Fun cocktail recipes for dry or almost-dry January

Just because it’s Dry January doesn’t mean you can’t have something fun to sip on.

Dry January – which seems to grow in popularity each year – involves taking a month off alcohol, or, in some cases, just cutting back after the holiday season when, let’s be honest, it’s easy to go overboard. 

Parlor’s bartenders came up with two easy-to-mix cocktails; one version is alcohol-free, and the second is “low proof,” meaning it has just a touch of alcohol, in this case, blanc vermouth. 

Better yet, each uses an ingredient that almost everyone seems to have on hand these days: La Croix. 

The alcohol-free drink uses a fun homemade ingredient: hot honey. It’s easy to whip up at home and will last for several booze-free rounds. And the low-proof version has just two ingredients. 

Cheers!

Hot Honey 

For the hot honey:

1. Mix one cup of honey, one cup of water, 1 sliced jalapeno pepper and one cinnamon stick in a saucepan. 
2. Bring the pot to a boil and then immediately remove the pan from the heat. 
3. Stir until the honey is fully dissolved, and let the spices steep until your desired spice level is achieved. The longer the mixture steeps, the spicier it will get! 

To make the alcohol-free cocktail: 

1. Mix .75 oz. hot honey with 1 oz lemon juice, in a tall glass over ice. 
2. Top the drink with Apricot La Croix. 
3. Garnish with a lemon slice and sliced jalapeno and serve. 

To make the low-proof cocktail: 

1. Mix 1 oz Dolin Blanc Vermouth over ice in a stemmed glass.
2. Top with Melon Pomelo La Croix. 
3. Garnish with an orange peel, and serve.