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You are here: Home / Medium Cool / Medium Cool with BGinCHI – Beverages

Medium Cool with BGinCHI – Beverages

by WaterGirl|  June 3, 20216:05 pm| 105 Comments

This post is in: Guest Posts, Medium Cool, Popular Culture, Culture as a Hedge Against This Soul-Sucking Political Miasma We're Living In

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In case you’re new to Medium Cool, BGinCHI is here once a week to offer a thread on culture, mainly film & books, with some TV thrown in.

 1

In this week’s Medium Cool, as we move back to Thursdays for the summer, let’s talk about beverages. I know this is a space for the arts, but drinking can, I think, be an artistic pleasure.

I know many of you don’t drink alcohol, and while I’d like to discuss favorite wine, cocktails, beer, cider, I also want to talk about non-alcoholic drinks. Recently, for example, Costco has had organic guava juice (not from concentrate), and I can’t get enough of it. It’s the perfect combo of sweet and tart and funky. I’m also a big fan of beer made by Athletic Brewing Company, which only makes non-alcoholic beer, and does so in many varieties with a ton of flavor.

So let’s talk about and share likes and recipes, bargain finds, unusual pleasures as we start the summer season.

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Reader Interactions

105Comments

  1. 1.

    WaterGirl

    June 3, 2021 at 6:10 pm

    BG, you have had a month off, and this is our first Thursday Medium Cool.

    So I have to ask… have you been using this month to um, research, this topic?

  2. 2.

    pacem appellant

    June 3, 2021 at 6:13 pm

    I’ve been looking for a good zero alcohol beer. I’ll check this out, thanks! As for my own contribution to the discussion, I’ve been enjoying the gin made by Drink Monday. It’s zero calorie and the G&T is good! They also make a zero-cal / zero-OH(-) whiskey. I’m OK with it. It’s growing on me. The first sip isn’t anything like whiskey, but the by the fourth and fifth ones, my brain is fooled.

  3. 3.

    BGinCHI

    June 3, 2021 at 6:14 pm

    @WaterGirl: Maaaaaaybe.

  4. 4.

    WaterGirl

    June 3, 2021 at 6:14 pm

    Since I am here talking to myself, i will take this occasion to vent.  I have been catching up on the last 2 seasons of The Librarians.  I am now on episode 6, and all I can say is holy hell and WTF?

    I saw this episode right after one of the other shows I watch killed off the main character.  Double WTF? Who does that?

    I think I need a drink.

  5. 5.

    TomatoQueen

    June 3, 2021 at 6:15 pm

    Lemonade, hot choccy, Pinot Gris, there was that bottle of Dom Perignon in 1975,  Tullamore Dew, Beaujolais Nouveau cos I love CHEEP red wine, Cat Pee on a Gooseberry Bush (from New Zealand), that Barossa Red we found at World Market that time, and that Chateau Margaux 1937 that time when I was too young for it.

    Coffee.

  6. 6.

    WaterGirl

    June 3, 2021 at 6:15 pm

    @pacem appellant: How can alcohol have zero calories?

    Does not compute.

  7. 7.

    BGinCHI

    June 3, 2021 at 6:15 pm

    @pacem appellant: The witbier they make is really solid, as is the sour I had. Haven’t tried the porter or the gose, and I don’t really drink IPA.

    But since NA beer is what they do, it’s better than anything else I’ve ever tried that was sans alcohol. Plus, just the sheer variety of choices is pretty novel.

  8. 8.

    WaterGirl

    June 3, 2021 at 6:15 pm

    @TomatoQueen:

    What is choccy?  Is that a term of endearment for hot chocolate?  If so, I have never heard that.

  9. 9.

    BGinCHI

    June 3, 2021 at 6:18 pm

    @WaterGirl: I haven’t seen this show.

    Is there a lot of shushing?

  10. 10.

    BGinCHI

    June 3, 2021 at 6:19 pm

    @TomatoQueen: ​
      I spent a few glorious nights in the town of Tullamore. Glorious.

  11. 11.

    WaterGirl

    June 3, 2021 at 6:20 pm

    @BGinCHI: I mentioned two shows, which one are you asking about?

  12. 12.

    Roger Moore

    June 3, 2021 at 6:21 pm

    I had a lot of fun making homemade soft drinks.  Homemade root beer and tonic water are just fantastic.  I did it the easy way- make a syrup and mix with soda water from a siphon as needed- rather than trying the fiddly business of fermenting to get the fizz.  It’s even easier to make homemade ginger beer or lemon-lime soda.

