This list is only some of the highlights of the media coverage for our festivals. There are even more articles, blogs, and Club Soda TV and radio apparances on our main website, joinclubsoda.com.

Paul Jones, the owner of Manchester-based brewery Cloudwater, is testing out a range of sodas that use ingredients from the brewing process, such as hops, with “none of the alcohol”. The Good Call Soda range […] debuted a test batch of the sodas at a festival in London this weekend dedicated to low and no-alcohol drinks.

Best mocktails and non-alcoholic drinks with the glam factor – Ahead of the Club Soda Mindful Drinking Festival this weekend, we tasted the best mocktails and non-alcoholic drinks for the growing number of you choosing a Soberista life.

The Best Beer Festivals In London: July 2019 – Enter Club Soda, a group dedicated to enjoying good drinks without the need for intoxication, and the summer edition of the Mindful Drinking Festival. Alongside various cocktails and ‘soft’ drinks, the festival serves a variety of beers with less than 0.5% ABV.

Why work events are becoming a sober experience – The boozy corporate party may be endangered after #MeToo and the rise of non-drinkers. Laura Willoughby, co-founder of Club Soda, a mindful drinking movement, says that corporate events are a hard nut to crack.

No Alcohol Brands on Show at London Mindful Drinking Festival – Bartenders who wish to learn more about no-alcohol spirits, and taste as many as possible in order to sort the wheat from the chaff, will be interested to hear that 13 botanical, alcohol-free distillates will be on show […].

The Club Soda Mindful Drinking Festival returns to East London – Club Soda, the mindful drinking movement, is once again holding the UK’s only festival for mindful drinkers this summer, at its favourite east London hangout. Spitalfields Market.

Laura talks to Vanessa Feltz about the joys of not drinking and the Mindful Drinking Festival.

My guide to low and no alcohol beers at the Mindful Drinking Festival – I’ll be doing two tours of low and no alcohol beers and doing a talk about the place for these beers in the life of someone who unapologetically drinks a lot of full-strength beer.

How ‘Dry January’ Became a Thing Around the World – This weekend is the biggest event in Club Soda’s year, the Mindful Drinking Festival at London’s Truman Brewery (Jan. 12 & 13). It’s the brainchild of Laura Willoughby, a businesswoman and former politician turned social entrepreneur.

18 Things To Do In London In January 2019: “Doing Dry January? Get yourself to the Mindful Drinking Festival where you can imbibe beers, spirits and cocktails — all alcohol-free, of course. As well as tasting and buying the drinks, you can meet the producers, attend talks and workshops, and more”

Londoners were less boozy than ever in 2018 (and these stats prove it). 15k Londoners went to Club Soda’s Mindful Drinking Festival in July 2018.

Unmissable winter events in London – Save on your central heating bill and venture out this season with our pick of the best things to do in London this winter. (The Mindful Drinking Festival is number 16!)

Five companies that are shaking the non-alcoholic drinks category – On Saturday, mindful drinking consumer group Club Soda held it’s Mindful Drinking Festival outside of London for the first time. Just-drinks visited the event in Glasgow to speak to some of the beverage companies helping to mark out the future course of the growing non-alcoholic category.

REVIEW: Vegan Highlights At Mindful Drinking Festival Club Soda In Glasgow – Mindful drinking movement Club Soda brought its alcohol-free drinks festival to a city renowned for boozy lifestyles, but also one where vegan and wellbeing businesses thrive. 

Mine’s a mindful mocktail: sobriety is cool at Scots festival – Lee McGilvray, a bearded folk artist better known by his stage name Flew the Arrow, has just finished playing his latest gig and is looking for a refreshment. But rather than grab a pint of beer to wind down, he’s treating himself to kombucha — a naturally sparkling fermented tea.

Mindful Drinking Festival to challenge perceptions on alcohol free drinks in Glasgow – Club Soda, the mindful drinking movement that helps people to change their drinking habits, is bringing its popular Mindful Drinking Festival to Glasgow this weekend.

