I am sure there will be a historical topic on this. But I tried to search and failed.
I don’t know what I think about 0% alternatives. Are they negatively keeping me connected to the real thing? Or are they creating “event” memory taste moments in a useful way? At the moment I’m almost thinking the stupid extra cost it the thing. As if I’m wasting money in a similar way but without the negatives.
I don’t know if they are helping and I would value anyone’s opinions. Whether you are one day or 20,000 days, whether you have used them or not
Early on i found i was using NA wine as a cdutch. It started out innocent enough to ease cravings but i saw that the drinking habit was still very heavily ingrained when i started to go to 2 bottles on weekends and was scared to mention it to my sponsor. Luckily i backed away
These days, a few years later, i like a nice 0% hop water or fruity mocktail when out but could take em or leave em…oh and NA wine is a no go for me.
Its a personal choice but if youre feeling iffy better to be safe than sorry.
Ps. Some NA options still have low alcohol content…
I work in the industry. When we de-alch a beer that is say, 5%; it always tests at 0.5% after the process. That’s the cut off for “nonalcoholic” beers. So this has left me with a maddening impression of the term NA. It actually contains alcohol!
I’ve tried a few virgin drinks. They were tasty but absolutely seemed like a waste of money. I had a virgin cocktail yesterday, paid $6. Drank it in about 3 swallows and just sit there dumbfounded at what I had just done. I can’t drink those back-to-back like I did alcohol so what’s the point? However, I still may have one when in the presence of others who drink. Great question, by the way!
Yes I’m the same. The 0% actually showed me how I drink. I literally GLUG - so one large glass of real wine? Three glugs. And then i was frustrated I have to wait wondering why others aren’t keeping up.
I also think mocktails are a waste of time. They really are just a cup of sugar, some fruit and some soda.
I started to get the Friday afternoon scaries earlier. And ordered some delivery Nosecco. I’m drinking it and still wondering what I’m doing. I’m watching American Psycho for the first time, so that’ll relax me too I reckon
Ive always steered clear, i feel like…i dont want to drink anymore and it almost ruined my life so why would i want to drink something that looks and tastes like it…
that’s the reason why my shadow work here is keeping the tags clear on the threads, i find them helpful for searching and have muted some tags
have a good read around, there is interesting stuff in the na beverages discussions.
to add to this topic: i like a good cold na beer in summer, i’ve been drinking the same brand for about i guess 40 years, it was one of the first na beer introduced back then. i never did drink & drive so this has been my alternative when i wanted the beer taste. still is. not often anymore as i switched to the drinking experience of sparkling water during perimenopause after avoiding sparkling water for 2 decades hormones change how women drink & taste
i personally am not triggered by na alternatives (not been a wine drinker anyway) to crave the alcoholic version. maybe because i always had a favourite na version from the beginning.
I think everyone is on the same page here about this and I am as well about being personally against them. The first time I tried to get sober I figured I’d drink the 0% Heineken’s and it felt ok for a bit, but real soon it actually started to frustrate me mentally because I couldn’t have the real thing. I tried NA spirits and all too and same thing. If anything it might have made me want to drink more. Either way even now at almost two years of actual sobriety that I worked at I think they’re a waste and a potentially dangerous route for a lot of people. I heard someone in a meeting before saying that non-alcoholic beers are for non alcoholics. It didn’t totally make sense at the time, but then it did. If nothing else always check your mindset. Why are you drinking it? Are your hoping to replace the feeling? Things like that. Anyway hope that helps
Yes it totally makes sense. I think at first I was chasing the feeling, but now I’m learning to get by without it I don’t think I want to pretend anymore.
The rules are rather odd in the European Union. In Germany alkoholfrei beer means maximum 0.5% alcohol. Strange but true. In The Netherlands alcohol free means 0.1% max. In Spain alcohol free means a maximum of 1%, in France and Italy 1.2%. While all these so called alcohol free beers are sold throughout the EU. So when I (in the Netherlands) buy an “alcohol free” beer from Italy in a Dutch bar or shop, it can have 1.2% of alcohol.
The only guarantee in the whole EU that beer has no alcohol in it is when it is called “0.0% beer”. Well, it can have 0.03% actually. BTW, a banana contains about 0.1%. And fruit juice can contain up 0.5% alcohol due to fermentation. While alcohol free wine can have a maximum of 0.5% as well, but is not the same as fruit juice for the law. Confused? I am.
I do have the occasional 0.0 beer. In a restaurant mostly. I actually like the taste these days. In contrast to real beer, which I learned a year ago as a waitress served me one by accident. Took one sip and noticed something off. Very bitter. I didn’t like. Never again.
When I used to do the dry months I’d often have a mocktail with an eat out meal. I’ve barely ever drank cocktails so I don’t associate them with getting whammed, and they taste nice. So I’d still drink those but I haven’t drank them this year since I decided to get sober for good. I haven’t been for many meals out tbh.
The alcohol free beers. I’d tried a couple of these in the sober dry months on nights out and at gigs and they didn’t really appeal to me or my palate. I’ve had a couple of them on one occasion this year when I met up with family for a 70th birthday celebration in a microbrewery of all places. I’d say they’re better than drinking soft drinks if you want to appear to be putting on a show. It seemed to be more socially acceptable than drinking cola or J20 etc.
I’ve had a little search around the internet and discovered that Shandy Bass (made by Britvic) contained 0.5% alcohol and until it was discontinued recently it could legally be sold to kids here in the UK. I used to buy it in the late 70s and 80s and pretend to be drunk
I might be in a minority here and this opinion might be unpopular but, I think if someone in sobriety were to drink the 0.5% beers and it was keeping them from drinking the real thing then I’d say crack on and I’d applaud it. A person drinking those could not possibly become intoxicated even if they drank 30 or 40 pints of it.
(im not vegan btw)
hormones change how women drink & taste 
