25% of Americans Reportedly Participated in Dry January; Spirits Companies Navigate the Pivot to Mocktails, THC Products

(Photo: Bernd Thissen/picture-alliance/dpa/AP Images)

The first recorded mention of “Dry January” is dated to 2008; Frank Posillico, a businessman in Huntington, New York, took to the still-nascent Internet to share the dramatic weight loss he’d witnessed after a month of sobriety. His story picked up steam the world over, eventually inspiring non-profit organization Alcohol Change UK to launch a campaign under the same name in 2013. Two years later, it was officially co-signed by the English government.

Today, Dry January has gone far beyond the realm of public service announcements. From TikTok to the local dive bar, the slogan has inspired a tidal wave of New Year’s resolutions. From the looks of it, there’s no sign of slowing down — according to a new study from Civic Science, 25% of Americans participated in Dry January in 2023 alone.

Numbers skewed young, understandable given the term’s viral popularity on social media platforms. 35% of respondents aged 21-24 said they participated compared to just 14% in the 55+ category. Across the general population, 35% of respondents planned to cut out alcohol altogether by year’s end.

Under different circumstances, statistics like these might foretell a death blow to the alcohol industry. And that still might be the case. Year after year, Gen Z continues to drink less than generations before them.

Industry giants, however, have had time to shift their messaging, successfully ushering in a new genre of beverages plastered with wellness buzzwords you’d never see on a bottle of scotch.

Ritual Zero Proof — the best-selling “alternative” spirits brand in the US — comes in Gin, Rum, Whiskey, Tequila and Aperitif varieties. (Photo: Ritual Zero Proof)

At the front of the charge are non-alcoholic spirits, a category that has risen $4 billion in value since 2018. Heavy hitters like Diageo, Pernod Ricard and Constellation are betting big with zero-proof renditions sold right alongside their alcoholic counterparts on liquor store shelves. Celebrities like Danny Trejo, F1 racer Lewis Hamilton and “Bridgerton” star Regé-Jean Page are already getting in on the action — and that’s just non-alcoholic tequila.

Next comes 0.0% ABV beer, an increasingly popular sight during sports game advertisement breaks. Heineken, Budweiser, Guinness, Samuel Adams and Sierra Nevada have all tossed their hats into the ring with zero-proof offerings. In December, White Claw even debuted a non-alcoholic electrolyte-infused lineup in its classic flavors (that’s right, a non-alcoholic hard seltzer).

Cann, a THC seltzer brand currently retailing at Total Wine stores throughout Minnesota. (Photo: Cann)

Amidst the shuffle, cannabis and CBD beverages have emerged as a dark horse. As more and more states move toward legalization, brightly colored cans with psychoactive properties are popping up on prominent liquor store shelves like Total Wine. The category was valued at $1 billion in 2022; by 2030, it’s expected to reach $3.9 billion.

The varied approach has already paid off. Among Dry January participants, Civic Science’s poll found that 19% replaced alcohol with cannabis/CBD products, 14% with mocktails and 12% with non-alcoholic beer.

Time will tell how this new generation of drinks fares with consumers. On the one hand, they may merely flare up every January, welcoming crowds of sober-conscious customers bound to revert to their usual habits by month’s end. Quite possibly, however, alternative beverages will come to rival the spirits they’re meant to imitate.

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