Hello everyone,
Maybe it’s a bit tongue in cheek to put this in ‘emotional support’ category, I just couldn’t find another one, and if truth be told, this is a bit emotional (although not in the wider picture!)
I’m a massive foodie and wanna be chef (it was my dream until I was about 16 years old or so)… I normally have some wine or beers while I’m cooking and this was ‘a thing’ for me at the weekend to cook nice food and drink the weekend away.
Anyway, it’s my wife’s birthday today and I’m making us some rib eye steaks along with some other nice things. I’m absolutely serious about staying sober, so I wanted to hear from other foodies about how they have managed to stay away from alcohol, especially when it is so closely emotionally linked to food for me…
Anways, tonight will be steak without red wine for the first time in years… Wish me luck 
Hey, good for you for making your decision to stay away from the drink.
I myself love cooking, too, and admittedly used to enjoy crushing some wine while cooking a big meal for a group (didn’t do it when it was just cooking for myself).
I honestly learned to love water. It is all I drink now.
In the context of cooking (or engaging in any kind of social gathering), sometimes I’ll take a San Pellegrino or other mineral water and pour it into a wine glass. Feels fancy and special. Soda water w/ lime works just as well. Does the trick for me!
Thanks for the reply fellow foodie! San pellegrino is a good shout…
If this dinner is worthy, I’ll post a pic! 
Second sparkling water. I have a sodastream so make it up myself.
@Soulfulhousedaddy - apparently heavy alcohol consumption actually dulls your sense of taste. So once you get used to eating without wine, it should start tasting better!
I don’t eat meat any more and a good steak is one of the things I miss the most… Enjoy!
I’ve seen this question pop up a lot - how do I handle activity X when it has always involved alcohol?
Make a list of your activity X:
Birthdays
Anniversary
Holidays
Promotions
Weddings
Family gathering
Company party
Football games
Baseball games
Concerts
Funerals
Layoffs
Firings
Divorces
Friday
Saturday
Sunday
Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
If all those activities involved alcohol, well your gonna have a hard time because it’s not like you can stop having a birthday, so you need to accept the fact that it’s ok not to drink. It’s ok to cook without drinking, it’s ok to eat without drinking. Your history does not dictate your actions today. Good luck my man!
I was a wine guy. I live in wine country, in a wine producing state. I attended “wine festivals”. I harvested grapes and was paid in wine. I took cooking & pairing classes. I took a sushi-making class that included learning about Saki.
In other words, I know from whence you speak.
So I found other things to “pair” with stuff. Steak? water with a splash POM Pomegranate juice. Want it “fat”…add more POM. Want it “dry”? add less. Fish and Fowl? Sparkling cider.
I have a soda-stream and make my own club soda, or flavored sodas. Have had fun with that. My favorite is key-lime juice with just a drop of sugar.
Just like a chef takes different ingredients to create something new, you can do this with juices, and water, teas and coffee. Just let your sober imagination go, and have fun experimenting.
I live in wine country too and our bread and butter is linked to the wineries. My husband studies up on food and cooking and spends what little off time he has making amazing things, curing meat, baking bread, you name it. Our history is all wine, beer and food. We are invested in a local start up brewery. None of this had bothered me so far, until I ate at a nicer place last weekend and felt an overwhelming urge to add wine to the meal. I didnt. I enjoyed it. All fine and good. But it is definitely the culture where I live. The whole economy revolves around it.
This is why I choose to be “in the world, but not of the world.”
Used to cook and drink wine as well. Best thing now is that i can actually remember how good the food tasted, before it was all a blur.
I feel you! We always drank while cooking!
@Yoda-Stevie you’ve got so many resourceful tips! Thank you I’m going to try those. I genuinely miss wine… Wine wasn’t a get crazy & outta control alcohol (like beer/liquor) it was always enjoyed & respected.
If we could seperate alcohols into d.o.c categories, I wouldn’t lump wine with the others. But since alcohol became problematic, I had to dump wine too.
Oh man, I forgot the best tip of all: tart cherry juice. Add a splash of this to your water, or go half/half if you want something bold. I drink this when I eat lamb, or something with strong flavors , and need to have a beverage that can stand up.
Thanks for all the comments and useful hints and tips on this one… I’m like a young toddler learning to do everything without alcohol again. We enjoyed a nice dinner in the end, wine free for me, but a glass for the Mrs (she is very supportive of this move to recover my physical and mental health).
It’s been a week today since my last drink. I’m quite proud of that and feel this ‘just for today’ thing really has some merit.