If there's one business you probably wouldn't expect to give up the drink for Dry July, it's the town pub.
But that's exactly what the team at Coromandel hot spot the Coroglen Tavern are doing, to raise money for patrons and friends affected by cancer.
At the time of publishing, the Coroglen team had already raised over $2000 on their official Dry July page, almost halfway to their $5000 target before the month has even begun.
Co-owner Michelle Harper told Newshub the idea was borne out of love for their customers, many of whom had been affected by or lost to cancer.
"When we were having these conversations sitting around in the kitchen thinking about who we know who might have had cancer or passed away with cancer, we were shocked," she recounted.
"We thought, 'shit this sucks'."
Almost the whole team will take part in the challenge to abstain from the pub's alcoholic offerings for the month, but Michelle says there was some concern from patrons that they'd be made to partake in the challenge.
"They think we're mad, they really don't get it - they think it goes against everything we stand for," she laughed. "They were all worried they were going to have to do it too."
Just to be clear, they won't - although there is a tip jar on the bar patrons are encouraged to drop a few dollars into towards the cause.
Only one staff member won't be going dry for the month: Michelle's husband and fellow pub owner Jed.
"We needed somebody to take one for the tea and have a beer with the customers," said Michelle.
While many hospo workers might see a major perk of working at a pub getting to try the offerings, Michelle said her team didn't even hesitate.
"We love how young our crew are - we have 21 and 22-year-olds wanting to do Dry July," she said.
"We're really close, we're like a little family. Our crew live locally, some of them even went to school together."
And the drink Michelle is most looking forward to come August 1?
"I love a gin," she said. "There's so many good gins coming out at the moment - I've got my hubby locking away any samples into a safe.
"[That first one] is going to be amazing!"
You can check out the Coroglen Tavern's fundraising page here, and more about Dry July here.
