Most people who successfully reduce their drinking use a combination of small changes rather than one big rule. The common techniques are: alternating each alcoholic drink with water or a soft drink (often called zebra striping); setting fixed drink-free days each week; pouring smaller measures; tracking units rather than drinks; deciding your limit before you start rather than during; and switching some drinks to lower-strength alternatives such as light spirits, lower-ABV beers or spritzes. The UK Chief Medical Officers advise no more than 14 units a week, spread over three or more days.

Mindful drinking means paying deliberate attention to what, when and why you drink, rather than drinking on autopilot. In practice it involves noticing the cues that prompt a drink, choosing consciously whether to have one, and paying attention to the drink itself — how it tastes, how much you have had, how you feel. It is not abstinence and it is not a programme. Most people who describe themselves as mindful drinkers still drink; they simply drink less, and more intentionally.

Coasting describes staying at a comfortable, sustained level of mild alcohol effect across an evening rather than drinking to keep climbing. The idea is to reach a level you are happy with, then hold it — by slowing your pace, alternating with soft drinks, or switching to lower-strength options — rather than continuing at the same rate. It is a moderation technique, not a brand term, and it sits alongside zebra striping and drink-free days as one of the more practical ways people manage social drinking.

Alcohol-free is one option among several. The middle ground includes lower-ABV versions of drinks you already enjoy: mid-strength or "light" spirits at around 20% ABV rather than 40%, lower-alcohol beers at 2–3% rather than 5%, wine spritzers, and long drinks built with a smaller alcohol base. There is also simple reduction — same drinks, fewer of them, or smaller measures. Which works depends on why you are cutting down. People who miss the taste of a drink often find lower-strength versions easier to sustain than no-alcohol substitutes.

A 25ml serve of Cut Classics contains 0.5 units of alcohol, because the spirits are 20% ABV. The same 25ml measure of a standard 40% ABV gin, vodka or rum contains 1 unit. A 70cl bottle contains 14 units, against 28 in a full-strength equivalent. The UK Chief Medical Officers’ guideline is no more than 14 units a week for both men and women, spread across three or more days with several drink-free days.

Less alcohol generally means a milder hangover, but lower-strength spirits are still alcoholic and drinking enough of anything alcoholic will produce a hangover. A 20% ABV spirit contains half the alcohol of a 40% one measure for measure, so drinking the same number of serves means consuming half the alcohol. Drinking twice as many serves means consuming the same. The reduction comes from the strength, not from anything that neutralises alcohol’s effects.

No. Drink-driving limits apply to the alcohol in your bloodstream, not the strength of what you drank. The legal limit is 80mg of alcohol per 100ml of blood in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, and 50mg in Scotland. Lower-strength drinks put alcohol into your system more slowly for the same volume, but they still put it there. If you are driving, do not drink — that advice does not change with ABV.

They do different things. A month off gives a clear reset, often improves sleep and energy, and can break a habit loop — but around a third of people who complete it return to previous levels within a few months. Sustained moderation is less dramatic and harder to point at, but the reduction compounds across the year. Neither is objectively better. Some people use Dry January as a starting point and then carry a lower baseline forward, which combines the two.

No, but alcohol makes it harder. Alcohol contains roughly 7 calories per gram — closer to fat than to sugar — and those calories carry no nutritional value. It can also loosen restraint around food. Most people reducing their intake for weight reasons find that cutting back rather than cutting out is more sustainable, and that the biggest gains come from reducing frequency and from choosing drinks with a lower calorie load. Anyone with a specific health goal should take advice from a doctor or dietitian.

There is no absolute prohibition, but medical guidance is consistent: speak to your prescriber first, drink less than you otherwise would, and stop if you feel unwell. Many people taking GLP-1 medication report that alcohol affects them more strongly than before, and some find the desire to drink falls away entirely. Alcohol also carries substantial calories with no nutritional value, which works against the calorie deficit the medication is helping maintain. This is general information, not medical advice — follow your prescriber’s guidance.

