Alternatives to wine/alcohol?

[Bookworm19]

For the first time in YEARS, my wine consumption has crept up quite a bit in recent weeks for various reasons. It's not really good for me for a couple of reasons.
Can anyone recommend some nice alternatives to wine? I hate alcohol free wine, but already drink a lot of water and tea so looking for something different. Thanks

I've cut right down recently but my new vice is cherry Pepsi 🙈
Although I do like sparking water with slices of lime, lemon and cucumber
Another drink I that I keep meaning to try is a rock shandy which if my memory is correct it's soda water with a dash of angostura bitters over ice

This recipe has lemonade and soda

https://www.thespruceeats.com/rock-shandy-cocktail-recipe-1128612

I know you said you didn’t like alcohol free wine but I’m a fan of the Frexinet zero alcohol, fizzy and less sweet than most I’ve tried.

Also Freedam alcohol free lager.

Mocktails? Soda water and lime is a nice one too that makes you feel like you are still drinking

Mocktails, or appletiser. Addicted to the stuff.

sparking water/soda and lime sounds good and right up my street!
I might try some alcohol free cider as well, Especially with summer around the corner.

elderflower cordial and slimline tonic

I had a lime and soda today, it was delicious! I had a year off drinking and that was my go to drink when I went out. Not as fizzy or sugary as pop, it’s refreshing! You could also look at getting some syrups like these. The Koppaberg alcohol free ciders are really nice.

My fave drink is ice, a few mint leaves, Elderflower cordial and some cloudy apple juice in a glass topped up with soda water. Can also add a couple of slices of cucumber to the glass.

Angostura bitters in tonic water.

Aldi’s alcohol free pilsner is really nice

My current favourite is elderflower tonic water.

I went through a kombucha phase....fizzy and some flavours feel a bit more fruity.

Love the sound of that drink @MustBeThin

After thought - herbal teas. I'm not talking tea bags but getting into actually having a little stock of herbs etc and making your own. I gave up drinking for 2 years and got quite religious about my herbal teas - damiana is relaxing yet stimulating and apparently good for sex drive and female issues, st johns wart, hibiscus flowers, dried mint, senna leaves etc - I got quite obsessed and really enjoyed the ritual of making it and allowing it to infuse and treated myself to pots with infusers built in and all sorts.

I think there's something nice about the ritual of our habits so for example years ago before I gave up smoking I used to roll my own and I think I missed that ritual of sitting and making myself a rollie as much as the smoking in some ways. Tea making gave me a whole other little obsessive and ability to think I was changing my mood etc through natural substances.

This may just be it worked for but one to put out there in case it appeals.

Also you can put drops of essential oils into drinks (not all are suitable for oral use so research) but for example a drop of frankincense in tonic gives it that little... kick or tang and a really nice smell obviously and frankincense is meant to be very calming and homeopaths and aromatherapists etc use it.

I once felt very panicky and a friend gave me a drop of frankincense under my tongue and placebo/psychosomatic or not it comforted me.

Alternatives to alcohol aren't just about the taste in my opinion but the psychological effect so if you can find something else that makes you feel like you're calming your mood, or cheering yourself up or whatever it is you feel in the act of having that wine then you're covering more bases.

@TheHoneyBadger
A few years ago, someone made me fresh mint tea which was absolutely wonderful. It was my first thought when I picked up some mint earlier in the week for a recipe by haven't done it yet. I'm definitely going to do it tomorrow I've not thought about doing it with other herbs so I'll have a look into it, especially as I already have a proper tea pot with an infuser

Some of these ideas sound wonderful, thank you

@TheHoneyBadger can I ask, what do you use to infuse your herbal teas, just a standard tea diffuser? Also, where do you buy your herbs from? Thank you!

Glass of fresh orange juice.

I'm an ex drinker and love Belvoir ginger cordial.

I find water boring, so I like Asda’s orange and pineapple double strength squash, easy to drink. I too am guilty of increasing wine consumption over lockdown, so have stopped drinking it almost altogether, saves a fortune!

Purple - all sorts really. I've got a flask with an infuser section built in, teapots with the same, you can also get those spoons with a container section that you fill with herbs and clip them back together and just put them in your cup with the hot water or you can just put them all in a pot and use a tea strainer.

There are also caffeinated but milder as in not so tannine heavy teas available like white tea.

Oh and I totally recommend sage but I tend to get mine from the bedouin when I'm in Sinai and it's a particular wild growing desert sage from around the St. Catherine's area. The Bedouin there swear by sage for any kind of stomach problems and the smell is beautiful.

I have bought from ebay, from specialist stores, all sorts. Definitely give Damiana a go. Some people smoke it and I did once try it in a herb vape. Just research herbs and then go searching.

I'm drinking alcohol again and neglecting my tea habits but I have a dedicated cupboard in my kitchen that is full of herbs for tea. The one I do buy in teabag form is red bush which is just an all round nice tea that you can even put milk and sugar in for 'don't do herbal tea' visitor and it tastes good. I used to give it to ds when he was little if he was constipated as it works well for that. In south Africa they give it to babies as a laxative.