Try these drinks for a hangover-free buzz

After the frivolity and fun of the holidays, the prospect of non-alcoholic drinks can seem as bleak as the January sky.

But contrary to popular belief, booze-free doesn’t have to be boring. We’ve come a long way since non-drinkers had to choose between Diet Coke or lime and soda.

According to the charity Alcohol Change UK, more than 8.5 million Brits will get sober in January this year, with a quarter of us planning to cut back continuously this year.

Accordingly, Waitrose reports a 23 percent increase in sales of low- or non-alcoholic beers, wines and spirits in the past twelve months.

The latest wave of alcohol alternatives has been pimped with a variety of health-boosting adaptogens (plant compounds that can help your body manage stress) and nootropics (substances that can improve your mood and focus).

These functional concoctions go beyond just offering an adult beverage with 0% alcohol content; they can also give you a booze-free buzz. Don’t worry, they’re all legal, and – bonus! – don’t leave you with a hangover.

After a special schedule of festive drinking, we wanted to put something to the test…

The midweek drink of the midlifer

Trip lemon basil, 4 250ml cans, £6.50 (equivalent to £1.63 per can), Waitrose

Nowadays, when I look in friends’ refrigerators, I often see a stash of Trip. I’ve lost count of the number of women who told me they traded their evening glass of wine for this.

Britain’s market leading and fastest growing soft drink brand, a can of Trip contains 15mg of CBD – cannabidiol, a non-psychoactive, legal chemical found in cannabis that can relieve pain and promote relaxation – and L-theanine, a stress reliever . -breaking amino acid.

Pronunciation: This is my regular weekday drink. I particularly love the range of delicate flavours, including blood orange and rosemary, and elderflower and mint. I also love the chic tin design. It feels like you’re drinking something special.

One serving relaxes me in the same way as a small glass of wine, and I usually sleep better than normal, which may be due to the addition of magnesium citrate.

8/10

Hello softly

Goodrays, 4 250ml cans, £7.50 (equivalent to £1.88 per can), Tesco

London-based Goodrays launched during a lockdown in 2020 and is hot on the heels of market leader Trip. In terms of calories, the rival brands are quite high: this contains 32 calories per can, compared to Trip’s 19.

But the main difference is that a Goodrays can contains double the amount of CBD: 30 mg compared to Trip’s 15 mg.

Pronunciation: These fruity elixirs have a stronger taste than Trip, which was not to the taste, although the elderflower and yuzu do taste refined.

However, the effects were incredible; within half an hour I felt the perfect combination of carefree and social, like when you sit down with two G&Ts in the evening. My friend tried it the same evening and was left laughing, much to her husband’s amusement.

She sent me a screenshot of her sleep tracker stats the next day, which showed her best deep sleep rating in months. I checked my Oura carefully [a health tracker] and found the same thing.

9/10

Beer with benefits

Impossibrew Enhanced Non-Alcoholic Lager Beer, 10 x 440ml box, £29.99 (equivalent to £2.99 per can), impossibrew.co.uk

There are now many non-alcoholic beers on supermarket shelves, both from established brands such as Heineken and from specialized non-alcoholic beers such as Lucky Saint. But with Impossibrew, launched in 2022 and developed by a bioscience professor, you get nootropics instead of alcohol.

It contains calming L-theanine and griffonia seed, which is rich in 5-HTP, a chemical that can be converted into mood-enhancing serotonin in the body.

Verdict: I cracked a can after a long day at work and was impressed. The taste is close to a craft beer. It was only at the end of each bite that I noticed a slight lack of the kick you get from alcohol.

But soon I felt my shoulders slump. My husband took a pack to a party, got stuck in it and said he felt exactly the same twinkling boost he’d get from drinking a few pints of beer, but without the foggy head the next day.

8/10

Calming cocktail

Haelu Salerno Spritz, 4x 250m can starter pack £10.99 (equivalent to £2.75 per can), haeludrinks.com

Haelu, pronounced “hey-loo” and another brand emerging from pandemic lockdowns, makes ready-to-drink, non-alcoholic, sparkling cocktails in a can. In addition to the bittersweet Salerno Spritz, there is Havana Heat, aimed at rum drinkers.

They contain L-theanine, 5-HTP and ashwagandha, a fashionable, stress-relieving medicinal herb popular with Hollywood stars like Jennifer Aniston.

Pronunciation: If you’re an Aperol Spritz superfan like me, you’ll love this. Once I put it in a nice glass and added some ice and a slice of orange, I could barely tell the difference.

Admittedly, I didn’t notice the effects of the adaptogens hugely, but I quickly fell out of bed. Next time I’ll take two

8/10

Let the party begin

Three Spirit Livener, 50cl bottle, £25, johnlewis.com

Launched in 2018, this range of non-alcoholic spirits with botanicals and nootropics can be found in British cocktail bars John Lewis and Selfridges.

You’re encouraged to ‘choose your mood’ – so when you wind down, opt for a nightcap, with calming lemon balm, valerian and ashwagandha.

Livener, meanwhile, contains guayusa, a caffeine alternative from an Amazonian plant, and schisandra, a berry believed to improve physical performance and endurance – ideal when you put on your dancing shoes.

Pronunciation: Once I mixed a 50ml measure of Livener with soda water, ice and a slice, it was impossible to tell that this, with its watermelon flavor and delicious bitter edge, wasn’t a booze-laden cocktail.

After a few I found myself dancing around the kitchen – not normal behavior for 11am on a Tuesday morning. Moreover, the stylish black bottle really stands its ground in my drinks cabinet.

10/10