Head into any supermarket and you will have not failed to have noticed an ever-expanding range of zero-alcohol versions of spirits, wines and beers.

And while easy to dismiss it as the relics of Dry January, the reality is that it is one of the drink industry's big growth sectors.

We'll put some of them through their paces during this article to see if they really do pass the taste test. But the story behind them is one that's not going away any time soon.

This may come as a surprise to many, but the biggest age group which is steering away from alcohol are those aged between 16-24 (and yes the legal limit for buying alcohol is 18, but let's not kid ourselves).

According to Drinkaware, the independent charity which aims to reduce alcohol-related harms, around 26% of youngsters steer clear of the hard stuff. Times, it seems, are a-changin'.

That compares to just 15% of those aged between 55 and 74. The older age bracket also drinks considerably more too - 31% admitting to necking more than 14 units a week (about a bottle and a half of wine or seven pints) compared to just 15% of 16-24-year-olds.

So it will, perhaps, not come as any great surprise that such abstinence - along with folk wanting to steer clear of booze for health reasons - has seen a significant rise in non-alcoholic versions of wines, 'spirits' and beers.

The size, for example, of the non-alcoholic beer market is on a steady increase - stalling only during the pandemic era - and is now fast closing in on being worth £300 million. That's doubled over the last five years alone.

Worth noting is that the traditional beer market overall in the UK, in comparison, is worth a staggering £23 billion.

It may be a small slice of the market today - but its size is growing and that's prompting more companies to join in.

Faversham brewer Shepherd Neame launched its first low alcohol beer in March 2021. Weighing in at a mere 0.5% ABV (alcohol by volume), its Noughty Bear IPA has proved a hit since its launch.

Explains Rose Davis, the firm's senior brand manager: "Over the last five years, we have seen a growing demand for no/low alcohol options, with the category going from strength to strength as more people from all age groups enjoy them.

“We have been delighted by the response to Noughty Bear, with more than 100,000 pints sold since its launch."

It's not all been plain sailing for non-alcoholic versions of our regular pub tipples.

When brands first started making an appearance in the 1980s, there was a general view of 'what's the point of that?'. Guinness spent millions promoting is Kaliber, its non-alcoholic lager (you may remember Billy Connolly in its TV adverts) but despite claiming a huge chunk of the then-merging market, it fell foul to the on-going problem of it not tasting as good as the real thing.

But tastes and attitudes have changed.

Gone are the days when we thought a couple of pints in a smoke-filled pub was a healthy way to spend an evening.

Sales of booze in supermarkets are dropping, the cost-of-living crisis is biting into our leisure spend and we've never been more aware of the health benefits - both physical and mental - of avoiding a glass of something intoxicating.

Now the tastes have improved dramatically with non-alcoholic wine and even 'spirits' in fancy-designed bottles growing in popularity.

Even Guinness has released a 0% version of its flagship stout, while the likes of Heineken and BrewDog have all joined the fold and been met with favourable reviews.

But not all of Kent's most respected drink producers have decided to take the plunge and chase the trend.

"The market is big - there's no question of that," says Stephen Russell, founder of the Copper Rivet Distillery in Chatham which specialises in grain to glass production of whisky, vodka and gin, "and I suspect it will continue to grow.

"With a non-alcoholic cordial - you can't call them spirits - you're targetting the people in a group who don't want to drink. We're targetting those that do and who want to enjoy good quality spirits sensibly.

"We did consider it when the trend first emerged but decided not to get involved.

"One of the features of consumer products is they are dominated by really large multinationals who have literally billions to spend on dominating a market.

"The truth is they're really cheap to make and there's enormous profit margins.

"There's no alcohol duty to pay.

"Yet you'll notice the non-alcoholic 'spirits' are a similar price to the spirits, but there's no alcohol spirit in there so that is basically all profit margin. They're basically flavoured water."

It's a point which will rankle with many trying to opt for the non-alcoholic version and a view shared by others.

