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The 3 Best Nonalcoholic Drinks
I don’t drink alcohol, but I love to drink—you can catch me guzzling green apple Gatorade, swirling homemade kombucha, and squirreling away cans (not bottles!) of Coke from the corner store every chance I get. I live a very satisfying beverage life sans booze, but soda doesn’t always cut it when I want to feel included in a toast, bring drinks to share at a picnic, or sit and sip on something that is itself the main event.
Some nonalcoholic drinks are faux versions of alcoholic spirits, like, say, alcohol-free tequilas. For this guide, we mostly tasted and picked beverages that, rather than mimicking liquors, are crafted to hold their own in complexity, maturity, and uniqueness.
Nonalcoholic drinks are not for everyone, and it can take a lot of tasting to find the right one for you. People avoiding alcohol may find the bite of some off-putting. Some drinks are too sweet for one person and too bitter for the next. And if you’re avoiding alcohol for pregnancy or health reasons, or if you take prescription medications, nonalcoholic drinks aren’t necessarily risk-free—many contain vitamins, botanical extracts, and caffeine levels that you may want to discuss with your doctor before imbibing.
These drinks can also be expensive, some confoundingly so, and splurging on a bottle only to find it not to your taste can be a real buzzkill. We’ve tried to describe the flavor notes and challenges of all of our picks, but every palate is different. If you live near an NA bevs store (many are popping up around the country), we highly recommend visiting in person, as stores are often eager to offer samples.
If you’re looking to treat yourself to a special, refined, prepackaged drink with layers of flavor that offer a distinctive drinking experience—maybe housed in a chic, dinner-party-worthy bottle—one of our favorite nonalcoholic drinks may be just the brew for you.
1、Herbaceous spirits
2.Juicy, bittersweet aperitifs
Whereas other NA beverages slow you down in one primary way, be it spice, bitterness, or astringency, Ghia Original Apéritif braids those sensations together, with each sip offering you a dynamic combination—fresh bittersweet citrus, astringent gentian root, tart fruit juice, and gingery burn—to savor and unpack.
Among the nonalcoholic aperitifs we tasted, Ghia Original is one of the most complex. You may prefer Figlia Fiore if you like floral flavors, and you may prefer Wilfred’s if you want a thinner, sweeter drink or something better mixed.
One gripe: Ghia’s bottles, though cute, are sealed with corks attached to wooden knobs that are very easy to break. We’ve broken the knob off every bottle of Ghia Original we’ve tried, no matter how little force we apply, so we’ve had to whip out a corkscrew to remove the stuck cork. We much prefer the swanky glass stopper on the Figlia bottle.
3、Aplós Calme
Tasters fell in love with the smell of Aplós Calme, a sweet, captivating, citrus aroma that came right off the glass. But the flavor is a bit more complex, with floral undertones, hints of cucumber, and a bitterness that, mixed with the somewhat slick mouthfeel of the spirit, reminded us a bit of soap. If any level of perfume or soap vibe in a consumable puts you off or takes your taste buds to Grandma’s bathroom, stay away.
But especially with a little seltzer and lemon, Calme rewards the brave with a truly one-of-a-kind drink that reminded us of crushed pears, fresh-squeezed citrus, lemon candy, and the grapefruit-flavored Japanese sports drink Pocari Sweat. Like its companion, Aplós Arise, Calme comes in a squat, opaque, 575 mL bottle that might accidentally wind up wherever you keep your fancy olive oils..