GIN AND BEAR IT Scotland’s Willy Wonka urges people to go sober for October – with booze-free gin – Club Soda, the mindful drinking movement, is bringing the Mindful Drinking Festival to the Briggait in Glasgow for the first time. It comes as figures show one in five Scots are looking to reduce the amount of booze they drink.

Booze-free festival to shake up drink habits – A festival celebrating drinks with low or zero alcohol levels is set to arrive in Glasgow. Club Soda, the mindful drinking event which encourages people to change their drinking habits, will bring its Mindful Drinking Festival to the Briggait on Saturday.

Alcohol-free drinking festival targets Scotland’s heavy-drinking over 50s – An alcohol-free ‘mindful drinking festival’ at Glasgow’s Briggait on Saturday will attempt to kick start a change in that culture. A first for Scotland, the free event is organised by online support group Club Soda – after successful similar festivals in London.

Why have an unclear mind when you can have a clear one? Scotland’s first mindful drinking festival will celebrate imbibing less and enjoying flavour more.

Club sober – Mindful Drinking Festival, October 13, 12-6pm, The Briggait, Glasgow [with a listing of alcohol free drinks: “Sparkling varieties, Cider-a-like, Spirit stand-in’s, Zero beers”].

Club Soda brings Scotland’s first alcohol-free drinks festival to Glasgow – The Mindful Drinking Festival will give Scots the opportunity to taste the new wave of alcohol-free drinks hitting the market: alcohol-free beers, spirits, and a host of drinks invented by radical alchemists – kombuchas, shrubs and elixirs.

A barrel of laughs at the Beer & Cider Marketing Awards: “Club Soda, a company which promotes “mindful drinking”, appeared on several award shortlists.”

A pint of mindful, please: festival makes it cool to be teetotal in Glasgow “It has all the offerings of a typical drinks festival: beer on tap, live music, cocktail masterclasses and competitions to find the best bartender. But the mindful drinking festival coming to Glasgow next month is missing one key ingredient: alcohol.”

Club Soda brings Scotland’s first alcohol-free drinks festival to Glasgow: “The festival will give Scots the opportunity to taste the new wave of alcohol-free drinks hitting the market…”

Shortlist revealed for 2018 Beer & Cider Marketing Awards: “Best Targeting of Alternative Markets: Club Soda. Best Event: Club Soda”

A Day Out at the Mindful Drinking Festival: “When I read about the Mindful Drinking Festival, I was pretty surprised. Not that such a thing should exist per se – because these days there are festivals for absolutely everything. But that it should be so well attended by both major brands and tiny brands a like. Whatever it was going to be like, I decided I had to go.”

Are you drinking mindfully? “The summer is here, you are out for a BBQ and someone offers you another beer or chilled glass of wine, fine except that you are driving.  What’s the alternative? Only a few years ago an alcohol free drink meant fruit juice, lime and soda or a fizzy kids drink, the times they are a-changing!”

Mindful Drinking Festival “’Wow… it’s actually busy!’ This is my initial reaction as I stand in the middle of Spitalfields Market on a Saturday afternoon watching people milling around picking up drinks from trays, chatting and laughing while lounging on deck chairs.”

I Tried ‘Mindful Drinking’ to See If I Can Have Fun Sober. “A decade ago, an event like the Mindful Drinking Festival (MDF) might have been derided as some kind of puritanical love-in. But today, in this climate, in makes perfect sense.”

Club Soda’s Mindful Drinking Festival – “Ashley attended the popular festival .. tune in to see what it’s about”

The Millennial Teetotalers Upending the Stereotype of Boozy Britain. “In between gin and tonic pairing sessions, beer tastings and cocktail masterclasses, students, hipsters and young professionals lounged around on deep-set deckchairs, making the most of the unusually warm weather.”

There’s a free mindful festival happening in East London this weekend. “Mindfulness and festival fun can go hand in hand at Club Soda, which is putting on an alcohol-free spectacular in East London this weekend.”

