Hello, Substack friends and family!
We’re getting back to our roots today. Zero Proof Nation started out as an Instagram that featured non-alc beverage founders and people in the industry doing unique things to support the community (e.g., bottle shop or bar owners). With beverage founders, I was always curious to hear their why. What made them want to create a non-alc beverage? What were their reasons?
Just minutes ago, I posted hiyo’s feature to the IG feed. Believe it or not, this spotlight’s been years in the making. I think I talked to co-founder George Youmans back in 2021 and then my ADHD got the best of me. I completely forgot to post, and by the time I was ready, hiyo had blown up. I didn’t think I could go back to George and ask again. But when we recently reconned on LinkedIn, I asked him if he’d be down for the feature, four years later.
The rest speaks for itself. 👇
Want 20% off your order? Use promo code ZPN20 on hiyo’s website.
🛒 Support your local non-alc bottle shop ft. The Open Road in Pittsburgh, PA
Here I am with Mel Babitz, owner of The Open Road in Pittsburgh, the oldest non-alc specialty retailer in the country! Before NYC’s first booze-free bottle shop Spirited Away opened its brick and mortar doors, Mel was operating an e-commerce shop and rented a small 10x10 storage unit to keep inventory. Her new shop (with a bar built in, more to come soon…), which opened its doors in March after three years in a smaller location, is over 2,000 square feet. So unbelievably proud of Mel.
Find a bottle shop near you. 👇
📰 Hot off the non-alc press
The Dry Hop Fest - brought to you by Tyler McMahon of Reducaholic and The Phoenix - Sept. 13, 2025 from 12-4pm. Over 30 NA beer vendors, local food truck tastiness, and celebration. As they say, we deserve more than juice.
🪩 A new NA newsletter just entered the chat. Brought to you by Shea Gomez of @noboozebabes, meet drīedit.
If you want even more consistent non-alc news in your inbox, make sure to subscribe to Mock the Toast, Dry Atlas, and The Modern Substitute, and Low No Drinker’s Substack to get a taste of the industry from across the pond 🇬🇧.
Recently taste tasted
🍉 In Good Company’s Capitol Peak (watermelon tajin marg)
Watermelon-flavored things can be really polarizing but I’m of the camp that 10000000% loves anything watermelon. ANYTHING. This functional canned lightly sparkling non-alc cocktail from woman-owned In Good Company (the two co-founders are also sober!) delivers on watermelon flavor, but without being a too-sour suckerpunch. The beverage boasts Tajin, the cult-fave chili / lime / salt spice mix out of Mexico, but don’t be alarmed. It’s not overwhelming. I’d love more of it, honestly. The addition of Tajin offers up a mild warmth and salinity and is probably a behind-the-scenes supporting actor, ensuring that watermelon doesn’t run away with the show. Functional ingredients include essential vitamins, green coffee bean extract for a light caffeine boost, adaptogenic mushrooms, and probiotics.
Calories: 50; Sugar: 8g
Country of origin: Canada 🇨🇦 — Canada is rapidly becoming a hotspot for non-alc (give
a read).
Stursi’s Revvl (purple papaya-berry and sweet ginger)
Founded by sisters Lexx and Livv, Stursi’s still non-alc cocktail delivers on flavor - vibrant purple papaya-berry and sweet ginger! There’s just a touch of heat that the ginger provides — and you need it to balance out the sweetness of the fruit ingredients. What makes this interesting is that the fruit flavors are coming from herbal tea, and I can mildly pick up on some of the tannins. Beware, though - this 8.4 oz drink packs on the calories and sugar. I was so excited for the girls’ launch that I pre-ordered a case (back when I still had a job)…and when the bevs arrived, I’ll admit the sugar and calorie content threw me for a loop. Because this is still, you can have half with lunch and pour the other half in your water bottle to last the rest of the day (that’s what I did). Be creative, and spend your allotted sugar / cals consciously.
Calories: 130; Sugar: 31g
Country of origin: USA 🇺🇸 - the sisters are from the DC area (yay hometown brand!)
What have you recently taste-tested? ⤵️
What’s new at ZPN HQ 🍹 🥂 🍻
Top row, L to R: Fluère, Dirty Pelican, Go Brewing
Middle row, L to R: Gnista, Stursi, Almave
Bottom row, L to R: Sylva, Chuala, Hoplark
Find these and more in our beverage directory. 👇
🗺️ Calling all values-aligned non-alc brands ⤵️
I immediately added The Open Road to my want to go list! Can't wait to check it out, I have a Pittsburgh trip coming up here soon hopefully.