Are you ready to rethink your New Year’s Eve drinking game? What if you could enjoy all the festivities without the dreaded hangover? Enter the latest trend sweeping the drinks industry: coasting. But here’s where it gets controversial—is this the perfect balance, or just a watered-down compromise? Let’s dive in.
The holiday season has long been synonymous with overindulgence, but times are changing. With moderation taking center stage, coasting has emerged as the buzzword of the moment. It’s all about choosing beverages—like white wine, lager, or cocktails—that are roughly half the strength of their traditional counterparts. The idea? You can savor the same number of drinks without waking up feeling like you’ve been hit by a truck. Sounds like a win-win, right?
Vanessa Pearson, Ocado Retail’s trading manager for beers, wines, and spirits, credits coasting for a massive surge in interest for mid-strength wines. In 2025, sales of these wines skyrocketed by 4,000%, proving this trend is more than just a passing fad. But what exactly are mid-strength drinks? They sit comfortably between no- and low-alcohol (nolo) options and full-strength beverages. While there’s no strict industry definition yet, mid-strength beers and ciders typically range from 2-3% ABV, wines from 3-9%, and spirits from 15-20%.
And this is the part most people miss—coasting aligns perfectly with broader shifts in drinking habits. Britons are drinking less alcohol than ever before. In 2024, the average UK adult consumed just 10.2 alcoholic drinks per week, the lowest since records began in 1990. Two decades ago, that number was 14. But here’s the twist: total abstention isn’t on the rise. Instead, people are adopting more mindful drinking habits, like coasting or zebra striping—alternating between alcoholic, mid-strength, and alcohol-free drinks in one sitting.
Supermarkets like Ocado and Waitrose are jumping on the bandwagon, stocking up on mid-strength brands such as La Felicite rosé (9%), Nice Session sauvignon blanc (3.4%), and Quarter Proof gin (15%). Meanwhile, nolo options are also gaining traction. Popular searches include Botivo, a British non-alcoholic aperitif inspired by Italian classics like Campari, and Mother Root, a spicy ginger non-alcoholic aperitif. Even Spider-Man actor Tom Holland has co-founded a new beer brand, Bero, adding star power to the movement.
But here’s the kicker: nolo drinks aren’t just about sobriety—they’re about flavor. Sarah Holland, a Waitrose drinks buyer, notes that consumers still crave big, bold tastes. ‘They want more than just gin alternatives,’ she says. ‘Options like Mother Root and Botivo are flying off the shelves.’ Alcohol-free cocktails and canned wines are also booming, with Jukes 8’s sparkling rosé and Pentire’s booze-free paloma cocktail leading the charge.
To push mid-strength drinking into the mainstream, brands like Club Soda, Quarter Proof, Gentle Wines, and Small Beer have formed the mid-strength collective. A recent poll reveals that 21% of consumers are drinking less alcohol per occasion, while 13% are coasting through their evenings. Another 6% are embracing zebra striping. As Blake Gladman, strategy and insight director at Kam, puts it, ‘The way consumers engage with alcohol is evolving.’ Mid-strength options, he suggests, allow people to extend their social experiences without sacrificing taste or quality.
But here’s the question: Is coasting the future of drinking, or just a temporary trend? And more importantly, does it truly deliver on its promise of guilt-free enjoyment? Let us know your thoughts in the comments—do you see yourself coasting this New Year’s Eve, or are you sticking to the classics? The debate is open!
