Staying dry this July: our favourite Alcohol-Free tipples and where to find them
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This year some of us at HerCanberra are trying Dry July. Namely me and Amanda.
As many of you may have already read, I stopped drinking back in October and outlined the reasons here. While I never put a date on how long I would stay off alcohol, it has now been more than 250 days and I would definitely call it a lifestyle change rather than a temporary break. Our founder Amanda still enjoys the occasional glass, but has significantly cut back on her consumption and says it’s been great for body and mind.
So in the spirit of collaborative journalism, in support of Dry July, and in celebration of all our local barmen and women who are diversifying their cocktail menus to offer low Alcohol by Volume and Alcohol-Free drinks, not to mention some inventive Australian producers also making Dry July easier for all of us (including some stellar local ones) here’s a list of what we like:*
*This is by no means an exhaustive or even slightly scientific list! It is based entirely on personal taste and a good couple of months trying to sip as many non-alcoholic cocktails as we can. You are welcome. Hopefully you can enjoy a dry July yourself, or even just swap a couple of alcohol-free days into your existing routine.
Canberra cocktails with all the excitement but none of the headache
Award-winning barman Soumi Tannous from Bar Beruit is the man to see if you are gagging for a cocktail but trying to stay sober. His mastery of flavour profiles and botanicals means he produces amazing alcohol-free concoctions, including a brilliant espresso martini and a mango mojito worth getting excited over. He’s also up for a challenge, so if you tell him what you like, he can whip up the alcohol-free version or as close to as you can get.
Soumi Tannous at Bar Beirut. Photo credit: Zachary Griffith
Similarly, another internationally-recognised barman with a genius for making things taste divine with or without alcohol is Alcove’s Ricky Liau. If given enough warning, he can prepare non-alcoholic versions of the magnificent cocktails he makes for Alcove’s unique cocktail and canapés pairing menu. It is quite the sensory experience.
Trust the QT Capitol Bar and Grill to deliver the best AF mojito in the city. Honestly, it’s hard to pinpoint where the alcohol has gone in this tangy take on the classic. It tastes disconcertingly close to the real thing.
Capitol Bar and Grill’s alcohol-free Mojito.
Monster unsurprisingly creates botanically complex cocktails that come out look picture-perfect and make the drinker feel part of the party. The Palomino combines non-alcoholic vermouth with fresh pineapple, agave, pear, nutmeg and tonic water.
Ms Vans has an inventive list of zero-alcohol cocktails—two of our favourites are A Winter’s Tale of Lyre’s Italian Orange, raspberry and cinnamon “lassi” with lemon or the Love of My Life of Lyre’s Italian Spritz with rockmelon sherbet, lime and ginger ale.
Ms Van’s Love of My Life.
For those who haven’t been to eightysix south (home of the perfectly refined Lemon Tart, with a filling so fresh that it will never, ever see the fridge), you can find delish zero-proof cocktails that rival the drool worthy menu. Think elderflower and passionfruit soda that tastes like a frosty fruit—made with elderflower cordial, passionfruit, lemon, orange and topped with soda—and a rhubarb, rosemary and lime soda. Using a spiced rhubarb cordial that they make in house, we can guarantee you’ll want more than one.
The elderflower and passionfruit soda and rhubarb, rosemary and lime soda from eightysix south.
Keeping spirits high at home
Started by two Aussies based in the UK, Lyre’s is our pick for providing the sort of complex spirit experience with none of the alcohol. We love the summery vibes of the Italian Spritz, the London Pink Spirit and the Aperitif Rosso. It’s as close as you’ll get to mixing a gin and tonic or Aperol Spritz, and they have lots of pre-mixed can options available.
Lyre’s is so good you may need to sip twice to make sure you haven’t picked up someone else’s Aperol Spritz.
Polka is a South Australian company offering a Spirit and Aperitif substitute that are both pretty to look at lined up on your bar and delightful to taste. It means if you want to have friends around for a drink, no one need sit in the corner nursing a soda water…
Fizz without the Fuzz
As we are both known lovers of Champagne, it has been a journey to track down bubbly alternatives to enjoy over a celebration (that is the arrival of Saturday afternoon or something similarly momentous).
Two stand out: Polka Sparkling and De Bertoli Fizzero which both come Sparkling Rosé. Plus Minus Prosecco is also fun and great to mix with your faux spirits. Look, it’s not the same as uncorking a bottle of Veuve, but it is refreshingly indulgent in a temperate way, if you get our drift.
Wine without Whining (the next morning)
We have to be brutally honest from the outset and admit that not all wine or champagne substitutes work and it really has been a hit-and-miss affair as we have experimented our way through a number of brands. But just as alcohol tasting is subjective, so too is sampling non-alcoholic wine. Here’s what does pass the taste test for us.
Sometimes you want to sit down with a beautiful wine glass and sip on something cold and dry. Paradox is one of a number of worthy zero alcohol wines on the market.
Established in Canberra in 2018, we have relied on Altina’s pre-mixed cans over summer and the La Vie en Rose is a lovely floral experience either in its own or used as mixer with a splash of Lyre’s if you want to make a cocktail. We also enjoy the Sangria in the colder months which gives more of a complex red wine substitute feel if you like the idea of sipping something from a wine glass.
Edenvale has also proven to be a fairly reliable brand, and its Shiraz is a reasonable accompaniment to a cheese platter on a chilly night.
We have also enjoyed Paradox’s Pinot Grigio and Sauvignon Blanc despite those varieties not being our usual choice in an alcoholic version. Sadly, neither of us has come across a beautiful buttery chardonnay that doesn’t contain alcohol and which would really be the holy grail. But we will keep searching.
Finally, while neither of us drinks beer, Heaps Normal really does have a good reputation for providing that refreshing beer experience with none of the after-effects, and Capital Brewing has just released its first full flavoured non-alcoholic beer: ALC-LESS.
Keen (as AF) to go dry?
Hopefully some of the above provides inspiration for you to consider a long or short break from alcohol and at the very least some inspiration to join Dry July. No judgement either way, but it has been really heartening to see some of our top restaurants embrace zero alcohol cocktail lists as a matter of course while more grog shops are opting to provide non-alcoholic wines, spirits and beers, among their shelves.
If this article raises any issues for you, you can contact the National Alcohol and Other Drugs Hotline, or find free support online, such as at Hello Sunday Morning and counselling online, or join support groups in your area, such as Alcoholics Anonymous.
