12 Alcohol-Free Liquors You Need To Try

For a sober person, one of the only things worse than being the only unintoxicated one in a room full of drunk people is the mediocre mocktail options. If you're lucky, sympathetic friends will provide a Diet Coke or warm ginger ale in a red Solo cup to make you feel included. Sometimes, helpful bartenders will make virgin renditions of cocktails like a rum-less Mojito or a Moscow Mule without the Moscow.

As a bartender, it can be easy to resort to juice-based mocktails that are heavy on sugar and light on complexity. However, thanks to the rise in the acceptance of sober-curious lifestyles over the years, low-ABV cocktails are being treated with the same care and complexity as their craft cocktail counterparts. It's the end of the mocktail and the beginning of the craft zero-proof cocktail, thanks in part to the rise in zero-proof liquor options.

What's astounding about some of these alcohol-free liquors is that they possess a lot of the same smells, characteristics, and even tasting notes as the real thing — minus the spins. As a disclaimer, some of these options may not be suited for those with a history of substance abuse as their similarity to actual liquor could be triggering. Also, some of these non-alcoholic options are best enjoyed with mixers and not neat from the bottle. The good thing is, with so many options to choose from, you can easily try them all without worrying about a nasty hangover the next day.

It's hard to find a good bourbon, let alone a good-tasting non-alcoholic bourbon. When taking the gamble on a bottle, you just hope for something that has a good balance of flavor and smoothness that will make the next day's heartburn worth the trouble. That being said, drinking Spiritless doesn't mean missing out on a full-bodied drinking experience.

Spiritless zero-proof liquors include a distilled Kentucky bourbon, which was a gold medal winner at the 2021 L.A. Spirit Awards, and a Jalisco tequila. Each liquor is gluten-free, vegan, non-GMO, low-calorie, and created by a women-owned company. Both liquors are distilled like most alcoholic spirits but implement a unique reverse distillation process that maintains the spirit's aging properties without the alcohol byproduct. The reposado-style tequila doesn't have that same burning aftertaste that most tequilas tend to possess but has hints of agave, citrus, cinnamon, oakiness, and pepper. Quickly aged with oak by thermal extraction, the bourbon takes on intense but familiar maple notes with plenty of light peat, caramel, and vanilla flavors.

Spiritless Kentucky 74 has all the warm notes that you would expect but lacks much of the body and complexity found in its alcoholic counterparts. That being said, it's like comparing an Impossible burger to a beef burger and asking why they don't taste the same. Spiritless' zero-proof bourbon does a good job at evoking the bourbon experience without tasting exactly like the real stuff.

Nothing screams Monday more than cracking open a bottle of alcoholic or zero-proof liquor to take the edge off. Monday's line of zero-proof liquors are not only calorie conscious, with no added sugar, but gluten-free and vegan, making sure that everyone, regardless of dietary restrictions, feels included in the cocktail fun. Monday's award-winning liquors, like its whiskey and mezcal alternatives, are produced and distilled in small batches, but the real jewel on Monday's crown is its zero-proof gin.

Made in small batches in a Southern California distillery, Monday's alcohol-free gin has all the major characteristics and complexities of a regular gin including lemon, grapefruit, coriander, and juniper berries. Other alcohol-free gins like Tanqueray 0.0% give Monday some stiff competition, but it holds its own as a gin doppelgänger. A review in Sip Yours praised this booze-less booze not only for its "Great Gatsby-" adjacent packaging but also for its intense aromas of juniper and botanicals. They concluded by unofficially awarding it as one of the best and most authentic non-alcoholic gins on the market, making it your next right-hand zero-proof gin for endless Monday night (or day) gin and tonics.

When asked to name a popular zero-proof liquor brand, even if you haven't tried it, Seedlip would come to most people's minds. There's a reason why Seedlip, the first and original distilled alcohol-free liquor brand, has become so synonymous with the rising popularity of zero-proof spirits. Firstly, Seedlip's liquor bottles are gorgeous — they look like vintage tea cups with whimsical artwork straight out of a fantasy book. There are three liquor options — Spice 94 with grapefruit, oak, and cardamom extracts; Garden 108 with hints of rosemary, hops, and thyme; and Grove 42 with notes of orange, ginger, and lemongrass.

