When Izzy said she would write about Dry January for Lytham Life & Style, I thought it would be like asking Frankie Boyle to perform at a kids party!!! But the girl did good!!

It’s optional right?

For those that opted to conform and join forces with the ‘normal’ and ‘healthy go-getters’, well done! I mean you are utterly bonkers, but brave at the same time..

Its been interesting to read random facts and figures different papers and blogs churn out around January, about the pros and cons of dry January’s (Yes there are cons, my favorite was one from the Telegraph that simply said ‘’Drinking makes you happier’’).

I personally feel Dry January was created by the Devil as some sort of advanced pass, to queue jump your way into purgatory… Luckily my job requires me to be creative with alcohol, and I can not possibly do that without tasting!

So, for those that have embarked on their Dryathlon, I have been working on some very tasty mocktails. Cliche I know to do mocktails during this period, but they are good and why let this health kick and trend become such a slog?

If you are entertaining at home, these mocktails can be pimped up with a dribble or long pour of booze – for those that aren’t totally bonkers, or simply for those who have fallen off the Dry-wagon.

I like to keep my cocktails and mocktails seasonal or within a theme of an event, hence the name of the first mocktail;

Frostbite

This particular mocktail looks fab in a martini glass, but it also looks cute in a Old Fashioned style tumbler. If you don’t have a cocktail shaker, simply add the ingredients and stir, but it is much more fun to shake (and it will trick your brain into thinking you’re about to enjoy something a bit naughty!)

In the shaker add;

Ice

25ml lime juice (freshly squeezed)

25ml pineapple juice

50ml white grape juice

A couple of mint leaves

Shake vigorously for 10 seconds, strain into a martini glass, top off with Sprite and add fresh blueberries. For those that want to make this delectably naughty, add a good splash of vodka to the shaker.

Pear & Ginger Lush

The second mocktail requires a blender, but the end result is sweet and heavenly

I recommend serving this mocktail in a highball glass, or if you want to show off, pop in into a cocktail or Sling glass. Add the following ingredients into a blender;

5 or 6 large cubes of ice

1 large deseeded ripe pear

Half a teaspoon of ground ginger

A teaspoon of white sugar

500ml coconut water

Once blended, pour into a glass, and garnish with a wedge of lime and crystallized ginger, or if you want to go really fancy, skewer some pear and fresh ginger, lightly dust with some sugar, gently and quickly blow torch..If you want to make this tasty mocktail into a naughty one – add at least 50ml of white rum to the blender and a splash of dark rum to the glass.

I hope you give them a go, and enjoy them as much as I did. I look forward to seeing you all out locally in February, when you desperately run to the bars and pubs to quench your tipple desires.

Izzy 

Lytham Fizz Co

Mobile Bar & Prosecco Van

info@lythamfizz.co.uk