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There seems to be a mass move towards sobriety these days.

While ‘sober curious‘ might come across more like an “unnecessarily modern term” to try and sell books and less like a true commitment to cutting down a bit, bars, restaurants, and people are still keen to join the no-alcoholic-beverage-in-hand revolution.

That’s per British author Rob Temple, who has been trying out the sober thing for some time now, relaying his personal journey over at The Telegraph in the hopes of helping and inspiring others.

In honour of Sober October, he compiled a more “practical guide” to giving up the booze and the stuff he learnt along the way.

He notes how menus have been updated to include sophisticated non-alcoholic offerings, bar the ones that serve the “contents of glow sticks”.

Rob is also thrilled to note how manufacturers and investors are really going for it, too, with “The Dragons, Lord Sugar, and Gordon Ramsay all jump[ing] up on their shows, dollar signs beaming, to tell us the boozeless market is worth billions”.

Fitch & Leedes has been well ahead of the game on this front, offering non-alcoholic versions of famous cocktails in the Fitch & Leedes Memories mocktail range:

 

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The bottom line is that you don’t need to give up if you don’t want to, but if you are anxious that alcohol might be harming your health, then this is probably the most accommodating time to try and ditch it.

As far as Rob’s practical advice goes, sifting through the jokes and trite – all rather amusing by the way, and worth a read – he suggests a few things to make this journey a little easier.

For one, bringing a bottle of “something colourful, alluring and booze-free” to a party for everyone to try might bode well.

In that case, consider showing up with a couple of six-packs of Fitch & Leedes Island Fish Bowl (a tropical burst of coconut and the sweet-bitter citrus taste of blue curaçao liqueur, without the alcohol), or Fitch & Leedes Pink G&T (with rose, cucumber, and non-alcoholic gin).

All the taste of a cocktail without the added headache should you be inclined to overindulge.

The next best bet is keeping your social life contained to restaurants (over bars and parties):

The main reason being, in a restaurant you can concentrate on chewing rather than slurping. A lot of the nice gaffs these days have a large, if slightly eccentric, choice of mocktails, and nobody really notices what you’re drinking, unless of course it’s wine.

His other takeaway is surrounding yourself with the right kind of people, who are not overly eager to become legless. Otherwise, “holding your stomach, wincing and saying sorry a lot works well, makes people move out the way quickly, like you’re suddenly on fire”. Exit done.

Rob seems to think that doing something with your mouth seems wholly necessary in the journey to becoming sober:

If you ask me, any party with eight people or fewer should always have a large cake. Boring conversation doesn’t matter a jot when there’s a large slice of sponge to be standing with. Think how many wedding chats have been made more than bearable by the humble gateaux.

If there’s no cake, sipping on a Fitch & Leedes Shirley Temple (made with ginger ale and pomegranate juice, topped with maraschino cherries), or a Fitch & Leedes Blushing Mimosa (a non-alcoholic version of the sparkling wine and orange juice classic) should stave away the boredom.

It’s also worth taking a moment to practice how you will turn down a drink in a social setting, as well as taking time to plan fun activities that do not involve alcohol.

Who knows, maybe doing Sober October will kickstart a new health regime?

The lack of a hangover the next day will surely be motivation to exercise, too.

[source:telegraph]