No one bottle is necessarily supposed to emulate a certain type of pre-existing spirit, which is why this brand is such a unique and refreshing presence in the distilling world. Fans seem to agree as well — one Reddit commenter found that Seedlip was the best zero-proof liquor brand out there thanks to its herbal taste that's somewhat similar to actual alcohol without that heavy syrupiness seen in some mocktails.

In a review from Thrillist, it was concluded that each Seedlip libation had so many complex and concentrated layers that it was almost better to drink alongside tonic, soda water, or other light mixers to enhance the liquor's flavors rather than drinking it straight. It's a spirit that doesn't leave you craving and yearning for the "real thing" and takes as much pride in its creation and distillation as even the largest of liquor conglomerates.

Ritual Zero Proof ensures that zero-proof booze will become more than just a fad purchase gathering dust in the back of your liquor cabinet but instead a part of your everyday routine. Not only does it pride itself on natural and non-GMO ingredients in every bottle but each liquor style is also gluten-free, made in a nut-free facility, and calorie and sugar conscious. Ritual Zero Proof covers all the bases needed for a well-rounded bar with rum, whiskey, gin, and tequila alternatives.

Each spirit possesses all the identifiable and heart-warming flavors found in traditional alcoholic liquors, making some second-guess if it's actually the real thing. A review in The Zero Proof specifically found that its tequila alternative was hitting all the right notes without the Jose Cuervo after-burn. With sweet notes in the beginning followed by spicy bell pepper essences, it rounds itself out with a woody finish that still has that same heart-burning flavor we never really miss with tequila. That being said, Ritual Zero Proof liquors have a reliable sense of self that makes them dependable and versatile for every sober or sober-curious bar.

Bax Botanics' selection of alcohol-free spirits is something out of a fairy tale, something you would imagine impossibly chic woodland fairies drinking in a tea cup alongside biscuits. Each spirit is handcrafted with organic and fair-trade ingredients that are made with nature and a healthier environment in mind.

Its evening nightcap, Sea Buckthorn, is the warming alternative to citrus-heavy botanical liquors with essences of bold sea buckthorn berries, rosemary, and thyme. On the other hand, the Verbena spirit has a bright and zesty presence with not only hints of fresh lemongrass and green tea but also fennel and anise to sharpen the palette.

In addition to placing silver and bronze in the 2022 International Wine and Spirit Competition, Bax Botanics also has over a 4.5-star rating on Trustpilot. Multiple reviews gush over the well-roundedness of the spirits but also how light and vibrant they are without being too concentrated. Other reviews expressed how even though it isn't labeled as a gin alternative, it captured the elements of a delicious gin without the unnecessary alcoholic frills.

We are all too familiar with the restorative powers that some of these alcohol-free spirits claim to possess. That being said, even if some are all talk and no walk, Rasāsvāda is the perfect marriage of complexity and healing that incorporates aspects of traditional Eastern medicine and herbalism into each elixir. Made with only wild-forged ingredients, its line of spirits — Ruby Artemisia, Rose Bergamot, and Black Ginger — put a new meaning to toasting to vitality.

Ruby Artemisia, which claims to harness Roman, Greek, and Chinese medical practices, incorporates ingredients like artichoke leaves and red wine grape skins to help battle daily ailments like fatigue, bloating, and early aging. Rose Bergamot is the floral and bitter-sweet counterpart that can improve stress and mental clarity, while Black Ginger peels back complex layers of flavor to potentially help boost libido and soothe natural aches and pains.

Good Spirit News highly reviewed all three Rasāsvāda spirit blends. They compared the Ruby Artemisia to a balanced, citrus-forward, and tart vermouth that had a bitter-sweet finish, while the Rose Bergamot had classic Italian aperitivo influences with heavy citrus throughout and a lingering spearmint finish. Meanwhile, the Black Ginger draws from the same characteristics as a drier amaro with more botanicals and a funky flavor. The real question is not if they have restorative powers, but rather: Does it even matter when something like this tastes so otherworldly?