A Non-Alcoholic Drinks Festival Is Coming To London This Weekend. “Trade shows in the alcohol industry can be tricky when you need to stay sober and network, but a festival coming to London will make drinking on the job a lot easier.

UK alcohol-free drinks festival coming to London at the end of July. “Club Soda, the mindful drinking movement, is once again holding the only festival in the world for the sober curious this summer.”

Drinks festivals in London: The best events for the rest of the year. “It may not be Dry January but a whole festival dedicated to going teetotal is coming to Spitalfields at the end of July.”

“Mindful drinking isn’t an entirely new concept. Last year, journalist Rosamund Dean wrote a book advocating a more thoughtful approach to alcohol consumption and low-to-no-alcohol movement Club Soda put on two Mindful Drinking festivals last year, due to high demand. “

Ahead of the third #MindfulDrinkingFest, taking place at Spitalfields on the 28th July, we sat down for a quick chat with Club Soda co-founder, Laura Willoughby MBE to find out a little bit more about the festival and what she’s most excited about.

Signs of health and wellbeing have dominated the industry with increasing frequency.  … In the UK, the first ever alcohol­-free drinks festival took place last year, called The Mindful Drinking Festival.

Jefford on Monday: Mindfulness and wine. “Maybe London’s Mindful Drinking Festival. There were two of these last year, and the next one is scheduled for July 28^th, at London’s Spitalfields Market. It’s run by Club Soda, a ‘Mindful Drinking Movement’, and the Festival features non-alcoholic drinks. “

¿Qué es y por qué debes conocer el movimiento ‘Mindful Drinking’? [What is and why should you know the ‘Mindful Drinking’ movement?]

There’s money in moderation: the rise of alcohol-free drinks. Alice Lascelles on how bars, mixologists and supermarkets have embraced the no-alcohol trend.

Find & Replace: The Rising Demand For Non-Alcoholic Alternatives. “Discerning drinkers are searching for non-alcoholic versions of their usual beverages, making for exciting times in the market.”

El alcohol está pasado de moda. Así es el nuevo ‘botellón’ [Alcohol is old fashioned]

A Thirst for Sobriety – Why We Shouldn’t Make Excuses for Ditching Alcohol. “This change is having a big knock-on effect. This year saw the introduction of the UK’s first alcohol-free festival, organised by Club Soda.”

Bright spots at a gloomy time for the British wine trade. “We’re also seemingly drinking less booze these days, which has led to a raft of new adult soft drinks, as I discovered at last month’s Mindful Drinking festival (yes, really)”

10 best alcohol-free drinks “Banishing the booze? The market for tee-total tipples is ever-growing, and we’ve picked out the strongest contenders”

The Best Non-Alcoholic Beer (And A Few Very-Low-Alcohol Beers) “Eight bottles and cans of alcohol-free beer to sub in during the festive season”

Just the tonic? Adults soft drinks category report 2017 “Cocktail culture is transforming adult soft drinks as Brits look for posh tipples to enjoy with or without booze. So who’s in front?” 

Swapping bingeing on booze for a spell of abstinence? If you’re looking to limit your alcohol consumption this festive season, here’s a round up of healthier, hangover-free alternatives, courtesy of Club Soda.

Why mothers are drinking more than their millennial children. “Last week the Mindful Drinking Christmas Festival drew in the crowds in east London with workshops on topics such as dating sober and making mocktails.”

“A teetotaller’s guide to drinking less alcohol this Christmas (and why dry Yule is best). Last weekend, in the heart of London’s traditionally big-boozing City, 10,000 sober, sober-ish and sober-curious citizens descended on the capital’s second Mindful Drinking Festival at Spitalfields Market.”