  13. 13.

    PeakVT

    June 3, 2021 at 6:22 pm

    I have tried to like NA beer but I just can’t. But I haven’t encountered a craft NA beer so I will give those a try.

  14. 14.

    BGinCHI

    June 3, 2021 at 6:24 pm

    @WaterGirl: The Librarians, famous for shushing.

  15. 15.

    BGinCHI

    June 3, 2021 at 6:24 pm

    @Roger Moore: Please deliver to my house.

  16. 16.

    gwangung

    June 3, 2021 at 6:25 pm

    @WaterGirl: Well, crap….I let this drop…..maybe I need to catch up. (The show hired one of my actor crushes…I mean literal crush here)(a note to non artistic types…that IS a no-no to do, but was fortunately never tempted to act on).

     

    @BGinCHI: If you’re talking The Librarians, it was a show run by John Rogers (he of Leverage fame and popularizer of the 27% factor)

  17. 17.

    WaterGirl

    June 3, 2021 at 6:26 pm

    @BGinCHI: I’ll post your address later.  :-)

  18. 18.

    Central Planning

    June 3, 2021 at 6:27 pm

    We bought an alcohol-free tequila because we figured we could drink margaritas all day and still be functional.

    Turns out it’s not tequila with alcohol removed, it’s a mix of flavors that tastes NOTHING like real tequila.

    I absolutely hate waking up with any sort of headache from drinking, so no/lite drinking is the way for me.

  19. 19.

    Alison Rose

    June 3, 2021 at 6:27 pm

    I don’t drink alcohol at all–no, not even a little, no not even on special occasions, etc. I know the jackals are more understanding, but in other places, even at my age, I still get people who have a very hard time grasping the concept of “never.” Last time I had a drop of alcohol was probably at around 18 years old. I never had the “fun drunken times and maybe feeling crappy later” thing…it just always made me feel ill immediately, whether it was wine or beer or hard liquor or anything.

    My fave things these days are Cran-Whatever: Cran-Grape, Cran-Raspberry, Cran-Pomegranate, etc. Love ’em.

  20. 20.

    pacem appellant

    June 3, 2021 at 6:28 pm

    @WaterGirl: They are non-alcoholic products that closely resemble in flavor their alcoholic counterparts. So the gin tastes more or less like gin, but without deleterious side effects. Their whiskey gets its sweetness from monk fruit, which is sweet like stevia but does not metabolize in the gut.

  21. 21.

    trollhattan

    June 3, 2021 at 6:28 pm

    SLO Brew in (duh) San Luis Obispo makes a blood orange hefeweisen named Cali Squeeze that masterfully combines the citrus with the bready, spritzy light-bodied, unfiltered wheat beer.  When summer temps climb from stun to kill it’s a welcome change from IPAs and such. There’s also a mango version. While there are dozens of pale ale and IPAs with citrus, the beer overwhelms the citrus in most. It’s a challenging dance rarely perfected.

    Don’t do “lite” or “light” beers so can’t comment on those or NA beer. I’ll have sparkling mineral water instead.

    Summer’s also the time to switch to roses and cool climate white wines. Oysters and chablis or semillion? Yes please.

  22. 22.

    WaterGirl

    June 3, 2021 at 6:29 pm

    @gwangung: Ooh, who’s your crush?  I won’t tell anyone.

    I really like several of the actors in The Librarians.

  23. 23.

    Roger Moore

    June 3, 2021 at 6:29 pm

    @BGinCHI:

    I don’t have the more complicated recipes with me, but I’ll try to post some when I get home.  For the simple ones:

    Lemon-lime soda:

    1 cup fresh-squeezed lemon juice

    1 cup fresh-squeezed lime juice

    1 cup sugar

    Combine in an appropriate sized container.  Mix thoroughly until sugar is completely dissolved.  Make lemon lime soda by mixing 1/4 cup syrup, 1 cup ice, and soda water sufficient to make one pint.  Syrup keeps for at least 2 weeks refrigerated.

  24. 24.

    WaterGirl

    June 3, 2021 at 6:29 pm

    @pacem appellant: Huh.

  25. 25.

    BGinCHI

    June 3, 2021 at 6:29 pm

    @WaterGirl:

    BG

    Van

    Down By the River

  26. 26.