Several factors are thought to contribute. GLP-1 medications slow gastric emptying, which alters how quickly alcohol reaches the bloodstream. Appetite suppression means many people are eating considerably less, and drinking on a near-empty stomach raises blood alcohol faster. Reduced overall food and fluid intake compounds the effect. The practical consequence is that a quantity of alcohol that was previously unremarkable can feel noticeably stronger. Anyone experiencing this should reduce their intake and discuss it with their prescriber.

Many users report exactly that. The reduction in intrusive food thoughts that GLP-1 users often describe appears, for a significant proportion, to extend to alcohol — drinks they previously looked forward to simply stop appealing. This is an active area of research, with trials underway into GLP-1 medications for alcohol use disorder, and it is not yet a licensed use. If your desire to drink has dropped, that is a common experience and there is no reason to push against it.

Alcohol provides around 7 calories per gram, second only to fat, and delivers no protein, vitamins or minerals. A large glass of wine is roughly 200 calories; a pint of lager around 180; a double full-strength spirit with a regular mixer can exceed 200. On a GLP-1, where the medication is helping you sustain a calorie deficit and total intake is already reduced, drinks like these consume a disproportionate share of your daily calories without contributing anything nutritionally. Reducing either the number of drinks or the calorie load of each is the practical response.

Spirits with a zero-calorie mixer are usually the lowest. A 25ml measure of a standard 40% ABV spirit is around 55–60 calories; with soda water and lime, the whole drink stays near that figure. A 20% ABV light spirit is around 28 calories per 25ml serve, so the same drink lands close to 30. Dry wines run roughly 120–200 calories a glass depending on size, standard lager around 180 a pint, and cocktails frequently exceed 250 because of syrups and liqueurs. Slimline and light mixers make a substantial difference to any spirit-based drink.

They may suit people who choose to drink while on GLP-1 medication, because at 20% ABV and 28 calories per 25ml serve they carry half the alcohol and half the calories of a standard 40% spirit. That said, the decision to drink at all belongs with you and your prescriber. If alcohol makes you feel unwell — which is common on these medications — the right response is to stop and seek advice, not to switch to a weaker drink. We would rather say that plainly than sell you something.

There are recognised considerations, which is why the advice is always to consult your prescriber. GLP-1 medications carry warnings relating to pancreatitis, and heavy alcohol consumption is itself a risk factor for it. For people also taking insulin or sulfonylureas, alcohol can increase the risk of low blood sugar. Nausea and gastrointestinal side effects are common on these medications and alcohol can worsen them. None of this is a reason to panic, and it is a reason to have the conversation with a clinician rather than working it out yourself.

Cut Classics are traditionally distilled British spirits — a London Dry gin, a British grain vodka and an aged Caribbean rum — made at 20% ABV rather than the usual 40%. They carry half the alcohol and half the calories of standard spirits, at 28 calories per 25ml serve, while retaining the flavour and aroma profile of the full-strength originals. They are distilled conventionally with no added flavourings, and have won medals at the International Spirits Challenge and the International Wine and Spirits Competition.

A light spirit is a spirit made deliberately at reduced strength, calorie content, or both. Under UK food labelling rules, "light" can only be used where a product contains at least 30% fewer calories than the standard version, or in the case of spirits at least 30% less alcohol. Cut Classics contain 50% less of each than a 40% ABV equivalent. The term is distinct from "alcohol-free" (0.05% ABV or below) and from "low alcohol" (1.2% ABV or below), both of which describe far weaker products.

A mid-strength spirit is one made at a strength between conventional full-strength spirits and alcohol-free alternatives — typically 20–25% ABV against the usual 37.5–40%. The category emerged in response to demand for moderation options that still taste and behave like spirits. The term is imprecise, because "mid-strength" means something entirely different in beer, where it might describe 3.2% ABV. We prefer "light spirit", which consumers already understand from soft drinks and food to mean less of the thing being reduced.

