What are your thoughts on NA beer and wine?
 

Hello everyone -

I will be going camping this weekend. Social situations being my downfall I am a little nervous but determined not to drink. I was considering bringing some non-alcoholic beer in place of the beer I'd usually bring. But I've heard there is no such thing as completely non-alcoholic beer, and I'm also wondering if going the NA beer route would be cheating or fooling myself.

Your thoughts?

Hi. I feel it's a slow poison for an alcoholic as it does contain some alcohol. BE WELL

I've never had an NA beer that tasted good nor failed to give me a headache. It was like skipping the drunk and proceeding straight to the hangover. No joy for me.

This is a very common question here with varying opinions. I tried NA beer for a while and found that i would actually drink it in some of the same ways I drank real beer ( drinking fast, hiding it from others, etc ) so I just decided against it. Some say it can lead to drinking the real stuff again, although that never happened for me.

The real crux of the issue is your motivation to drink it. Are you somehow hoping that others won't notice you are drinking NA so you fit in better? That's a bad idea of course.

Why NA beer as opposed to any one of the million other beverages available?

Honestly not being snarky, I just wondering why NA beer instead of iced tea or gingerale. Do you like the taste or are you trying to fool yourself or someone else?

Forget what you should bring. This soon after a relapse, and knowing social situations are a "trigger" for you, why would you even go?

I think that this question is a tough question for all sorts of reasons...yet Scott alludes to where the answer lies. If you miss alcohol..if you're still wrestling with feelings of deprivation that you cannot drink..if you're not "joyful" about not being a drinker. If you are not glad and grateful for your clarity and repair of mind and life...I wouldn't do it.

I wouldn't drink NA beer straight. But I would consider making a shandy out of it. That's probably the only drink I miss the taste of

How important is your sobriety? Don't go, stay away from any drinking situations if they may be risky for you.

IMHO - NA beer will never be satisfactory. It won't be long till you are back to the real thing cuz when we drink it we really are trying to derive some kind of vicarious pleasure out of it. Unwilling to let go of that lifestyle. Everything has to change if you want to be successful.

Exactly. This is the only experience I have ever had with Near Beer. Oh and it will also make you feel bloated and possibly give you HB.

Given a similar situation, I think I would proudly, boldly, openly, and blatantly drink something non-alcoholic, other than the non-alcoholic beer or wine. A raging alcoholic for 19 years, I truly despise the taste of ALL alcoholic beverages. I hated the taste of alcohol then, just like I do now. It was a means to an end. And, almost a means to my end.

In my year of sobriety, I have been impressed with my friends putting absolutely no pressure on me to drink or appear to be drinking. Have fun on your camping trip!

When quitting one time I decided to try NA beer. One night before going over to someone's house to eat, I drank about 3-4 of them quickly. Shortly afterwards I noticed I caught a slight buzz. I thought to myself, I just relapsed. Eventually led me back to the real thing. I wouldn't drink it.

Skip it
 

The act of drinking NA beer could be a trigger to a relapse. NA beer actually has .5% alcohol, so it is not completely NA... Besides... it tastes TERRIBLE!

If you like carbonated drinks, try Crystal Geyser Juice Squeeze. It comes in several flavors and is sweetened only with fruit juice. It is available at Trader Joe's and many supermarkets.

STAY DETERMINED and have fun on your trip.

I am not sure how much time you have, I know for me, there is no way I would be going anywhere where there is a lot of drinking involved.

I had to change things and places I went to when I got sober. And it also included some people.

As for NA beer or wine, I don't touch it. It would just screw with my head and just remind me of what I can't have.

I can't let anything become more important than my sobriety. But this is what I have to do for me.

I would rather drink something nice that I enjoy.

I think NA wines and beers are minging!

I like drinks with lots of crushed ice.

In fact I might invest in an ice chipping type device - I have no idea if this is its real name or if you can get them.

So much nicer than the NA drinks.

I wouldn't do it. If you must go on this camping trip, splurge on some designer, gourmet sodas or vitamin drinks. Bring some sparkling water.

I agree with threshold. So many other non alcoholic drinks which are actually delicious and refreshing.
We didn't drink alcoholic drinks for the taste, we drank them because we were addicted to the alcohol in them. Doesn't seem any point to me to drink a non alcoholic alcoholic drink!!

Bingo. Carl points out that you are missing the forest for the trees. Your normal life, the social life you know, all of that should be put on hold, in my humble opinion. Learning to live without alcohol is not about learning how to drink NA beer - it's about changing the way you think, philosophically.

Trying to figure out what kind of beverage you should bring on a camping trip?

That would be like me asking what kind of landing gear should I use on a 747 jumbo jet. I don't know how to even fly a plane, let alone know where the landing gear switch is on a large aircraft, let alone know the difference between different kinds of hydraulics.

Alcoholism is a very complex problem - it was for me, anyway. Good luck.

I have drunk NA stuff, I don't think it passes as wine but something different to enjoy. It called Sholer I think just taste like fizzy pop and very refreshing but it's high in calories so I have blackcurrant and diet lemonade in a wine glass if sometimes I fancy a treat.

My husband drink becks blue NA larger he still drinks on weekends but he enjoys a few of them just because he gets board of tea.

Thanks for your responses! I haven't tried NA beer before. I wasn't looking to fool anyone into thinking I was drinking regular beer. I do enjoy the taste of some, but not all, beers (I was a very picky drunk!) So I thought that NA beer may be an option. But if they don't taste good, as a few people have pointed out, I wont waste my time and stick with other non-alcoholic drinks that I like instead.