    BGinCHI

    June 3, 2021 at 6:32 pm

    @trollhattan: That SLO beer is in my wheelhouse. Kind of like a cloudy wheat radler.

    Chablis and oysters is perfection and I need to do that soon. So hard to find good oysters here.

  27. 27.

    TomatoQueen

    June 3, 2021 at 6:33 pm

    @WaterGirl: ​
     

    Choccy is indeed a twee endearment for chocolate in all its incarnations, and I will not give it up. Reminds me I need to get some Penzey’s in.

  28. 28.

    TomatoQueen

    June 3, 2021 at 6:35 pm

    @BGinCHI: ​
     

    Ooo it’s not a mythical place then, like Brigadoon.

  29. 29.

    zhena gogolia

    June 3, 2021 at 6:36 pm

    There are so many beverages I used to love that I can’t drink any more for various reasons. Coffee. Even decaf coffee, except on rare occasions. Beer. Gin. Vodka. Carbonated anything. Any juice other than watermelon or grape.

    Basically, it’s down to: Water. Rice or oat milk. Wine. Watermelon juice. Pretty boring.

    And our local grocery store no longer carries Paul Newman’s Gorilla Grape Juice, which is my fave of all time.

  30. 30.

    Jeffro

    June 3, 2021 at 6:37 pm

    I tried Athletic’s golden lager – Upside Dawn? – a week or two ago.  It was good, but I don’t think n/a beer is for me.  I’d rather just have a diet 7up or something.

    Bold Rock’s hard seltzers are frightfully good (especially if you get the variety pack).

  31. 31.

    MomSense

    June 3, 2021 at 6:39 pm

    Love Athletic Brewing Company beer.  I’ve heard that a new craft NA brewery is going to open in Portland Maine – beer capital of the world.

    In the summer I like to make lemonade  with honey and rosemary.  My kids like to add fresh fruit to sparkling lemonade.

    Best mocktails I’ve had are at a little restaurant called Baharat.  I went to the menu to see what they are offering this week and found two that look really good.

    https://www.baharatmaine.com/menu-1

  32. 32.

    Suzanne

    June 3, 2021 at 6:40 pm

    TEJAVA iced tea. Forever and ever.

  33. 33.

    BGinCHI

    June 3, 2021 at 6:42 pm

    @TomatoQueen: Oh no, it’s very real. In County Offaly. Small town, big distillery.

  34. 34.

    The Golux

    June 3, 2021 at 6:42 pm

    Spindrift Grapefruit. That is all.

  35. 35.

    Mousebumples

    June 3, 2021 at 6:43 pm

    If anyone has some good mocktail recipes, I’d love to hear them.

    I enjoy this one –

    • 2 parts cranberry juice
    • 1 part lemon lime soda
    • A splash of orange juice (or more, if preferred, to taste)
  36. 36.

    bluefoot

    June 3, 2021 at 6:43 pm

    Late in the winter I went through a phase of making candied citrus peel.  So now I have a couple of small jars of the leftover syrup which I plan to use in cocktails.  The syrup has a nice citrus tang (one orange, one grapefruit, one lemon).  Now that summer is coming on, I will also use in lemonade, etc.

    A random guy in the liquor store gave me a recommendation for mezcal and it’s terrific.  Montelobos, with 100% organic and sustainably grown agave. I want to invent cocktails using it….I’ve been eyeing the green cardamom in the spice rack and the above mentioned citrus syrups.

    But honestly, I’ve barely had any alcohol during the pandemic (maybe 6 or 7 times total) since I drink socially.  Looking forward to wine with friends at some point.

  37. 37.

    Raven

    June 3, 2021 at 6:44 pm

    @Alison Rose:  I’m at 27 years and counting. The only “recovery” I ever did was a Wharf Rat gathering at a Dead show in Charlotte.

  38. 38.

    BGinCHI

    June 3, 2021 at 6:44 pm

    @Jeffro: ​
      Ironically, my friend who introduced it to me told me he loved all their beers except the blonde. So….might be worth trying another kind.

  39. 39.

    BGinCHI

    June 3, 2021 at 6:45 pm

    @MomSense: ​
      Dang. Those do look good.

    If you are a Costco person, try that Guava Nectar. It’s amazing.

  40. 40.

    WaterGirl

    June 3, 2021 at 6:46 pm

    @TomatoQueen: Is that of your own making?  Or is it a family or regional thing?

  41. 41.

