Curious to Give Non-Alcoholic Beverages a Try? Here’s Where to Start.

All Things Wine
Written By Purple Teeth Club

Ever heard of Sober October? Or No-Alc November?  How about Drink-Free December, or even Dry January?  Heck, you may have even completed challenges where no alcohol is allowed for a certain length of time (some popular ones right now include 75 Hard, One Year No Beer, The Alcohol Experiment, and the list goes on).  

In my case, that challenge is called pregnancy!  LOL.  Yep, a whole nine months without any alcohol.  I found out that I was pregnant mid-July this past year, and had to adjust quite quickly.  No more occasional glasses of wine during the week, or Topo Chico Hard Seltzers (not really a hard seltzer fan, but these are THE BEST. I swear🙌🏻.) on warm weekends with friends, or even a beer with my hubby at the local beer garden.  I even had to cut back during winemaker tastings at work to play it safe (though we mostly spit anyway😉) and selected a few to taste while only smelling the rest. As excited as I am to carry and bring our first-born into the world, pregnancy can still be pretty hard in certain aspects… Especially the sober part when working in the wine industry😂.  But after the first trimester nausea calmed down and I settled comfortably into my second trimester, those wine cravings came knocking.  And I mean HARD.  

So instead of ditching wine and beer entirely, I turned to a relatively new category in the beverage industry, which is BLOWING UP LIKE CRAZY!  Known by a few different names such as NoLo, Non-Alc, and Zero Alcohol, this new wellness sector is basically a product of its own that simply cannot be compared to the real thing (they just aren’t the same, no matter how you spin it😅).  

Big brands are releasing these products left and right as the market is shifting.  It is becoming commonplace, as booze-free menus, bars, and beverage shops are popping up all over.  Really, they’re a great way to sip and be social without compromising health as consumers continue to make more conscious choices around consumption of alcohol.  This could be largely due to many folks turning to alcohol during the pandemic as a way to cope.  In September, USA Today reported that nearly 1 in 5 Americans report “heavy drinking” as a way to cope with pandemic stress.  Concerning, right?  I agree.  Yet, I’m thrilled to see that there is awareness around the issue, and many folks are choosing to reduce or eliminate alcohol for a specific length of time to allow their body some time to detox.

Benefits of an Alcohol Detox    

Now those challenges that I mentioned earlier seem praiseworthy and all, but you’re probably wondering what the actual benefits are of ditching that nightly beer or glass of wine you enjoy to take the edge off.  And I’m here to share some cold hard facts with you.  According to various studies linked below, here is what a break from alcohol can do for you:

These are all great things to strive for, and areas that most people would love to make progress in.  And if you’re the type of person that chooses to remain sober indefinitely, good for you (although I’d be curious to know why you’re reading this😅).  But if you’re like me and don’t have a huge problem with alcohol dependence, I think having a drink a few nights a week isn’t dire.  

Not Sure Where to Begin?  

In my #brysearch (research by Bry, get it? 😜) so far, I've found some amazing contenders... More so in the beer category, and not in wine.  Wine is more complicated when it comes to removing alcohol (more on this later), and I am more particular with the wines I enjoy on a regular basis so solid non-alcohol wines were more challenging to find.  Thus, here are the bevis that I have personally tried and enjoyed:  

I realize that there are many other options out there, but these are just what I’ve found local to the Central Coast as well as a few online orders here and there.  I haven’t begun exploring the non-alc spirits category yet, and know plenty of options exist there as well.  Here is an additional list of brands that I’ve discovered via Instagram and Google, and would consider trying:

Altogether, I hope that sharing this new category has inspired you to try something new!  I realize that we all have our preferences, and it may not always be wine.  Whether you’re pregnant, trying to get pregnant, eliminating alcohol to improve your overall health, or some other reason, I want to support you along your journey and reassure you that you aren’t alone!  As much as I obsess over wine and the science behind it, I also want to promote awareness around alcohol consumption.  Thus, take some time this holiday season to decide how you want to show up at social events and family gatherings.  If you’re throwing back drink after drink to be able to handle your grandma’s endless lecture about how you should be married with children by now, perhaps put the bottle aside and dig a little deeper into those feelings.  I promise your future self won’t regret it😉

Wishing you an amazing holiday season!  I’d love to hear if you venture out and try any low-/non-alcoholic drinks that you enjoyed.  I’m always looking for more to add to my list😍

Purple Teeth Club https://www.purpleteethclub.blog
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