Julia, not on your zero alcohol point here, but I have become a convert to Cynar, a delicious slightly bitter Venetian vermouth made of artichokes -- it mixes well with so many options. I suspect you know it. Thanks for your always wonderful stories.
I LOVE Cynar! In fact, I love bitter vermouths of all kinds. (I even go for the intensely bitter Fernet-Branca!) I wonder what possessed the Cynar inventor to macerate artichoke leaves? Not sleeping at 3 a.m.? An early supporter of No Food Waste? I must delve!
Yes, and I can confirm your observation that the alcohol free beer has improved dramatically. The Athletica brand is quite convincing, especially the IPA, where the strong hops truly deliver that jolt of beer flavor. And it has a teeny teeny bit of alcohol in it, which I can feel, so I find it to be a wonderful alternative for a refreshing summer drink.
Excellent! Their comment "But when a nonalcoholic beer does manage to replicate the aroma, flavor, and mouthfeel of real beer, it feels a bit magical" puts the finger on what makes a successful non-alcoholic drink. The mouthfeel is key!
I’m totally in agreement on non-alcoholic substitutes. Having spent much of the past year not able to drink alcohol for medical reasons, I’d settled on tonic water with a slice of lemon as the best alternative. Cheers?
I think it's a sense of deprivation felt amongst those of us who look forward to dividing the evening from the day with a celebratory snifter and are told they can't rather than desperation for alcohol. The Italians do really good non alcoholic versions of Campari soda in little witch-hat bottles that don't make me miss the real McKoy. But that's about it.
My fave non-alcoholic drink is very strong hibiscus leaf tea, sliced lemon (plenty of vit C and some B) and iced water, Tonic or Perrier. Now I must try a sprinkle of pepper as well!
Julia, not on your zero alcohol point here, but I have become a convert to Cynar, a delicious slightly bitter Venetian vermouth made of artichokes -- it mixes well with so many options. I suspect you know it. Thanks for your always wonderful stories.
I LOVE Cynar! In fact, I love bitter vermouths of all kinds. (I even go for the intensely bitter Fernet-Branca!) I wonder what possessed the Cynar inventor to macerate artichoke leaves? Not sleeping at 3 a.m.? An early supporter of No Food Waste? I must delve!
Yes, and I can confirm your observation that the alcohol free beer has improved dramatically. The Athletica brand is quite convincing, especially the IPA, where the strong hops truly deliver that jolt of beer flavor. And it has a teeny teeny bit of alcohol in it, which I can feel, so I find it to be a wonderful alternative for a refreshing summer drink.
Thought you’d get a kick out of this story in the NYTs in which the Wirecutter folks rated the best nonalcoholic beers and as you said, Guinness is on the list: https://www.nytimes.com/wirecutter/reviews/best-non-alcoholic-beer/
Excellent! Their comment "But when a nonalcoholic beer does manage to replicate the aroma, flavor, and mouthfeel of real beer, it feels a bit magical" puts the finger on what makes a successful non-alcoholic drink. The mouthfeel is key!
Not a brand I know. I'm told 0 alcohol Guinness is pretty indistinguishable from the Full Monty.
I’m totally in agreement on non-alcoholic substitutes. Having spent much of the past year not able to drink alcohol for medical reasons, I’d settled on tonic water with a slice of lemon as the best alternative. Cheers?
I think it's a sense of deprivation felt amongst those of us who look forward to dividing the evening from the day with a celebratory snifter and are told they can't rather than desperation for alcohol. The Italians do really good non alcoholic versions of Campari soda in little witch-hat bottles that don't make me miss the real McKoy. But that's about it.
My fave non-alcoholic drink is very strong hibiscus leaf tea, sliced lemon (plenty of vit C and some B) and iced water, Tonic or Perrier. Now I must try a sprinkle of pepper as well!
In the swinking weather we're having in the UK, that sounds really refreshing!
I tried adding freshly ground pepper with hibiscus drink at lunch time. I can report that it didn’t improve the flavour!
Such a determined action! Thank you for taking the step so I didn't have to.