    WaterGirl

    June 3, 2021 at 6:47 pm

    @Suzanne: You forgot to say Amen.

  42. 42.

    Alison Rose

    June 3, 2021 at 6:48 pm

    @Raven: I actually have a Wharf Rat pin, even though I’m not a former drinker or anything, but I liked the idea of being part of the non-partaking group :)

  43. 43.

    BGinCHI

    June 3, 2021 at 6:48 pm

    @bluefoot: We don’t drink much liquor at home (or away, for that matter), but when we do it’s mostly mezcal. Such a great smoky taste, especially with fruit juice.

    For those who drink tequila, give mezcal a try. It’s similar but smokier and almost all artisanal, as opposed to tequila, which is almost all factory made.

  44. 44.

    Suzanne

    June 3, 2021 at 6:48 pm

    Four Peaks in Tempe makes an amazing Peach Ale. They also make a good one called Kiltlifter.

    I am exceedingly homesick.

    I may want to move back.

  45. 45.

    raven

    June 3, 2021 at 6:49 pm

    @pacem appellant: Thats a dumb as it gets.

  46. 46.

    Old Dan and Little Ann

    June 3, 2021 at 6:50 pm

    Bliss IPA.  8% 16 oz can from Thin Man Brewery out of Syracuse.  Yummy.

  47. 47.

    raven

    June 3, 2021 at 6:50 pm

    @Alison Rose: Nice, those pins are great!

  48. 48.

    gwangung

    June 3, 2021 at 6:52 pm

    @WaterGirl: It was just one of the guest artists in the Asian monastery episode, so not a Big Name….

    But I am a sucker for women who are physically attractive (I AM that shallow), have a gracious personality (i.e., won’t tell me to “Fuck Off” if I overstep) and have enormous talent and focusses it like a laser.

  49. 49.

    Wapiti

    June 3, 2021 at 6:53 pm

    My most favorite beverage these days is horchata. Making it is a 2-day affair, because the rice/water/cinnamon soaks overnight, but it’s quite refreshing on hot days or with spicy food. Hmm. Maybe I should find my recipe again.

  50. 50.

    MomSense

    June 3, 2021 at 6:53 pm

    @BGinCHI:

    Their sours usually have some Persian spices in them too so the drinks don’t taste too sweet.

  51. 51.

    zhena gogolia

    June 3, 2021 at 6:55 pm

    @raven:

    Yeah, the flavor of gin or whiskey is not really something I would crave in and of itself. Grape juice is better.

  52. 52.

    BGinCHI

    June 3, 2021 at 6:56 pm

    @MomSense: I’d eat there just for those drinks.

  53. 53.

    gwangung

    June 3, 2021 at 6:57 pm

    Ah….not an imbiber of alcoholic drinks. Very much prefer mocktails and the like—the much derided fruity fru-fru drinks.

  54. 54.

    quintillian

    June 3, 2021 at 7:00 pm

    Love these guys at Burly Beverages with their small batch shrubs and syrups  … my favs include the root beer and the ginger. Many cocktail ideas too.

  55. 55.

    narya

    June 3, 2021 at 7:01 pm

    I’ve made my own ginger ale mix (and can share recipe if folks are interested). Lagunitas makes a “hop water” thing–a lot of the beer flavors, esp. hops, but no alcohol. I like it a lot; it’s quite refreshing. Ain’t cheap, and can be hard to find (Binny’s for Chi folks). I do drink alcohol, however, mostly beer & wine: had a bunch of Weyerbacher’s this past week, and brought some back as well. I’ve also made my own lime simple syrup for margaritas, and much prefer it to Rose’s; it would probably work nicely with some club soda for a limeade thing.

    I quite enjoy finding new beers–travel is basically an opportunity to find good brewpubs. At this point, though, given my extensive sampling, I am not a beer “chaser”: yeah, Dark Lord is quite nice if someone brings one, but there are limits to what I’m willing to do to get one. Goose Island’s Bourbon County Stout is the same: if I remember, if I’m at the store, if it doesn’t sound icky, sure, I’ll go for it. My favorite brewery these days (again, for you Chicago folks) is Sketchbook: high-quality beer, true to style, tasty.

