Can vegans drink alcohol?

Hello Anonymous,

Welcome to EmpowHER. Thank you for such an interesting question.

To research an answer for you, I went to the website, vegan.com. To my surprise, many beers and wines are processed using animal products, such egg whites. Unfortunately these ingredients are never listed on the labels, since alcohol is commonly exempt from the labeling requirements of other food products.

Fortunately, virtually every brand of hard liquor—bourbon, whiskey, vodka, gin, and rum—is vegan. Nearly all distilled spirits are vegan except for cream-based liqueurs and products that mention honey on the label.

Here are some of the most popular vegan alcohol brands:

Liquor

Absolut
Bacardi Rum
Grey Goose
Hangar 1
Malibu Rum
Svedka
Skyy Vodka
Beer

Budweiser (except their horrifying Clamato variety)
Coors and Coors Light
Miller Lite, High-Life, & Genuine Draft
Pabst Blue Ribbon
Sierra Nevada Pale Ale
Yuengling
Wine

Charles Shaw (red wines only)
Frey Vineyards
The Vegan Vine
Red Truck Wines
Yellowtail (red wines only; not white or rosé)

Regards,
Maryann