Favorite no alcohol or low alcohol alternatives to wine?

Have a friend that just had to remove all alcohol from their home for health reasons and is looking for something the replace wine and margaritas with. It would also be nice to have something in my cellar for alcohol free guests. I know some like the brand Proxies, but any other suggestions?

Soda water with drinking vinegars.

Kumbacha

Welc…

No Brian, don’t do it!

Navarro’s grape juices, Navarro Vineyards - Non-Alcoholic Grape Juices
Italian soda, San Pellegrino lemonata is my favorite but they have another half-dozen flavors. Whole Foods’ brand (365) italian sodas are pretty good, too.

2 Likes

Espresso and Tonic

Water

1 Like

Water.

My wife really likes hops infused sparkling water. Sierra Nevada and Lagunitas makes it. Athletic beer makes the best “near beer” I know.

1 Like

My wife really likes hops infused sparkling water. Sierra Nevada and Lagunitas makes it. Athletic beer makes the best “near beer” I know.

My top recommendation would be Lagunitas Hop Refresher. It’s clean, refreshing, has no calories…and I’ve drank about 3 cases of the stuff in the past year since I discovered them earlier this year.

Kombucha?
Sparkling Tea?

I prefer alchol free beer myself. There are some really great stuff being made these days. The danish brewer Mikkeller should be available world wide, and they make really great alcohol free beers.

On the low alcohol side you would be hard pressed to beat these. Eric Bordelet Poiré Granit pear cider.

1 Like

Tea is the only beverage nearly as cerebral.

On the cocktail side, Wilderton, DHoS, and Damrak VirGin all make interesting options.

Also a ton of cool syrups from Giffard that can be added to water, tonic, soda, etc…

Not for everyone of course, but low dose cannabis beverages have gotten pretty good and are becoming more popular for folks looking to still have something with effects (relax / take the edge off etc) without the booze. Not sure where you’re located but have a few friends in Cali who have been drinking Wunder (https://www.findwunder.com/) on a regular basis, they’re delicious. Can drink straight or mix with seltzer / other mixers

Club soda and Fee’s rhubarb bitters is a favorite. Sometimes I add citrus and simple syrup.
A bar that I frequent uses Amass Riverine for mocktail variants of their alcoholic ones.

Exactly what I was going to say. It’s not booze, but when I’m sick or abstaining it’s sparkling water with Som syrup. It’s delicious and food food friendly.

In the summer nothing beats a good limonada - the recipe I use is here:

Elderflower syrup with sparkling water is a nice summer treat

Aqua Fresca - just soak a fruit or veg in water for a few hours or overnight. I especially like strawberries or cucumbers.

Lassi - don’t need to limit yourself to the traditional sweet, salty or mango. Our favorite uses guava puree rather than mango.

The Navarro grape juice rec above is great.

Kombucha

Eh. If I am not drinking wine or the occasional beer, I am drinking water. Boring I suppose and not much help for your friend but really nothing else accompanying a meal gives me pleasure and water does the work hydrating. Probably 200 days a year water (and am coffee) are all I drink.