    The one social thing forward to which I am looking: I have two friends who get a lot of big beers: high alcohol, bomber-size bottles. It’s hard for two people to drink those–it’s a commitment. A few years ago, I started hosting beer-from-the-basement parties, where I would supply food of various sorts and they would bring some of those beers (and I’d have lower-alcohol ones as well) and six of us would gather and share them. Six is about the right number–everyone gets some, but you don’t have to commit to a lot of anything. The key thing is that the attendees have to actually like beer, and big beers in particular. But it was a lot of fun, and I am looking forward to doing it again this summer.

  56. 56.

    WaterGirl

    June 3, 2021 at 7:02 pm

    @gwangung: Okay.  When you catch up on The Librarians, let me know when you get to episode 6.  Apparently 7-12 are on a different track than the previous ones.  Bastards!

  57. 57.

    trollhattan

    June 3, 2021 at 7:02 pm

    @BGinCHI:

    Oysters can be tricky to find. One of my favorite reasons to go to the PNW are the places with access to the region’s tiny oyster farms. Heaven.

  58. 58.

    Falling Diphthong

    June 3, 2021 at 7:04 pm

    Whole Foods has a black currant juice that is really refreshing–a more complex red grade juice.

  59. 59.

    BGinCHI

    June 3, 2021 at 7:04 pm

    @quintillian: WOW. Had not heard of them.

    Dying to try their stuff. Favorites?

  60. 60.

    JMG

    June 3, 2021 at 7:04 pm

    We go through a lot of Polar Cranberry-Lime seltzer in our house. In terms of alcohol, it’s pretty much all wine. A cocktail before dinner at a restaurant (martini in winter, gin and tonic in summer, Alice likes manhattans), but we went 14 months between restaurant visits.

  61. 61.

    trollhattan

    June 3, 2021 at 7:07 pm

    @TomatoQueen:

    Like many a Brit term, I acquired choccy via Monte Python.

  62. 62.

    BGinCHI

    June 3, 2021 at 7:07 pm

    @trollhattan: ​
      I learned to eat oysters at Rodney’s in Toronto, but agree that PNW is the best place to get local stuff (small, cold water varieties, esp.).

  63. 63.

    prostratedragon

    June 3, 2021 at 7:08 pm

    Well just dang, and me about to put in an order to Costco.

    Don’t drink much alcohol; not against it, just seldom do. At those times, bourbon. An occasional porter is my beer favorite, or this time of year a Corona with clams or a fish boil. Coffee only several times a week, because if I have it too often I don’t enjoy it, and at the prices for fairly light, sweet, and strong French roast, even at home, enjoyment is essential. Chewy orange juice; you folks who like it pulp-free, I’m getting your pulp added in. A Vernor’s daily, extra chilled from the freezer, or sometimes a Gosling’s instead. Come the hot weather I’ll be getting fresh mint and making what I call a Bowen Avenue Cooler, which is just lime juice or limeade with mint macerating in it, topped off with Vernor’s. Sort of a nonalcoholic mojito, but deserves its own positive name.

  64. 64.

    BGinCHI

    June 3, 2021 at 7:09 pm

    @narya: Sadly, I still haven’t been to the Sketchbook space. Need to do that. Have you been to Metropolitan (on the river)?

  65. 65.

    Nora Lenderbee

    June 3, 2021 at 7:11 pm

    Spouse makes wine from peaches, cherries, plums–anything except grapes. It’s really fun, and the wines are delicious, if somewhat weird. He’s also done zucchini wine–surprisingly good; eggplant wine–not too terrible; and basil wine–ugh.

    He also makes ginger ale, root beer, and ginger beer. The ginger ale is fantastic with a sharp bite. The sodas are not alcoholic, the ginger beer has very low alcohol.

    Basically, he’ll ferment anything (once).  Today he made cherry wine.

  66. 66.

    WaterGirl

    June 3, 2021 at 7:11 pm

    @trollhattan: I guess it’s not something that TomatoQueen made up then.  And since I don’t think you are related, I guess it’s not a family thing.

    Questions answered!

  67. 67.

    narya

    June 3, 2021 at 7:13 pm

    @BGinCHI: I have! multiple times. Even met one of the owners multiple times (at the Map Room as well as at the brewery). I don’t remember if we have a run there this year or not

    ETA: Sketchbook now has TWO spaces, one in Evanston and one in Skokie.

  68. 68.

    SaltWaterCleanse

    June 3, 2021 at 7:18 pm

    Had my first Pliny the Elder last weekend. My life is forever changed for the better. Shoutout to my sister’s boyfriend, Deryck, for hooking me up.

  69. 69.

