Dry January date night: drinks and ideas

By The Softer Hour Editorial Team

Our pickKanna Pomegranate Fusionfrom $30.60 · 4/12/24 packs

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For the toast: sparkling raspberry and pomegranate that pours pink in a coupe. 21+. One can is one serving. Never with alcohol or antidepressants.

A date night in January doesn't need a bottle of wine to feel like an occasion. What it needs is the same things wine was standing in for: a nice glass, something to toast with, food worth sitting down for and a plan for the evening. Whether you're both doing Dry January, only one of you is, or it's a first date with someone new, here's what to pour, two drinks for two, and date ideas that aren't built around a bar. Part of our Dry January guide.

What to pour

Pick by the kind of date. Every option here is alcohol-free.

• Non-alcoholic sparkling wine. The obvious choice for a toast. It pours, fizzes and looks exactly like the real thing in a flute.
• Non-alcoholic wine with dinner. NA reds and whites have come a long way. Taste one or two before the night, and match them the way you'd match wine: a white or rosé with fish and salads, a red with pasta or steak.
• A sparkling can in a coupe. Kanna Pomegranate Fusion is a sparkling raspberry and pomegranate can. Poured into a coupe or a wine glass, it's pink, fizzy and looks like an occasion. One can is one serving, never with alcohol or antidepressants, and it's for adults 21+.
• A mocktail you make together. Making the drink is half the date. The two below take five minutes, and Dry January mocktails has seven more.
• Sparkling water with citrus. Always on the table, so nobody is drinking just because the glass is empty.

Two drinks for two

Blood orange thyme spritz (no can, serves 2)

Bright, a little bitter and very pretty. Blood oranges are in season in January.

You need:

• 3 oz fresh blood orange juice (regular orange works too)
• 1 oz fresh lemon juice
• 1/2 oz honey syrup (equal parts honey and warm water)
• 8 oz sparkling water or NA sparkling wine
• 2 sprigs of fresh thyme, plus ice

Make it:

1. Split the juices and honey syrup between two wine glasses and stir.
2. Add ice, then top each glass with the sparkling water or NA sparkling wine.
3. Clap each thyme sprig between your hands to release the smell and add one to each glass.

Pomegranate coupe

A one-can drink that looks like a cocktail, for whoever is having the can.

You need:

• 1 can Kanna Pomegranate Fusion, chilled
• 1/4 oz fresh lime juice
• A few pomegranate seeds and a mint leaf
• A chilled coupe

Make it:

1. Add the lime juice to the chilled coupe.
2. Pour the can slowly so it doesn't foam over.
3. Drop in the pomegranate seeds and float the mint leaf on top.

One can per glass, and don't add alcohol. If you're driving home or taking any daily medication, make the spritz instead. More recipes in kanna mocktails.

What to stock

Shop a few days ahead, so the drinks are cold and you can taste the NA wine before your date does.

Prices checked Oct 15, 2026, on Botanical Brewing Co.'s product pages; may change. Per-can prices are the pack price divided by the number of cans, rounded to the cent.

Date ideas that aren't built around a bar

The easiest dry date is one where drinking was never the main event.

• Cook dinner together. Pick a cuisine neither of you makes, shop for it together and make the mocktails while something simmers.
• A dessert crawl. Two or three bakeries or dessert places in one evening. Nobody expects a drink with a slice of cake.
• A class. Pottery, cooking, dancing, climbing. You get something to talk about besides January.
• Movie night, done properly. A double feature, good snacks and a drink in a real glass. Ideas in alcohol-free drinks for a movie night.
• Games night for two. A two-player board game or a puzzle, with a pitcher of the spritz on the table.
• A coffee or brunch date. Daytime dates take the drinking question off the table entirely.

If you're eating out

• Check the menu first. Many restaurants now list NA beer, NA wine or mocktails. If you can't find a list, call and ask.
• Order the drink, not the absence of one. "What's your best non-alcoholic drink?" gets a better answer than "just a water."
• Toast anyway. Clink glasses whatever's in them.

What to drink instead of wine has more swaps for dinner, and what to drink instead of alcohol at a bar covers ordering.

If only one of you is doing Dry January

That's common, and it's fine. Say it early and simply: "I'm doing Dry January, so I'll get something without alcohol." Then let your date order whatever they like. If you're the host, keep their usual drink available and make your own glass something you're looking forward to, not a consolation prize. If it's a first date, you don't owe anyone a reason. "I'm not drinking tonight" is a whole sentence.

Fit it into the month

January 2027 has five Fridays and a long weekend (Martin Luther King Jr. Day is Monday, January 18). Put the date on the calendar now, and mark it on the Dry January tracker as one of the nights worth planning. Dry January week by week shows where it falls in the month, and Dry January Friday nights covers the other Fridays. Cutting back rather than going fully dry? Damp January helps you plan which nights stay dry.

If it's harder than you expected

If a dry night out, or a month off, feels much harder than you expected, or you're worried about your drinking, talk to someone. In the US, SAMHSA's National Helpline is free, confidential and open 24/7 at 1-800-662-4357. If you drink heavily every day, talk to a doctor before stopping, because alcohol withdrawal can be serious. The botanical cans on this site are for adults 21+ and aren't recommended if you're in recovery.

Related: Dry January guide · Dry January week by week · Dry January mocktails · Dry January Friday nights