After a season of drinking with friends in costumes, toasting with cousins over turkey, and downing spiked ponche with my grandma for Christmas, I understand why people are a fan of Sober January. It’s the new year so why not detox from 2021 and give my liver a break; yet that doesn’t mean I need to skip drinking during the parties and gatherings.

Non-alcoholic cocktails are now crowding the online marketplace and their ads are relentless on my Instagram feed. However, they aren’t the least expensive beverage to experiment with. At least when you are at a bar, you know when you order a Jack and Coke, it’s going to be on the spectrum of a glass of Coke with a shot of Jack to a glass of Jack with a shot of Coke.

So rather than blindly dropping up to $50 on a 12-pack of non-alcoholic beverages, I am here to shepherd your way through this new trend, so you get exactly what you want when you want it.

Moment – 18-pack for $48

Let’s start with Moment. Moment’s tagline is “Drink your meditation.” Their sleek and slim cans are in ombre pastel shades. Each can of 11.5 ounces is one serving and calories range from 9 to 15 calories and less than one gram of sugar.

Drinking this is like sipping on fresh fruit tea. It’s not sparkling, so in the era of sparkling water, this felt a little flat. However, maybe that adds to the calming effect that even your beverage is still. What the company claims makes this a great alcohol alternative are the added adaptogens: L-theanine and ashwagandha. Overall adaptogens are believed to help the body resist physical and mental stress. When it comes to ashwagandha, there is debate over whether it’s really an adaptogen, and too much of it can give your stomach issues.

However, too much of anything can really mess your system up so as with everything else, everything in moderation. There isn’t a warning label on the can of how many of these you can drink in a day. I was intrigued to learn that there is a fair amount of literature on L-theanine and its positive effects on stress and anxiety. It’s supposed to keep you calm yet awake.

Final Impression:
Buy this for when instead of doing a boozy brunch, you want to invite your mindful yoga friends over to practice setting intentions while creating inspiration boards. I felt calm with no weird aftertaste and no stomach issues. This is also going to be the favorite for tea drinkers. If you pour the jewel-toned beverage over some ice and add a green straw, I would believe it’s a cup Zen you bought at Starbucks. Note: 1% of all sales goes to mental health non-profits.

Leilo – 12-pack for $49.99 – use calm20 for 20% discount

Leilo claims to be “Calm in a Can.” They are making their mark by combining L-theanine and kava. They are very different from the previous drink. Unfortunately, they both have almost identical packaging so if you send someone shopping, make sure you specifically ask for the drink by name. Leilo’s drinks are 40 calories, 9 grams of sugar in slim 11.5 ounce cans. Note: There is a lite drink version with only 10 calories. It tasted lite is all I’ll say. This drink has warnings. You shouldn’t drink more than one can a day. You also shouldn’t drive or operate heavy machinery as well as avoid alcohol 24 hours before and after drinking this.

Leilo felt like the FourLokos of non-alcoholic drinks. On the first sip of the artificial flavor, your tongue starts tingling and you definitely feel the mellow effects surprisingly quickly. The drinks are a vivacious array of pinks and oranges and look like they would lounge in a martini glass comfortably. Very Instagramable. Everyone I drank this with was a bit shocked at how their body reacted and no one exactly knew what was going on until I explained the kava to them. Kava is a natural substance linked to feelings of muscle relaxation and calmness. There are even some claims of a euphoric high. The can does have an FDA warning that kava can be linked to liver damage which is an intense bit of information to grasp when your goal is to literally chill out.

Final Impression:
Buy Leilo for when your bestie just called with major news to share on her now ex and she’s already on her way, but you also have to lead a client pitch presentation tomorrow and can’t drink. I was not in love with the flavors but Raspberry Hibiscus was my favorite of the lot. I feel like the people who do those juice cleanses and take cayenne, lemon, ginger shots will love the Lemon Ginger. Also, please heed the no alcohol warning. Mixing kava with alcohol can lead to dizziness and nausea. I definitely felt light-headed when my well-meaning relative handed me a fairly stiff alcoholic eggnog to taste minutes after I had Leilo. I didn’t feel great for all of five minutes but then it quickly passed. So follow directions, but definitely enjoy!

Curious Elixir – 4 bottles/8 cocktails monthly variety park $30

Instead of names of flavors, Curious Elixirs just label their bottles with numbers. Each bottle is two servings of a cocktail so you can technically nurse your drink for a bit. The drinks mimic brown beer bottles. They have drinks resembling a cherry chocolate old-fashioned, a negroni, another flavor that is the mix of a pineapple margarita with a Dark and Stormy, a Blood Orange Spritz copy, and a mojito type beverage. Just like a regular array of cocktails, the calories and sugar content vary from 10 to 85 calories per serving (remember two per bottle) and 3 to 18 grams of sugar.

If you want to make yourself feel like you are actually drinking a cocktail, Curious Elixir gets the job done. This line of non-alcoholic drinks tout their adaptogens and each cocktail has different ingredients with effects that range from calming to uplifting. Here’s a list of some of the stuff these drinks have: rhodiola, damiana, ashwagandha, non-alcoholic prosecco, tulsi, turmeric, elderberry, ginger, and shatavari. I want to give props to the mixologists that went out of their way to deliver a full bar experience with each of these flavors. The company even tells you which glass to use and how to garnish each drink.

Final Impression:
Buy this when you are hosting a get-together. I loved holding my garnished elixir and showing it off to intrigued friends. Not everyone wanted to give up the real booze but it was a viable option rather than holding a warm ginger ale all night. I will say that some friends did turn the elixirs into mixers which were also freaking delicious but it defeats the whole purpose. As for the calming effect, I definitely felt some sort of effect and appreciated some of the rich adult flavors. I would not get a case of these only for myself. Instead, I would order the specialty pack and enjoy it with friends!

Overall I was pleasantly surprised with the variety of experiences I had with each brand. I did think they would all be competing with each other, but the tastes and effects are so completely different, I can easily see a reason why you would at some point have all three drinks in your fridge. Does this mean that you won’t be finding beer in my fridge, no, not at all but a girl’s got to have options, and winding each stressful day down with something other than a glass of wine is an option I’m willing to explore.

Writer’s Note: I know there are many more non-alcoholic options out there and here is what I didn’t get around to trying for those who want to go taste testing on their own: HOP WTR, Recess, Betera.