Vegan Drinks FAQ

Vegan Drinks FAQ

If you are thinking about going for a vegan lifestyle, there may be many questions spinning inside your head. A lot has been written and told about how to adopt a vegan lifestyle, but very little light has been shed upon the enormous world of vegan drinks. It is a common misconception that adopting a vegan lifestyle means bidding farewell to some of your favorite drinks. On the other hand, there may be many drinks and fruit juices that seem vegan, but they are actually not. Here are some frequently asked questions and common misconceptions when it comes to vegan drinks.

  1. Do vegans drink alcohol?

    Yes, vegans drink alcohol (beers, wines, and hard liquor) but not every bottle of alcohol is vegan. Some alcohol especially beer and wine go through a process called Fining in which animal-based products like gelatin, casein, and egg whites are added to a cloudy batch of alcohol to make it clear. This makes alcohol not suitable for vegans. However, due to the increasing demand for vegan consumers, more and more wineries are going for vegan beer and wines by using a synthetic clearing agent during their Fining process.The good news is that almost every brand of hard liquor (whiskey, rum, vodka, bourbon, and gin) is vegan. Almost all distilled spirits are vegan, except for liqueurs that mention honey at the label or are cream-based.

  2. Do vegans drink coffee?

    Yes, vegans enjoy a wide range of coffee and coffee products. They simply replace the animal-sourced milk or cream products in their coffee with almond milk, soymilk, rice milk, multigrain milk, oats milk or hazelnut milk to come up with vegan versions of cappuccino and lattes, etc. Or, you can just go for black coffee. The sky is the limit!

  3. Do vegans drink wine?

    Yes, vegans drink wine, but one must make sure the wine being used is either vegan certified or does not involve any animal-products during its manufacturing process. Many cloudy wines are put through a process called Fining in which they are made clearer using animal-based products like casein, gelatin, and egg whites – which makes them non-vegan.However, thanks to the increased demand of consumers who insist on using animal-friendly fining agents, many wineries have moved away from animal-based products and their wine is hence 100% vegan.

  4. Do vegans drink soy milk?

    Yes. Soy milk (also known as soya milk or soymilk) is plant-based milk made from soybeans, and hence can be used by vegans. It is a good source of protein, potassium, and vitamins A and B-12. It is an excellent substitute for dairy-milk in vegan coffees, smoothies, and other vegan food and drinks.

  5. Are energy drinks vegan?

    Yes, most of the energy drinks you find on your supermarket shelf are vegan. Energy drinks like Red Bull, Rockstar Zero Carb, Kombucha Wonder Drink, Sambazon Amazon Drink, Lo-Carb Monster, Power Dream Soy Energy Drink, and VigorAid are all vegan drinks.What makes an energy drink not safe to be consumed by a vegan is the presence of Taurine which is a natural compound found in the large intestine of animals as well as fish. However, due to the increase in people adopting a vegan lifestyle, almost all the energy drink companies create Taurine in labs making the drink perfect to be consumed by a vegan. If you are trying an energy drink you have not heard of before, it is better to check the label.

  6. What soft drinks are vegan?

    Most soft drinks such as Coca Cola, Pepsi, Pepsi Max, Fanta, Sprite, and Dr. Pepper are vegan. However, Diet Pepsi is not, though it has been certified vegetarian-friendly but not vegan-friendly.Some soft drink companies do not label themselves as vegan as they use fish gelatin to stabilize beta-carotene color. For this reason, make sure you check the label of any soft drink you are drinking for the first time.

  7. Can vegans drink beer?

    Yes, vegans can drink beer, but you will find both vegan and non-vegan types of beers in the market. Beers like Coors and Coors Light, Miller Lite, High-Life, Genuine Draft, Pabst Blue Ribbon, Sierra Nevada Pale Ale, Yuengling, and Budweiser (except for their Clamato variety) are all vegan beers.What makes some beer not suitable for vegans is that some beer companies use animal-based products such as egg whites and Isinglass (a kind of gelatin obtained from fish) to produce beer, making it not suitable for vegans.

  8. Can vegans drink soda?

    Yes, vegans can drink soda drinks such as Pepsi, Coke, Fanta, Sprite and Dr. Pepper – and all kinds of sodas that do not use any type of animal products in their production. However, there are certain soda drinks such as Diet Pepsi, Lilt, Lilt Zero, Schweppes Orange Squash and Kia-Ora Orange Squash which are not suitable for vegans.

  9. Can vegans drink Ensure?

    Yes, Ensure‘s first vegan nutrition shake, which is made from a blend of fava beans and peas, can be consumed by vegans. As per the FDA definition of milk, Ensure uses plant-based proteins which do not contain milk, and is hence dairy-free and lactose-free and perfect to be taken by vegans.

  10. Are Bang energy drinks vegan?

    No, Bang energy drinks contain BCAA (Branched-Chain Amino Acids) which is derived from animal products. This makes Bang energy drinks not suitable to be consumed by vegans

  11. Are Monster energy drinks vegan?

    Yes, pretty much all Monster energy drinks are vegan except for Java Monster Line. Monster products like Juice Monster, Monster Hydro, and their classic Monster energy drinks are all vegan. Monster energy drinks can be consumed by vegans as the Taurine and L-Carnitine used in the drinks’ production is synthetic and does not come from any animal-source. However, the company does not claim to be vegan certified. The website of Monster Energy drink states that although they do not use any animal bi-products in the making of Monster products, they are not vegan-certified.On the other hand, Java Monster is not vegan as it contains milk. Also, in many countries, a few non-vegan ingredients like carmine (red coloring) are added in some Monster flavors. For instance, the Monster Ultra Red which is distributed in the UK contains carmine which is extracted from crushed beetles, making it non-vegan. Having said that, the whole Monster Ultra line (including their red flavor) is vegan in North America.

  12. Are Naked drinks vegan?

    Yes, except for their Protein line and Probiotics Machine Tropical Mango, all the other Naked drink products are vegan.

  13. Is Red Bull a vegan drink?

    Yes, Red Bull is a vegan drink. The Taurine found in Red Bull is synthetically created and does not come from any animal source, making the drink perfectly good for a vegan to consume.