LAFAYETTE, Ind. – With the start of the new year, there has been a new buzzword circulating in the city, namely “Dry January”.
But what exactly is “Dry January”?
It’s a challenge where people give up drinking alcoholic beverages during the month of January, either for the health benefits or to test their willpower.
And at the end of the month, people will normally resume their old drinking habits and continue their year.
But this year, Rob Theodorow, the owner of Generation NA in Lafayette, hopes to use this annual trend to help people transition from a dry January to a more sober lifestyle, without needing to pull out beers or drinks. wines of their life.
Generation NA, at 504 Main St., is Indiana’s premier beer and mocktail store and has a wide variety of beers, wines, mocktails and more in stock.
“Dry January is a way for people once they indulge in the holidays, they eat like shit, they drink a lot of alcohol. It’s just a way for their bodies to reset for the year,” Theodorow told the Journal & Courier.
“A lot of people want to cut back on their alcohol intake or quit it completely and stay sober for a month, just to get benefits like sleep, anxiety, better skin, better liver health, to save energy. money on the checkbook. It’s just kind of a good way to be more health conscious.
The idea for the event was originally inspired by Emily Robinson, after she took a month without alcohol in January 2011 to prepare for a half marathon and noticed the health benefits during that month.
But when it comes to “Dry January”, it’s sometimes hard for people to drop beer or wines abruptly.
Theodorow understands this and wants to help provide people with alternatives to help them through the month and face the challenge of this new year.
Theodorow has a variety of options to try, such as Guinness non-alcoholic beer, Giesen non-alcoholic sauvignon blanc, CUT ABOVE Zero Proof Agave Blanco, and Mash Gang non-alcoholic beers.
“When it comes to relaxing, people always think of alcohol. But alcohol is just one option. We have a hundred options they can choose from to relax. We have options on our shelves that will contain nootropics, adaptogens, CBD or Delta 8 drinks,” he said.
“A lot of people still want to drink, but maybe they go from 20 beers a week to 10 beers a week, and they want to do half that. So they can still drink 20 beers, but rather than drinking water, they can mix and match and drink all the others with a non-alcoholic beer.
In hopes of making non-alcoholic beverages more accessible, Theodorow will invite several non-alcoholic founders to offer free taste tests to the community at its downtown Lafayette boutique throughout January:
- Jeng Tasting with Founder Christopher Lackner: Based in Colorado, Lackner will be at Generation NA from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. on January 6, with a selection of CBD cocktails – Paloma, Moscow Mule, Jeng & Tonic and non-CBD options – Paloma and Moscow mule.
- Cut Above Tasting with Founder Andrew Raul: Based in Houston, TX, Raul will be at Generation NA from noon to 6 p.m. on January 20, to sample Gin from Cut Above (Southside) and Mezcal (Paloma).
- Mindless Tasting with Lindsey Stocks: Stocks will be at Generation NA from 3-6 p.m. on January 27, to sample their Kentucky 74s and Jalisco 55s.
- Brella tasting with Jimmy Semrick: Based in Chicago, Semrick will be at Generation NA from 1 to 4 p.m. on January 28, to sample an assortment of sparkling waters and beverages, Jazz Club, and Garden Party.
Theodorow hopes offering these events will give people the chance to try something new, whether it’s soft drinks or a non-alcoholic January.
For more on current events at Generation NA, people can follow @generationna on their Instagram. Generation NA is open Tuesday through Friday from 12 p.m. to 6 p.m.; and Saturday from 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
Noe Padilla is a journalist at Journal & Courier. Email him at Npadilla@jconline.com and follow him on Twitter at 1NoePadilla.