a proper grown-up drink, with complex flavours that are perfect for sipping and even made me feel as though I was mildly sloshed.
Gaba Red is designed to “chill you out and unwind your mind”. With a woody, spiced cinnamon flavour it is the perfect pre-dinner drink with tonic and a slice of lime. It also contains ashwagandha, liquorice root, rhodiola and gentian, which might be why I felt relaxed and vaguely woozy before I’ve even finished my glass.
Gaba Gold will “bring warmth and wellness to all your social gatherings” thanks to ingredients including ginkgo biloba, ginseng and damiana. Quince juice, lemon balm and grape juice give this a mild, honeyed flavour.
Poured over ice with lime soda it’s all too easy to knock back. And after drinking one glass quickly, I felt distinctly tiddly – enough that I wouldn’t trust myself to make any important decisions or do anything requiring quick thinking.
I then followed up with a glass of Gaba Black, which promises to, “boost your productivity or jumpstart evening plans”.
With a slightly astringent flavour, like a smokier root beer, this wouldn’t be a drink I’d want to nurse all night, but paired with ginger beer and a slice of orange it was the perfect aperitif, reminiscent of a negroni. And boy, did it deliver.
Within a few sips I had perked up, I felt focused and wide awake – even at 10pm and by midnight I was still full of beans. Note to self: drink this earlier in the evening next time.
Three Spirit, £25.99 (threespiritdrinks.com)
Launched in 2018, functional drinks brand Three Spirit has created a trio of “spirits” and two “wines” infused with mood-altering plants, mushrooms and botanicals. The spirits also contain chilli that brings a pleasant heat to every sip.
The verdict: The Livener does exactly what it says on the bottle – after a long day at work, a few glasses of this cinnamony, spiced, smoky elixir, teamed with a tonic, was just the thing as I cooked dinner, and gave my daughter a bath.
It was only after I noticed that I was feeling remarkably pepped up and energised that I looked at the bottle and realised that it contains a fair amount of caffeine. No wonder I was wide awake until well past midnight! This is one to enjoy earlier in the evening.
Calming Nightcap is ridiculously more-ish and it’s hard to stop yourself glugging half a bottle in a sitting (which I failed to do). With a maple and vanilla flavour, I enjoyed it neat and with its sleep-inducing valerian, I felt pleasantly woozy after three glasses.
Meanwhile, the sparkling wine alternative, Sharp – Blurred Vines, contains Californian poppy, clary sage and the amino acid L-theanine to sharpen focus. We quaffed it while watching the Strictly final and it was the perfect accompaniment. I felt alert, focused and, unlike normal wine drinking, hydrated.
Impossibrew, from £2.25 per can (impossibrew.co.uk)
Created by a brewer who was told that at just 22 his liver was so damaged that he couldn’t drink alcohol again, Impossibrew’s two drinks – Enhanced Lager and Enhanced Pale Ale – contain Social Blend, an alcohol alternative made from a “blend of science-backed ingredients designed to replicate the sensory and social experience of drinking” that impacts the brain as alcohol might.
The verdict: Described as having notes of peach, pineapple and mango and a lasting finish, the Enhanced Hazy Pale had a clean crisp flavour comparable with normal beers. A friend who tasted it blind was surprised to discover that it was alcohol-free.
Just a glass made me feel as though I’d had half a pint of conventional pale ale – I felt mildly merry, making this a good choice for a beer alternative.
