3 Ways to Make Your Dry January Goals a Reality

3 Ways to Make Your Dry January Goals
a Reality

Dry January has become a popular way to give your liver a break after the indulgence of the holiday season. However, there’s no one way to refresh after the onslaught of holiday parties—and there’s no reason you can’t still make great drinks without the booze.

Whether you’re going dry all the way or simply slowing down a bit, you can still make good use of your home bar and flex your mixology skills. Here are a few ways you can be more mindful and avoid hangovers this January, especially when it comes to what you’re sipping.

Make Yourself a Mocktail

Replacing your nightcap with an interesting mocktail is a tried and true approach to Dry January. For those who love coming up with their own cocktail recipes, it’s a great way to apply their bartending skills in a new way and challenge themselves to explore new flavors and techniques. Bust out a muddler and make good use of ripe fruit and aromatic herbs, experiment with infusing your own simple syrup with spices, or make a few shrubs.

There are also more non-alcoholic options available now than there used to be—from NA beer to alcohol-removed wine and zero-proof aperitifs, there are countless ways to make a complex, nuanced drink without any alcohol.

Go Damp instead of Dry

You don’t need to cut alcohol out completely to have a healthy start to the year. Depending on your approach, you can save drinks for special occasions, stick to one glass, or order drinks that are intentionally less boozy. Low-proof cocktails like the Americano, Ferrari, White Port and Tonic, Campari and Soda, Hugo Spritz, or Aperol Spritz are all great options, proving that you don’t need a drink to be strong to be complex and delicious. When in doubt, ask your bartender if they have any recommendations for lighter cocktails—they’ll likely have a few suggestions, and you may get to try new and interesting aperitifs.

Alternatives to Happy Hour

Rather than meeting friends for drinks, find other ways to socialize and catch up without hitting the bars. Try out a new bakery, visit a cafe with great non-alcoholic options, or take an art class together. You can also go the activity route—board games, bowling, or roller skating bring out everyone’s inner kid and don’t have to include drinking.

No matter how you decide to kick off the new year, Dry and Damp January is an opportunity to check in with yourself, be more present, and spend quality time with friends in new ways. So get that cocktail shaker out and make some delicious mocktails in your favorite glassware—don’t let those highball glasses get dusty.