    Dan B

    June 3, 2021 at 7:23 pm

    @BGinCHI: Yes PNW is a great place for oysters, Olympias – our native tiny rare, and others that I’ve had only once.  My partner, Seattle native except for his furst few months in Portland, doesn’t care for seafood except well done Salmon.  I love Halibut fresh from Alaska, Black Cod marinated in Sake Lees, Sturgeon baked with fresh herbs and shallots en papillote, etc!  He dies love the waterside oyster farm on Chuckanut drive so it may be field trip time!!

  70. 70.

    Geminid

    June 3, 2021 at 7:34 pm

    The weather is turning hot and humid in Virginia, and I work outdoors. So I’m starting to bring my hydration mix: cool water, lemon or lime juice, and sea salt. My approach to the amount of juice and salt is enough, not too much. But those more organized than I- basically anybody- can work out the amounts for themseves. I think sweating is good, so long as I stay hydrated.

  71. 71.

    cope

    June 3, 2021 at 7:35 pm

    I gave up booze about three years ago as I prepared to enter my seventh decade of life.  It’s purely a selfish reason: to lengthen my odds of outliving a number of people on a list I keep in my head.  Rush Lumbaugh – check.  Approximately seven to go.

    For NA beer, I am partial to the German brand Clausthaler, especially the Dry Hopped variety.  Other than that, it’s filtered water out of the new fridge and coffee made from said water;  Folger’s Black Silk.  As a matter of fact, I fancy a cup (black, please) right now so toodles.

  72. 72.

    BGinCHI

    June 3, 2021 at 7:37 pm

    @narya: It’s a great space, although I wish they took over more of that excellent building that’s almost empty (apart from the coffee roaster).

    Also really like Dovetail and their German-style beers. We live walking distance to Half Acre and Spiteful. Both terrific, as I’m sure you know!

  73. 73.

    BGinCHI

    June 3, 2021 at 7:39 pm

    @Dan B: ​
      Sadly, Mrs. BG doesn’t eat seafood (her only flaw), so we may have to run away together and eat a few dozen oysters and a fish or three.

  74. 74.

    Ruckus

    June 3, 2021 at 7:49 pm

    Stopped drinking any alcohol about 18 yrs ago. It seemed like the thing to do, as I was starting to drink more often than was likely reasonable, even if I didn’t drink too much at any one time. Have never been much of a beer drinker. Haven’t been able to drink any cows milk for the last 40-45 years, went for about 20-25 yrs without any type of milk/milk product until almond milk came out. Have tried all the non animal milks that I know of and almond is the only one I can drink. And yes I know I’m weird, I’ve gotten over it, sort of……

  75. 75.

    Amir Khalid

    June 3, 2021 at 8:06 pm

    @WaterGirl:

    As a fan of The X-Files from back in the 1990s, I recall that Agent Mulder got killed off twice — and the second rime, he even had a funeral, attended by his girlfriend and her mother.

  76. 76.

    Uncle Cosmo

    June 3, 2021 at 8:10 pm

    As a type 2 diabetic I am repeatedly admonished to drink lots of low/no-carbohydrate, Alkoholfrei fluids. I prepare my preferred libations with Wyler or Hawaiian Punch stick mixes, which I get at a Dollar Tree in $1 boxes of 10 (W) or 8 (HP). The sticks are supposed to be added to 500 ml of water, but that’s way too sweet for my taste – I fill an empty 1 qt or 1 l bottle with tap water & mix them there. Renders even the least palatable dihydrogen oxide potable or better. In descending order, my Wyler preferences are strawberry lemonade and peach ice tea; for HP, original red and berry blue typhoon. The Wyler mixes are bulked up with maltodextrin, which tends to fall out of solution and leave a white (harmless) residue, the HP mixes are pretty clean.

    I have 3 quarts of various flavors in the fridge right now, and my European carry-on always includes an empty 1-liter bottle plus a baggie with 25-30 stick mixes, which take care of hydration for a 3-week trip. Inexpensive, refreshing, light, compact, what’s not to like? :^D /tmi​

  77. 77.

    phein62

    June 3, 2021 at 8:15 pm

    @BGinCHI:  I’m not sure who liked the Costco guava juice, but:

    At the various Hilton properties around Waikiki, they dispense a papaya-guava-mango juice that is perfection. People will fill up gallon jugs to take some with them for the day. I’ve tried to get something similar here in the Midwest, with no luck.