"It seems to us that the price being asked for some brands of alcohol free products is far too high bearing in mind that there is no duty," says Andy Reason, director of Anno Distillers in Marden.

"For example, if you take a typical 70cl bottle of gin at 37.5% ABV the duty is £7.54 which when you add VAT rises to £9.05. Putting this in to context, a well known brand of gin currently on offer in Sainsbury's at £14 has a 'duty contribution' of £9.05. The same brand has a zero alcohol version on sale at £15 with no duty component and a hugely increased profit margin for the manufacturer.

"Some would argue that the manufacturing process for the alcohol-free products are more complex which explains why the cost is higher than expected. This may well be true but not to that extent.

"Flavoured water should really be quite cheap but marketeers are adept at persuading consumers to part with their cash. At the end of the day it comes down to consumer choice in what they buy and manufacturers in what they make."

When it comes to non-alcoholic wines, Chapel Down in Tenterden is similarly reticent to take the plunge.

Explains Josh Donaghay-Spire, head winemaker: "Due to England’s cool maritime climate, our wines naturally have lower alcohol levels (11-12.5% average) in comparison to wines made in warmer climates like California, Australia or Sicily where levels can be up to 15% ABV.

"Whilst lower ABV drinks have seen an increase in consumer interest, we are seeing consumers search for drinks, and wine specifically, with increased provenance such as English wine - an area continuing to be an exciting and growing market."

Such is the growth of the sector in Europe and the UK, the US-based Adult Non-Alcoholic Beverage Association (ANBA) has set up on this side of the Atlantic too to further promote the industry.

Citing recent research of the UK market by KAM Media, it says 55% of adults are trying to cut down alcohol consumption and that 29% of adult pub visits do not include any consumption of alcohol.

It also says 72% of UK adults have tried a 'low or no' alcohol drink.

Speaking from New York, its CEO, Marcos Salazar explains: "The cost of NA (non-alcoholic) products is reflective of the resources it takes to create a great tasting beverage.

"In fact, it is harder to make a complex and sophisticated adult beverage without alcohol because alcohol is a preservative and killer of bacteria and so on, so to make a high-quality beverage without it is much more difficult and costly. Consumers tend to equate value with alcohol percentage when, in fact, alcohol is one of the cheaper ingredients of adult beverages.

"The UK is one of the leading markets for adult NA beverages and is ahead of the US market by a few years in terms of number of brands as well as bars, restaurants, hotels, and other establishments serving NA products.

"In the future, Gen Z and Millennials will be the drivers. The BevAlc Insights Team at [online US retailer] Drizly recently said sales of all non-alcoholic beverages, including no-ABV beers and wines, grew by 76% on the site in January 2023 compared to the previous year, and 152% from January 2021, driven by Gen Z and Millennial consumers."

Which begs the question...just what are today's non-alcoholic drinks like - and how do they compare to the real thing?

It should first be said that I tried Dry January as part of a health kick. I fell off the wagon three weeks in on account of not having a glass of wine at the weekend felt, frankly, not right.

The UK is one of the leading markets for adult NA beverages and is ahead of the US market by a few years

I am also one of the 28% referenced in that research above...I've never tasted a non-alcoholic beer or wine. I'd rather have a boring old soft drink at half the price than splash out on a pint of something which tastes even less pleasant than many regular lagers.

So in this modest taste test, I headed to Sainsbury's and returned with a bottle of regular and rosé Nozeco (in 'fun-size' bottles) - which as the name suggest is a zero alcohol version of the heavenly prosecco - a can of Gordon's 'gin' and tonic (0% natch) and a can of Beaver Town's Lazer Crush.

There is something profoundly disturbing about sitting at my desk at 9.30am swigging from a small bottle of something which looks alcoholic. A terrifying vision of how life could be if I really hit bad times. But I remind myself my coffee which is sat getting cold is probably worse for my health than what I'm taste-testing.