“Mindful drinking: how City workers are going alcohol‑free. Sales of non-alcoholic drinks are soaring. It’s all thanks to millennials”

“Millennials discover the joys of ‘mindful drinking’ as party season gets under way. Young people are revelling in a new range of alcohol-free drinks … and a series of books aims to convert the rest of us”

Best buys: Big Drop Brewing 0.5% Pale Ale “I’ve been focussing quite a lot on alcohol-free drinks recently so I headed along to the Mindful Drinking festival in Spitalfields yesterday where I discovered this brilliant range of low alcohol (0.5%) beers.”

9 things we learned at the Club Soda event: “Traditionally, the pub trade has not done the best job of serving or promoting low and non-alcoholic drinks but, with a burgeoning demand for these products, pubs have an opportunity to capitalise on this market.”

Things To Do This Week In London: Mindful Festival: Going cold turkey this year? Club Soda is throwing a massive Christmas festival, full of alcohol-free options to make the transition to low booze/no booze easier. Spitalfields Market.

“UK’s first non-alcoholic brewery prepares to launch latest beer at Mindful Drinking Festival” – “Nirvana Brewery in Leyton will launch Sutra IPA, the second in a series of 0.5 % beers at the festival”

Laura was on Hoxton Radio’s The Hoxton Fashion Show on 15 November talking about the festival, and got the DJs to try some Big Drop Pale Ale and Pimento – both went down well!

The rise of mindful drinking: how to drink less but enjoy yourself more this party season. A new move towards mindful drinking is encouraging a more measured approach to merrymaking.

Heineken, Big Drop back Club Soda’s Mindful Drinking Christmas Festival. Heineken’s 0.0 beer, along with low-alcohol craft brewer Big Drop, will sponsor a mindful drinking festival in London this month. 

Dreaming of a light Christmas? Join this festive mindful drinking party. Christmas isn’t all about Snowballs and Eggnogs. This London festival is proving that party season can be just as adventurous for those not partaking in traditional festive tipples.

On a warm Sunday afternoon, hundreds of people are milling around what is usually the site of an antiques fair or farmers’ market in Bermondsey, south London. Today, it’s a festival dedicated to drinking.

Alcohol-free: Stealth drinking helping people give up alcohol

There are now clubs for people who want to get together without alcohol and the UK’s first alcohol-free drinking festival was held in London last month.

Nirvana’s yoga-goers may well have a crossover with the attendees of last month’s Mindful Drinking festival. The festival in Bermondsey, London, grew out of the mindful drinking movement, the followers of which aim to cut down their alcohol consumption. 

Laura kicked off the day on Sky News, opening a bottle of Eisberg Fizz with the presenters and wowing the presenters with Teetotal GnT and Big Drop’s Stout!

You and Yours covered the event, speaking to Botonique and Heineken as well as some mindful and less mindful drinkers.

nothing here yet

I promised some of the stallholders I would give a shout out to their brands, so I have decided to give you my top 5 drinks

WinkBall reporters Jamie Body & Itteshad Hossain report from the festival. 

There are mindful pub crawls, around venues with decent selections of low-alcohol drinks, and since a mindful drinking festival in August, a whole community of gentle drinkers is beginning to emerge.

Heineken 0.0 alcohol-free lager was one of the sponsors for the first-ever Mindful Drinking Festival in mid-August.
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Launched in March to meet the growing demand for great tasting alcohol-free lagers, Heineken 0.0 sponsored the first-ever Mindful Drinking Festival.

Have We Gone Mindfulness Mad? Probably but until the ass of a law is changed we will promote not drinking as a desireable social norm where possible 🙂

Mindful Drinking and the rise of the Sober Curious – Motivations for wanting to be more mindful differ from person to person. “In amongst the trend are lots of different reasons and behaviours,” says Laura. 

UK’s first alcohol-free drinks festival attracts 2,500 attendees. Laura said that the festival had “exceeded expectations” and showed there was a growing market for alcohol-free alternatives.

Heineken 0.0 sponsored the first-ever Mindful Drinking festival on Sunday 13 August, following its launch in March this year (2017).

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7 lower-strength beers for ‘mindful’ drinkers … there are a whole range of great lower-strength ales and lagers available for more mindful drinkers.

