Aotearoa's first online non-alcoholic drink shop was launched this year by Kāpiti real estate agent Ricky Bartlett and his wife Donna Weston.
When Clear Head Drinks popped up at the craft beer festival Beervana back in August, some Kiwi brewers had good feedback on their products but not everyone was sold, Bartlett tells Jesse Mulligan.
"A lot of people came up and looked at the products and went 'hang on, it's got no alcohol. I'm going to give that a miss'."
Photo: Clear Head Drinks
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When Bartlett stopped drinking alcohol eight years ago, there weren't a lot of good options for non-alcoholic drinks in New Zealand, Bartlett says.
He and Weston had the idea of creating a one-stop online shop for every such product available in Aotearoa. After discovering the quality of local products wasn't always great, the couple started importing drinks to increase their range.
There are now some fabulous non-alcoholic craft beers available, Bartlett says.
"Beng able to drink an IPA or pale ale or lager or stout… I can get everything I want and I just don't have the hassles afterwards.
"What used to happen for me. If I had one beer, I'd have 2 and then I'd have 8. It just went that way. I had no off switch… for me now, it doesn't work that way because the alcohol is not there. I can enjoy a beer, I can enjoy another one. If I'm not thirsty I don't need [any more]."
Ricky Bartlett and Donna Weston of Clear Head Drinks Photo: Supplied
As it's more complicated and expensive to produce quality non-alcoholic craft beer, the good ones don't come cheap, Bartlett says.
"These are true craft beers. They're everything a beer is but just without alcohol in it.
"If you want the taste and the depth of a real drink then that's what we provide."
A couple of good local offerings are Tiny - a Hazy IPA by Wellington's Garage Project and All Day - an IPA from Auckland's Bach Brewing, he says.
His top picks for international non-alcoholic beers are made by the American brewery Bravus and the UK brewery Drynks Unlimited.
While zero-percent wine is out there, many don't quite match the flavour of alcoholic wine, Bartlett says.
After trying plenty that he didnt like, his favourite non-alcoholic wines are made by Giesen in Marlborough and ARIEL Vineyards in the United States.
Watch journalist Guyon Espiner talk about saying goodbye to the bottle, New Zealand's drinking culture and the influence of the alcohol industry in the documentary Proof: