A lot of people have an image of vegans in their heads as a hippy, free living individual. That, or some health obsessed individual who would never put alcohol or toxins of any kind into their body.
From my experience, hardly anyone is actually like that. We love to drink and have fun as much as anyone else! I did freshers and the whole of university as a vegan and anyone will tell you I loved a night out.
Drinking as a vegan does require a little more thought and knowledge, but once you know, it’s easy! If you can’t remember, or need to check a new drink, there’s a handy website called Barnivore that you can check on.
I’ve put down some of my personal favourites for you here! Wine and beer are big topics and I’m planning on going into them in more detail later.
spirits
Gin
Gin is by far my favourite spirit, and alcohol to be honest. I will always take a gin and tonic over any other drink (except maybe a really good espresso martini). I’m on a bit of a flavoured gin kick at the moment and I’ve got a bottle of the gooseberry gin on the go!
- Whitley Neil Pink Grapefruit Gin
- Whitley Neil Gooseberry Gin
- Whitley Neil Blood Orange Gin
- Bombay Sapphire
- Gordon’s (and Gordon’s Pink)
- Hendrick’s Gin
Vodka
I don’t drink as much vodka any more, partly because there have been no nights out for so long! Almost all bars will have Smirnoff vodka, so it makes a very easy drink order in nightclubs. I love a sex on the beach for the juicy flavours, or diet coke and vodka when I want a more alcohol-driven drink.
- Absolut Passionfruit
- Absolut Vodka
- Absolut Vanilla
- Absolut Vodka
- Smirnoff Vodka
- Stolichnaya vodka
Rum
Again, rum is not something I drink often. Don’t get me wrong, if it’s there I’ll have a rum and coke but it’s never my go-to.
- Malibu
- Bacardi
- Captain Morgan
Tequila
I LOVE tequila. I will do at least one tequila shot whenever I’m out and I’ve been known to do multiple at once. I enjoy the salt and lime if its there, but honestly I can take it or leave it.
- Jose Cuervo
- Sierra
beer
I’m a big beer fan. At Christmas I was drinking Desperados with my little brother and I had a great time. You need to take care with beers though. Some are not vegan due to the filtration process. This often uses gelatine or isinglass (fish bladders), making them non-vegan. I’d recommend checking them on Barnivore if you’re unsure.
- Carlsberg
- Coors Light
- Stella Artois
- Budweiser
- Birra Moretti
- Cobra
- Estrella Damm
- Heineken
- Peroni
- San Miguel
- Guinness
- Desperados
cider
I like cider, but only if it’s a fruity one. Plain apple cider and whisky are the two alcohols I truly hate. That being said, I am partial to the occasional berry cider. I recently tried the ALDI ones and was surprised by how much I liked them.
- Rekorderlig
- Strongbow Dark Fruits
- ALDI’s alska ciders
shots
Don’t worry, you can still do shots as a vegan! Aside from the tequila and vodka mentioned already, there are some more fun ones too. Sambuca is another club favourite of mine. Red Bull is also vegan, so you can still have Jagerbombs, don’t worry!
- Jagermeister
- Sambuca
- Archer’s Peach Schnapps
- All Sourz (except apple+cranberry and pineapple)