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In need of a detox? The Mindful Drinking Festival is taking place this weekend in London, offering guests a different kind of Sunday session! 

A big shout out for the festival including Square Root, Fentimans, Eisberg, the Hotel, London Essence and Botonique. 

Things To Do In London This Weekend: Aug 11 – 13: This weekend, if it ain’t a festival, we’re just not interested. Lucky that London has six ace ones, then…

Fancy moderating your alcohol without facing social ostracisation? Well you’re in luck.

Have you had enough of the weekly alcohol-related festivals this Summer? Be it the Rosé Festival or the London Craft Beer Festival, it seems there is a new event every weekend. 

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Club Soda, the mindful drinking movement, has announced the UK’s first ever Mindful Drinking Festival.

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Club Soda, the mindful drinking movement, has announced the UK’s first ever Mindful Drinking Festival

Everything in moderation. Except flavour. Club Soda, the mindful drinking movement, has announced the UK’s first ever Mindful Drinking Festival.

Club Soda has announced the UK’s first ever Mindful Drinking Festival, to be hosted at the Bermondsey Square Hotel in south London.

Fancy tucking in to some drinks but don’t want the hassle of a hangover? We’ve thought of you!

With the rise of the mindful drinking movement, London is hosting its first alcohol-free drinks festival; the Club Soda: Mindful Drinking Festival.

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Discover the best and most innovative alcohol-free drinks from top brands and independent producers with the UK’s first Mindful Drinking Festival at the Bermondsey Square Hotel this August.

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You can almost certainly guarantee that at a festival you’re gonna let your hair down, get absolutely paralytic and probably miss the one band/DJ that you actually came there to see …

A lot of LGBT socialising happens in pubs and bars. That can be a problem if, for whatever reason, you want to cut down on your drinking, or not drink at all. 

It’s no secret we enjoy the odd cocktail at Travelwrap Towers. So why are we getting so excited about an alcohol-free festival on 13 August?

How to drink mindfully. Between date night, girls’ night, work drinks, and Sunday Funday, it’s easier than ever to go accidentally overboard. 

Klen&Sober

Sober London: My Pick of this Summer’s Alcohol Free Fun

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22 Fantastic Things to do in London this weekend. There’s no need to worry about the next morning’s hangover at the Mindfulness Drinking Festival. This is a booze-free fest for anyone who’s sober-curious or on the wagon.

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Jussi guest blogs on why alcohol-free drinks can help some people change their drinking habits. 

A celebration of the best alcohol-free drinks available, with craft beers, wines, lower-sugar sodas, infusions, and expert mixologists.

A celebration of the best alcohol-free drinks available, with craft beers, wines, lower-sugar sodas, infusions, and expert mixologists.

A celebration of the best alcohol-free drinks available, with craft beers, wines, lower-sugar sodas, infusions, and expert mixologists.

Thanks to our friends at Drink.Up London for bigging us up – recognising that a crowd interested in great tasting cocktails are also interested in great tasting alcohol-free drinks.

As more and more people across the UK are joining the mindful drinking movement, come and try some delicious alcohol alternatives at the Mindful Drinking festival

The one-day celebration will see the boutique Bermondsey Square Hotel transformed into a celebration of the best alcohol-free drinks available.

Go out, but don’t get drunk! Full run down of the festival!

How to take care of your non-drinking guests at your wedding. A post by Laura Willoughby.

What is mindful drinking and how can it improve well-being. 

4 Ways to tell if you are Sober Curious by Laura Willoughby

An article discussing St. Peter’s Brewery’s support towards the alcohol-free movement, and its upcoming stand at the Mindful Drinking Festival.

The Eastern Daily Press report on the success of low-alcohol and non-alcoholic beers, the increasing demand for them, and the role that East Anglian breweries are playing in catering to mindful drinkers.

The Mindful Drinking Festival has appeared in LondonTown’s directory of London Events! 

