What do you drink when you're out?

pikachucheeks

Hi everyone,

I'm a drinker, but I'm giving up tomorrow for Lent (and hopefully for a while after that).

I'm just interested to know, when you're out with friends, having dinner parties etc ... what do you drink instead of alcoholic beverages?

I'm a student so I know there'll be a few parties on while I'm off alcohol, so I'm looking for a bit of inspiration on what drinks to have instead!

Elenxor

Hi Peeks, I drink a glass of water,slice of lemon and ice. I find I'm only able for one soft drink and it brings attention to the fact that I'm not drinking alcohol and invites the usual comments. I also get my drink for myself at parties...(there's always a smart ass who thinks it would be funny to see me with a drink taken ). I keep the same glass and never let it out of my sight. I know you are only giving up drink for Lent, so these measures (no pun intended) are a bit extreme in your case. Anyhoo...best of luck to you.

Ciaran187

I drink the tears of young children.

Seriously though, alcohol free becks is nice. Few soft drinks etc. Cup of tea or coffee is great!

[-0-]

Orange juice, Cranberry juice, Diet 7up... then water.

unreggd

Lucozade, 7Up, Red Bull [not so much]
Pint of MiWadi mainly, as its cheap {first ones usually free } and keeps ye hydrated


We defo need late cafés like in Paris!

Bassfish

I like lucozade but i get a bad headache if i have more than one. I usually ask for a pint of cordial but in alot of pubs, if they see your not drinking they won't give it to you as it is seen as something to sober drunk people up, they can't justify charging much for it which is wht they want you to drink minerals, on which they pay little tax.
Alc Free becks is ok, Alc Free Bavaria is digusting, Alc Free Erdinger is an acquired taste but not bad.
Have a look out for an eastern european beer called Baltika 0% It's actually pretty nice but i've only found it in The Franciscan Well in Cork which is a place that specialises in foreign beers.

pikachucheeks

Thanks for that, guys

Elenxor wrote: »

I drink a glass of water,slice of lemon and ice. I find I'm only able for one soft drink and it brings attention to the fact that I'm not drinking alcohol and invites the usual comments.

That sounds nice! I think I'll take the no-alcohol period as a time to drink more water! Never seem to get my 2L a day.

I wouldn't be big on drinking soft drinks all night either!

unreggd wrote: »

Pint of MiWadi mainly, as its cheap {first ones usually free } and keeps ye hydrated

I've been known to order that in bars before too! Nice alternative to just plain water!

A few bars and clubs in Dublin do non-alcoholic cocktails (using various fruit juices) so I might try a few of those ... but they're quite overpriced, for what they are!

colrow

I'll usually have J2O if I can get it, if its late after 10 for me ;-) I'll have a red bull.

ninalucy1985

pikachucheeks wrote: »

Hi everyone,

I'm a drinker, but I'm giving up tomorrow for Lent (and hopefully for a while after that).

I'm just interested to know, when you're out with friends, having dinner parties etc ... what do you drink instead of alcoholic beverages?

I'm a student so I know there'll be a few parties on while I'm off alcohol, so I'm looking for a bit of inspiration on what drinks to have instead!

am........ lucozade

Frustrated_WW

pikachucheeks wrote: »

Hi everyone,

I'm a drinker, but I'm giving up tomorrow for Lent (and hopefully for a while after that).

I'm just interested to know, when you're out with friends, having dinner parties etc ... what do you drink instead of alcoholic beverages?

I'm a student so I know there'll be a few parties on while I'm off alcohol, so I'm looking for a bit of inspiration on what drinks to have instead!

Best of luck hope it works out for you - attempting the very same for myself and was also looking for suggestions where to buy alcohol-free wine.

syngindub

Bassfish wrote: »

if they see your not drinking they won't give it to you as it is seen as something to sober drunk people up,

Your telling me they won't give a pint of Blackcurrant out because it might sober them up. Are ye having a laugh?

Bassfish

syngindub wrote: »

Your telling me they won't give a pint of Blackcurrant out because it might sober them up. Are ye having a laugh?

Nope, Bars have to give ya water if you ask for it which is a good thing when you've been drinking. On a night on the beer i would have often finished the night with a pint of water or cordial and they usually never charge for the cordial. But, if the barman (especially if it's the owner) knows your not drinkin and you're getting free drinks they'll often make you buy minerals or cherge for the cordial.

pikachucheeks

Bassfish wrote: »

if the barman (especially if it's the owner) knows your not drinkin and you're getting free drinks they'll often make you buy minerals or cherge for the cordial.

I wouldn't mind being charged for whatever I was drinking, unless it was tap water ... which is legally supposed to be free.

If I'm in bar, out of the cold, using their seats etc ... I'm happy to pay for anything I get, even if it is just a glass of cordial!

Pythia

Tap water or coke, but it gets a bit tiresome after a few as it's pure sugar.