Firstly, let's tackle that issue of price.

Yes, there were plenty of big brand 0% 'gins' on the shelf at prices akin to their full-blooded traditional versions. But...all the drinks we purchased were cheaper - some only fractionally, others significantly - than the full-on versions. So how do they actually taste?

Nozeco

I'm a big fan of prosecco as my liver will no doubt testify. It's light, tastes great and seems designed to put you in a good mood.

Nozeco lives in the same neighbourhood as its mansion-dwelling sibling but at the other end of the street and in more modest digs. A one-bedroom flat, if you will. It's not offensive, but it does leave a profound sweet taste in the mouth - and this despite its sugar content and calorie count being lower (about 50% lower in fact) than its alcoholic version. I can only assume the sweetners used come more to the fore to compensate for that lack of alcohol.

The sweet taste it leaves behind actually makes it quite a struggle to drink too much which, perhaps, is a blessing.

It reminds me of Appletise - just slightly less apple-y.

The rosé isn't bad but has hint of mouthwash about it...although, in truth, on repeat sipping it does get get more enjoyable.

Verdict: At just £3.75 a full-size bottle (our tiny version was £1.60), this is both well priced and if you want to allow your booze-avoiding friends to join in a toast then it certainly beats offering them a glass of fizzy water or a Coke. Would I choose it instead of an alcoholic version? Obviously not - frankly who would? That's not really the point. This is a product for someone who is very deliberately avoiding alcohol. But as an alternative it's not too shabby. For the record, however, I'm pleased I'd only bought a miniature bottle...

Gordon's Alcohol free and tonic

Yes, that's not a typo, the word 'gin' does not appear in any shape or form on this can...instead it is described as an "alcohol-free spirit distilled with botanicals" and, of course, mixed with tonic and a hint of lime.

To hark back to my neighbourhood analogy of the prosecco and nozeco, this drink is a next-door neighbour of the original. It is not bad at all. In fact, I'd go as far as saying it's rather good.

While that heavy hit you get with the alcohol is missing, it's replaced with an undercurrent of the original clout gin provides which could quite easily fool you into thinking you're drinking the real thing.

And, as a standalone drink, it must be said it works rather well.

Verdict: The can cost £1.50 - that's 35p less than the 'proper' version. But it delivers on taste and refreshment. Plus there's not the cloying sweetness left by whatever they add to the Nozeco. This is an excellent alternative if you want a gin which - as I have proved - you can swig back at 9.35am on a Thursday morning while working. Do, however, expect some funny looks (and not in a good way) from your colleagues.

Beavertown Lazer Crush

Now, while this describes itself on the can as an 'alcohol free IPA' there is, in truth, a trace of the hard stuff in this...albeit a mere 0.3%. So it doesn't really count.

I like Beavertown...its Neck Oil is a delight albeit more often than not fiendishly expensive so an occasional treat rather than a go-to.

So how do I find my first ever barely-any alcohol beer? Well, I cannot help but say I am flabbergasted. It tastes exactly like plenty of traditional IPAs. It smells right...it strolls across the tastebuds in the same way. Were this to be one of those old blind taste tests, I would never in a million years guess this was the 'fake'.

Verdict: This is seriously impressive stuff in terms of replicating the taste of an IPA without the liver-bashing alcohol. The can cost £1.60 - 40p less than a can of Neck Oil. In fact, I'd go as far as saying that I could quite happily drink this for pleasure, safe in the knowledge I'm not going to regret it in the morning.

In terms of replicating the taste, this is a clear winner. But, and it's a big but, you're not, realistically, going to pick it over a booze-filled alternative on a night out unless you have to. However, that's not the market any of these drinks are aiming for.

It's an alternative for when you're driving or having a health kick but want that taste of a proper night out.

I went into this taste test, in truth, expecting to find them all underwhelming and disappointing. I was, in fact, pleasantly surprised. Next time, however, I won't drink them in the morning.