What to drink when not drinking?

[numbers]

oops posted too soon, meant to say agree wtih all the others. I find I drink less cold drinks and more hot drinks (mainly strong tea) when not drinking booze. You soon get used to it and I am sure you end up having better sleeps as a result.

what works for me: sometimes I like a chilled non-alcoholic beer like Bavaria, mostly its lime & soda water/tonic water/fizzy water. hate cola too but have a weakness for vanilla coke if i can get it.

I have to train my brain to not see a glass of beer or wine as a 'treat' in the evening. I find it works until you watch something on TV where someone pours a satisfying glass of wine or you hear the thud of ice against the glass and wish you had g&t. good luck otta.

[Otta]

DulwichFox Wrote:

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> Kudzu is good.

>

> It does not make you feel ill if you do drink

> alcohol.

>

> It takes away the desire to drink alcohol. You

> just take smaller sips and drinks last longer.

>

> Available from Holland & Barrett.

>

> Have used it in the past when I felt to the need

> to cut down. It does work.

>

> DulwichFox

Had never heard of this, and it sounds like it might be worth trying. Not big on herbal remedies, but from what I've read this sounds like it could be worth a try.

[Oopnorthpup]

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[Oopnorthpup]

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[Otta]

I don't think I'm a hero, just seemed like a good challenge for me and if I can raise money for charity along the way then what's the problem?

Is running a marathon / shaving your head for charity any more heroic than an alcoholic trying not to drink for a month? I dunno, I don't really think so.

The person that wrote that article comes across as a bit of a cunt quite frankly. The "sober hero" thing is MacMillan's doing, I doubt anyone signed up actually thinks they're a hero and certainly not more than the nurses and doctors that treat cancet patients FFS!

And if someone does this and raises a few quid for a great charity, then so what if they feel good about themself?

As for me, I drink loads of water, juice, tea and squash. Once the kids are asleep however it's strictly booze time, and I'm just looking for something different to try at those times.

[Dulwich Born And Bred]

Indian tonic water is quite nice and grown up I find .

I loved trying all the olde worlde traditional ginger beers /lemonades.

Iced Tea/Clearspring green teas /Fruit teas like Rhubarbs and Blackcurrant

Coconut water

San Pellegrino water plus their fizzies are lovely

Dandelion and Burdock

Belvior do some nice cordial mixtures like cinnamon , plums , rhubarbs etc.

Juices like pomegranate

I think you should just make it your mission to try lots of different soft drinks .

Good luck !

[Oopnorthpup]

Dup

[Oopnorthpup]

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[Otta]

Some people ask for suggestions of recipes, I'm asking for suggestions of nice drinks. You're the one who's making something of it.

[Robert Poste's Child]

numbers wrote:

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> pear juice is my favourite, its like gold dust.

> can't get it for love nor money around these here

> parts. so envious jeremy.

I had pear with apple, cucumber and celery for breakfast, and it was delicious (I find fruit too sweet on its own). The markets are full of pears right now; all you need is a juicer.

[Robert Poste's Child]

Back to the topic: it's supposed to be getting colder tomorrow, so you could also try lemon, honey and raw ginger. Unless I've got a cold I use a lot of ginger and only about a quarter of a teaspoon of honey. Or even ginger in hot water on its own.

[Gingerbeer]

It has a small amount of alcohol due to the natural fermentation, but kombucha is a great drink. It is definitely not *chuggable* so its a great drink that can last a long time when with slushy friends. This is my favorite: http://synergydrinks.com/index.php/products#enlightened-synergy

Although what their whole "Enlightenment" deal is I couldn't say.

[sheilarose]

Five Valleys Lemon and Mint cordial has a lovely different sort of taste -- not too sweet and very refreshing. I know some people who swear by Bundaberg root beer as a non-alcoholic drink. Looks and smells a bit medicinal to me. Both available from Ocado.

[cordsm]

I've found that maintaining rituals works for me. So, I'll still use a wine glass at meals, just with mineral water in it. And tonic water with ice & a slice is (almost) as good as a G&T:)

The turkish shop on LL near Goose Green has a nice range of different fruit juices - apricot, peach, sour cherry etc & they're good value too.

[Alan Medic]

Otta Wrote:

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> Think I've done this thread before sometime long

> ago, but here we are again.

>

> I'm off the booze for October for this MacMillan

> fund raising (up to ?225, feel free to chip in).

>

Do you have a link?

[katanita]

My go-to soft drink in pubs is a virgin mary, or at least a tomato juice with a lemon and something else in it to add interest. Delicious and grown-up and not something you get through fast. I always get a big glass of tap water to go with it for that impulse to pick something up and have a drink.

Not a fan of other sweet drinks or drinking lots of juices (surprisingly calorific too), but do love a root beer and would second the coconut water, yum. Not seen either in any pubs/bars though. Otherwise maybe an interesting cordial like elderflower, SMB foods has some.

[Otta]

Alan Medic Wrote:

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> Otta Wrote:

> --------------------------------------------------

> -----

> > Think I've done this thread before sometime

> long

> > ago, but here we are again.

> >

> > I'm off the booze for October for this

> MacMillan

> > fund raising (up to ?225, feel free to chip

> in).

> >

> Do you have a link?

https://www.gosober.org.uk/participant?p=keithottaway

[haruki]

These are pretty good. Not widely available yet though:

http://www.squarerootsoda.co.uk/about/

[Mustard]

Robert Poste's Child Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> numbers wrote:

> ----------------

> > pear juice is my favourite, its like gold dust.

> > can't get it for love nor money around these

> here

> > parts. so envious jeremy.

>

> I had pear with apple, cucumber and celery for

> breakfast, and it was delicious (I find fruit too

> sweet on its own). The markets are full of pears

> right now; all you need is a juicer.

The Turkish Food Centre in Camberwell, next to the Greek Church, has loads of unusual fruit juice, including pear. The Portuguese Cafe on Camberwell Church Street also has pear juice in a carton.

[philiphenslowe]

Laimon is lovely, but it's quite hard to find - http://uk.laimonfresh.com/

And this is great if you like rhubarb - http://www.cawstonpress.com/our-juices/sparkling/sparkling-rhubarb/

[Roye]

Tomato juice or Big Tom!