Londonist lists the Mindful Drinking Festival in it’s selection of the best beer festivals to hit London in August this year.

Club Soda co-founder Laura wrote an article for This Naked Mind about mindful drinking and staying social.

GOTILO lists 6 of the most mindful activities or days out to take part in, in London, including the Mindful Drinking Festival.

Laura along with Steve from local Nirvana Brewery and Joe from East Lonon based Fitbeer.

Why being sober curious is good for your health – a blog by Laura for The Mutton Club

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How yoga and mindful drinking go together. A blog by Jen Tree for Movement for Modern Life. 

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Club Soda is the UK’s leading mindful drinking movement with the desire to do exactly this, and create a world in which nobody feels out of place if they are not drinking. 

 Jen shares her often rocky road to mindfulness & well-being. “Alcohol-free alternatives play a big part in socialising as they help fend off the questions, the judgement, and the boredom.”

Mindfulness and martinis: August’s best drinks festivals: Skip the hangover at this booze-free festival whether you’re sober-curious or on the wagon.

Club Soda founder Laura talks to RSA about the Club Soda Guide and her reasoning for curating the UK’s first Mindful Drinking Festival.

Good Housekeeping discuss what Mindful Drinking means for most people, and what will be featured at the Mindful Drinking Festival.

The Sober School acknowledges how sobriety is becoming cool and products are hugely improving – inc the Mindful Drinking Festival.

Yeast Berlin asks founder Laura 10 questions, about Club Soda, Mindful Drinking, the alcohol-free industry and the best pubs in London for mindful drinkers.

Square Mile Health share Jen’s blog on the 16 reasons why you should go to an alcohol-free drinks festival – whether you’re a mindful drinker or not.

Real Kombucha speak to Laura about the festival, the mindful drinking movement, drinking behaviours in the UK and the changing attitude of pubs.

Smallish Magazine discuss the concept of Mindful Drinking, and what to except from the festival itself including the brands being showcased.

Metro talk about why you’d want to go to a Mindful Drinking Festival, what to expect when you get there and how many of the brands at the festival are run by women.

The Drinks Business discuss how non-alcoholic drinks are the “biggest opportunity in the drinks industry right now”, in the first of a series of new trend reports.

Metro discusses the previous lack of alcoholic drink alternatives, the recent rise in alcohol-free drink options – and what to expect from the Mindful Drinking Festival

BOE lists five great health and wellness events to attend in London, during the summer of 2017, including the Mindful Drinking Festival.

Writer/yoga teacher Laurie talks on pg 41 about the rise of moderation, mindful drinking, and how our festival fits into this increasing wellness trend.

Drink Preneur talks to Club Soda founder Laura, about the Mindful Drinking Festival and they give a taster of Real Kombucha will be doing with their tasting table.

Lucia Gonzalez Mantecon talks about the Mindful Drinking Festival, how it differs from other festivals and some of the drinks you can expect to see there.

Motto to discuss the Mindful Drinking movement, Club Soda’s part in it, and how Buddhists have been practising mindful drinking for many years.

The Guardian talks to Club Soda, about how the Club Soda Guide and Mindful Drinking Festival helps those who choose to cut down on their alcohol intake.

Laurie at the Girl & Tonic blog talks about her 5 favourite alcohol-free summer drinks, and discusses her thoughts about the Mindful Drinking Festival.

Real Kombucha tells all about the Club Soda philosophy, the lack of choice for adult-orientated soft drinks,  and their tasting table at the Mindful Drinking Festival.

The Independent interviews our co-founder Laura about Club Soda, what it means to be a mindful drinker and what types of alcohol-free drinks options are out there right now.

Nigel Huddleston talks about the low and no-alcohol drinks market, the Mindful Drinking Fest and how the stigma around giving up or cutting down on alcohol is changing.

Club Soda founders discuss the Mindful Drinking Fest – and Bermondsey Square Hotel’s Gemma Brant gives her view of the festival, and what it’ll bring to the community.