QuiteInterestin

I usually drink 7up, occasionally coke or fanta. A pint of water or miwadi can be good sometimes if you want to have a drink in your hand and don't want to make it too obvious that you're not drinking . Beware the sugar hangover though, soft drinks are full of sugar, if you drink more than 3 or 4 on a night you'll probably end up with a splitting headache the following morning so if you're in group don't try and keep up with them and just drink at your own pace.

moonpurple

pints of water, keeps you busy, sometimes a non alcoholic beer..goes down too fast:pac:

Thomas828

Lemonade. That's all. I'm no fun in pubs anyway.

Flesh Gorden

I get 2x Diet Coke put into a Pint glass, can last best part of an hour combined with chewing gum

phonypony

Non-alcoholic beer. Becks Blue is nice, although you can end up spending nearly as much as if you were drinking. Erdinger non-alco is OK but it is .5% -enough to give you the headache, not enough to numb it!

force majeure

Some how or another I have ended up drinking club lemon... dont ask how that started:D as it don't last very long.

gonnaplayrugby

water like 5 pints a night.

ballsymchugh

a pint of orange juice with sprite. it's the hardest thing to order too for some reason. the bar man just looks at you thinking why the hell you only want one glass for 2 drinks. it beats getting a pint of orange juice and a glass of sprite.
and chewing gum to keep the old saliva ph at a rate where your teeth don't get destroyed!!

mox54

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gonnaplayrugby

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Frisbee

Coming into the forum and telling people to drink is NOT cool.

Neither is personal abuse back at the poster. If you have a problem report it please.

Hauk

I haven't drank since Lent started. I'm going to see if I can keep it up. So far on nights out, I have a pint glass full of ice and lots of Coke. Nice and cold, and tasty.

redarmyblues

If I am not going to drink, I stay at home, or if it is something that I have to go to I will have one soft drink or coffee and head home. Going out is over rated and going out in most cases is to justify drinking, the drinking is not consequence of going out it is the point of it.

I love the socialising euphemism that often shows up in the press "The victim was socialising in The Soak Pit Lounge in Finglas when he was singled out by a lone gunman and shot" or "On the night of his death he was socialising in a number of city centre pubs"

Irish pubs and clubs are for drinking, try asking for a tea or coffee after it gets dark in a busy pub and see what happens.

pikachucheeks

force majeure wrote: »

Some how or another I have ended up drinking club lemon... dont ask how that started:D as it don't last very long.

Club Lemon is yummy!

gonnaplayrugby wrote: »

water like 5 pints a night.

Handy for getting your 2L a day

Neyite

im off it for lent too - but in general im not a big drinker anyway.
ive had cranberry juice with loads of ice, but after about 5 ya get fed up, so i had a alcohol free becks. but the mi wadi one sounds nice - will try that the next night out.

SheRa

Frustrated_WW wrote: »

Best of luck hope it works out for you - attempting the very same for myself and was also looking for suggestions where to buy alcohol-free wine.

Ive to stay off the alcohol for a few weeks so Im glad that I came across this forum.

Regarding alcohol free wine, I got Carl Jung de-alcoholised red wine in Dunnes Stores a year or two ago. Unfortunately it didn't taste very nice and still has 0.5% alcohol in it.

I bought sparkling grape fruit juice yesterday and I was pleasantly surprised at how nice it was. Ok its never going to be a proper substitute for actual sparkling wine but it had a lovely sweet kick to it and satisfied my urge for some wine.

C_Dawg

Diet Coke usually but sometimes I'll have a rock shandy if I'm feeling wild :cool:

Floppybits

it depends really, maybe a red bull at the start of the night if its going to be a long, like a stag night or something, then may a 7/up or rock shandy. Can only drink a couple. Always found sparkling water and blackcurrent really nice. has anyone noticed that some pubs are now measuring the blackcurrent in the spirit measure and charging per measure. This is mainly in Dublin. :mad:

bogman_bass

ginger ale.

BehindTheScenes

Coke is the way to go. No one really questions why you're not drinking then.

justplainme

Soda water or sparkling water with dash of lime is nice for a change to diet coke, for those cold winter nights out, some nice pubs will do a hot blackcurrant

Gang of Gin

ballsymchugh wrote: »

a pint of orange juice with sprite. it's the hardest thing to order too for some reason. the bar man just looks at you thinking why the hell you only want one glass for 2 drinks. it beats getting a pint of orange juice and a glass of sprite.
and chewing gum to keep the old saliva ph at a rate where your teeth don't get destroyed!!

Ha. I do find that laughable alright, the look one would get for ordering such a thing.
They do it in the UK I know for sure. I worked in a bar in London. Orange-Lemonade we called it. A bottle of Britvic or some concentrated juice with a top up up of a mineral (not from a bottle, but a spray). Only cost a pound or so. Really nice on a warm day.
It's infuriating in Ireland this kind of thing isn't really done. Theyre just mad to get you to pay a fortune for bottled minerals x 2. It's hopeless thinking and pretty much an underhand setup.

Neberkenezer

triple vodka in a pint glass with ice ,topped up with a bottle of smirnoff ice ... a few of them and you're no more good