Softer, and more open. The most noticeable difference is the absence of the ethanol burn that full-strength spirits have when tasted neat — less heat in the throat, and less of the solvent note that can mask underlying flavour. Because there is less ethanol competing for your attention, botanical and cask characteristics often come through more clearly. In a mixed drink the difference is subtle; served neat or over ice it is obvious, and generally in the drink’s favour.

They are built on opposite principles. Alcohol-free spirits attempt to recreate the impression of a spirit without alcohol, usually through botanical extracts and infusions, and inevitably behave differently in a glass — alcohol carries aroma and gives body, so removing it entirely changes what is possible. Light spirits are conventionally distilled from the same ingredients as their full-strength counterparts and simply contain less alcohol. If you want to eliminate alcohol, alcohol-free is the answer. If you want less of it while keeping the character of the drink, lower-strength is.

Dilution. Halving the spirit halves the flavour along with the alcohol, and you end up with the same volume of mixer diluting a smaller amount of liquid — the drink tastes thin and watery, much like under-diluted cordial. A purpose-made 20% ABV spirit is formulated so that a full 25ml serve delivers the intensity you expect at half the alcohol. There is also the practical point: measuring out 12.5ml every time is not something most people sustain.

The methods are proprietary and differ across the three spirits. Broadly, the work happens in the choice and treatment of underlying ingredients, in the blending of separately distilled batches, and in multiple distillations through copper stills. What we can say is what we do not do: nothing is added after distillation to compensate for the reduced alcohol — no flavourings, natural or artificial, and no sugar.

No. All flavour comes from traditional distillation and blending. Nothing is added afterwards, artificial or so-called natural.

Yes. Cut Classics have won medals at the International Spirits Challenge and the International Wine and Spirits Competition, the two most established international spirits competitions, judged blind against full-strength entries. Full details are on our Press and Awards page.

Each 25ml serve contains 28 calories, half that of a standard 40% ABV spirit. The total depends on your mixer. With a slimline tonic, a G&T comes in a little over 30 calories. With soda water and a squeeze of lime, a vodka long drink stays under 30. With a full-sugar mixer, the mixer will contribute considerably more than the spirit does — a 200ml regular tonic adds around 70 calories.

Cut Classics contain no added sugar at any stage; any sweetness comes from distillation. The gin and rum are zero carbohydrate. The vodka contains 0.1g of carbohydrate per 25ml serve.

Yes. Distilled spirits are considered gluten free even when made from wheat, rye or barley, because distillation removes the proteins from the starting grain. Coeliac UK confirms this position for distilled alcohol generally. Cut Classics contain no post-distillation additions that would reintroduce gluten.

Yes. No animal products are used in production and no animal-derived fining agents are involved.

Cut Classics keep well once opened, though at 20% ABV they are less self-preserving than a 40% spirit. We suggest using an opened bottle within 6 months and storing it upright, away from direct sunlight and heat.

A 70cl bottle contains 28 serves of 25ml, or 14 double serves of 50ml.

Share details about your shipping policies, product warranties, or other common questions.

The 20% ABV London Dry gin and British vodka are £25.99 each, and the aged Caribbean rum is £26.99. The Classic Trio, containing all three, is £72.99. There are also special prices for 3-bottle packs and 6-bottle cases of each spirit. UK mainland delivery is free on orders over £55, and email subscribers receive 15% off.

We currently deliver to UK addresses only. Alcohol shipping rules vary considerably by country and we would rather not take an order we cannot fulfil. If you are outside the UK and would like to be told when that changes, email hello@cut-classics.com.

We try to pack and ship orders on the day that they are received. Realistically that means receiving the order before 3pm. We work with couriers who aim to have your Cut Classics delivered within 48 hours.

The official answer lies in our Return & Refund Policy, which you can find here. But we want you to enjoy the drinks that you buy from us and we want you to be happy! So, if you are not getting on with the product then drop us a line at the email address below and let's talk about it. We want to delight you, not disappoint you. That really matters to us.