By Carl Franco
The season’s magic has worn off. Perhaps some garland still wraps the railing, a stray stocking hangs from the mantel, Three Kings have come and gone, the Christmas tree is drooping from neglect, and the best decoration, the twinkling of brake lights as the last of your relatives pull out of the driveway.
But as we put the 2025 holidays behind us, we’re still left staring down our 2026 New Year’s resolutions. Even if you’re not a resolution person, chances are we’ve all over-indulged on food, booze, or some festive combination of the two, and January feels like the moment to gently pull in the reins. Dry January is very much a thing these days, but there are plenty of ways to rethink your drinking habits if your goal is to tighten the waistline, clear the head, or just hit a soft reset.
My suggestion is to approach January in whatever way feels most comfortable to you. Some people swear by going completely dry for 31 days, and if that works for you, full speed ahead. Others choose to cut out drinking two or three days a week for the entire year, which is also a compelling alternative. In fact, skipping alcohol two days a week adds up to the equivalent of roughly three alcohol-free months a year; make it three days and you’re closer to five. That’s a much bigger impact than one dry month in January. And if you just want to pick and choose your days as you move along, that works too.
Yes, I realize it’s a little odd for a wine shop owner to suggest drinking less, but as a purveyor of wine and spirits, I want my customers to truly enjoy that glass when they do indulge. With that in mind, I’ll be using this article to introduce you to some excellent non-alcoholic and lower-alcohol options that make cutting back feel a lot less like giving something up.
Non-Alcoholic and Alcohol-Removed Wines – Grape Expectations
While the terms are often used interchangeably, there is a difference between non-alcoholic wines and alcohol-removed wines. Some non-alcoholic wines are never fermented at all; they’re essentially grape juice or wine-inspired beverages made without alcohol from the start. Alcohol-removed wines, on the other hand, begin life as real wine, grapes are fermented just like any traditional wine, and the alcohol is gently removed afterward with some being zero, but most being below 0.5% ABV. Because they go through fermentation, alcohol-removed wines tend to retain more of the structure, acidity, and complexity people associate with wine, making them a more convincing alternative in the glass. That said, the wines that come closest to tasting like traditional wine are usually the sparkling wines, often outperforming many of the still wines currently on the market.
Among the sparkling options, the Wölffer Estate Spring in a Bottle Rosé is one we’ve carried for over a year and it has consistently been one of our most popular choices. More recently, we added the Nozeco line from France, which is also vegan and includes a Sparkling Brut and Sparkling Rosé (both available in individual 187ml bottles) as well as the Nozeco Spritz for anyone looking for a non-alcoholic take on an Aperol Spritz. For Prosecco fans, Mionetto offers a non-alcoholic version of its very popular Prosecco. And finally, Dr. Fischer distributes a zero-alcohol Sparkling Riesling under the name Steinbock that is dry, crisp, refreshing, and definitely worth a try.
One of the standout examples in this category is St. Buena Vida Sparkling Chardonnay from Spain, which has earned its reputation by taking a more thoughtful approach to alcohol removal. Rather than simply stripping out the alcohol and hoping for the best, their process carefully captures and preserves the wine’s natural aromas before the alcohol is removed at low temperatures, then reintroduces those aromas afterward. The result is a sparkling Chardonnay that actually tastes like wine—bright, balanced, and nuanced—rather than a sweet substitute. For anyone exploring lower- or no-alcohol options without wanting to give up the experience of drinking wine, St. Buena Vida is among the better alternatives currently on the market.
Don’t Mock Me!
While the term “Mocktail” is no longer in vogue, there are options for NA cocktails. Granted, I have yet to find a non-alcoholic spirit I’m ready to invest in, there are a few pre-mixed NA cocktails and mixers we enjoy. Both The Pathfinder and St. Agrestis make excellent Phony Negronis, with St. Agrestis offering both the Original Phony Negroni and a Phony Mezcal Negroni.
As for mixers, if you haven’t familiarized yourself with the Dirty Pelican line, they are certainly worth paying attention to as they offer many options for a creative cocktail. These mixers are low in calories, low in sugar, organic, and vegan, and are designed to work just as well with spirits as without them. Dirty Pelican comes in Elderflower Paloma, Lychee Blossom, Skinny Margarita, Jalapeño Margarita, and Mango Margarita. All of these flavors mix beautifully with tonic, club soda, sparkling water (both flavored and plain) as well as many non-alcoholic sparkling wines we carry.
Lowering Your Standards
If going completely alcohol-free isn’t your goal, there are plenty of wines on the shelf with lower alcohol levels that still deliver on flavor most comfortably at 13% and under. Starting at the lighter end, we have several options, including Broadbent Vinho Verde (9%), Koehler-Ruprecht Riesling (11%), and Proidl Grüner Veltliner (12%).
Moving up slightly, you’ll find a great lineup at 12.5%, including Chavet La Côte, Bergo Gavi, Domaine Roman Reverdy Sancerre, Albanta Albariño, and Willm Pinot Noir, all excellent choices if you’re looking to keep things balanced without sacrificing character.
And for those comfortable just a step higher, we offer several wines at a modest 13%, including Three Otters Pinot Noir, Sàtiro Rosso, and Frantz Chagnoleau Mâcon-Villages, all examples that you can drink thoughtfully and still drink well.
Beer Me!
Probably the most popular non-alcoholic options on the market right now are beers. Often nearly indistinguishable from their alcoholic counterparts, NA beers, much like wine, come in both true zero and under-0.5% ABV versions. The brand that has really cornered the category is Athletic Brewing Company, which offers several consistently good styles. There’s also the widely loved Guinness 0, which is surprisingly close to the real thing, and for those who prefer to keep it local, Two Roads Two Juicy Zero is a delicious option.
All of these options aren’t just for January, they’re worth exploring all year long. Non-alcoholic offerings are no longer relegated to the bottom shelf or hidden in the back of the store. They now sit right alongside the rest of our inventory, front and center, reflecting a growing and increasingly curious segment of the market.
However you choose to navigate January, whether you take a dry road, make a small dog-leg to the left, or cruise straight down the center lane, the choices have expanded dramatically, and are aiming to get better. Drinking less no longer means settling, and that’s a shift worth raising a glass to… or at least a very good alternative.