    Anyone else familiar with this concoction?

  78. 78.

    Sure Lurkalot

    June 3, 2021 at 8:15 pm

    During the pandemic before vax, we made Crystal Lite lemonade and mixed it 3 to 1 with hibiscus or hibiscus/lemongrass tea.  I didn’t want to buy “extraneous” non-essential bottled drinks when I ran through the store as fast as possible.  This mixture is much better with bottled lemonade.

    I lost my sweet tooth ages ago and don’t like juice or anything sweet.  I used to be addicted to Diet Coke but I had cut myself way back before Covid and I haven’t had one in more than a year.  I buy La Croix.  Tangerine’s my fave.

  79. 79.

    StringOnAStick

    June 3, 2021 at 8:33 pm

    I’ve been making my own kombucha for 6 years; it’s so easy and cheap to do it yourself plus you control the results. Too often the commercial versions are too sweet or too vinegar. I have a cooler as a dedicated fermentation chamber with a heating pad to keep it at 80 degrees, I use less sugar than the instructions told me so it doesn’t get too tart. I mix the results with about 1/4 of cherry berry herb tea, bottle it in quart jars to put in the refrigerator and blow off doing a secondary fermentation to carbonate it (less sugar and hassle), then toss in a teaspoon of ginger juice when I pour a glass. Super refreshing, pennies to make plus it’s a probiotic. The last friend I turned on to making kombucha swears it improved his gut health.

  80. 80.

    SFBayAreaGal

    June 3, 2021 at 8:43 pm

    My favorite summer drink was the Cool Lime Refresher that Starbucks used to have on their drink menu.

  81. 81.

    bluefoot

    June 3, 2021 at 8:45 pm

    @BGinCHI: ​
      Prior to getting this bottle, I hadn’t hadn’t really had much mezcal before. But a Mexican colleague had invented a cocktail with mezcal that he demo’d during a zoom social thing. And that made me want to try it out. It’s lovely – complex, slightly smoky, slightly herbal.

  82. 82.

    Narya

    June 3, 2021 at 8:48 pm

    @BGinCHI: if you check out the IL Brewery Running Series you will be able to find me at various breweries, except June  19-20.

  83. 83.

    something fabulous

    June 3, 2021 at 9:06 pm

    @WaterGirl: Old school British! (as is twee!)– I seem to remember seeing it first in P.G. Wodehouse books, maybe?

  84. 84.

    WaterGirl

    June 3, 2021 at 9:09 pm

    @something fabulous: I had no idea!

  85. 85.

    Kednedub

    June 3, 2021 at 9:09 pm

    @Alison Rose: Go Team Cran!

    Mix a dash of cran-whatever with seltzer for a cran-soda…

  86. 86.

    Buckethead

    June 3, 2021 at 9:12 pm

    Athletic makes good NA beers, but my favorites are the dark amber and golden wheat varieties made by Wellbeing Brewing. Surreal Brewing is pretty good too.

  87. 87.

    HinTN

    June 3, 2021 at 9:22 pm

    @BGinCHI: Having been to a BJ meetup in Seattle with @Dan B: I would gladly join you both for food, drink and conversation. I’m ready to travel, dammit.

  88. 88.

    debbie

    June 3, 2021 at 9:29 pm

    Also not a drinker, but I often walk by the liquor section when food shopping. I love all the packaging and brand names. Coming up with them must be one of the best things about brewing.

  89. 89.

    quintillian

    June 3, 2021 at 9:33 pm

    @BGinCHI: Thanks for being patient with my reply, I had to hop on a work webinar. My favorite is the root beer. Love that stuff. They do a lot of small batch stuff that I’d never think of, like a lavender lemonade and a super spicy ginger beer, both of which I like too. It’s fun to explore what they create, and they’re always coming up with new combinations. The Pineapple Nutmeg and the Mandarin Elderflower also ones we have right now in our fridge. I’m not a big alcohol drinker, so I don’t know much about their cocktail recipes on their site, but I know other folks who really enjoy them.

  90. 90.

    susanna

    June 3, 2021 at 9:37 pm

    @BGinCHI: Oh, me too!  I drink Ziyad brand that’s sold at a Persian grocery/deli in Mt. View, CA, not too far from where I live.

    Also like their yogurt mint drinks.

  91. 91.

    Dagaetch

    June 3, 2021 at 9:43 pm

    Late to the party, but I recently discovered Olipop sodas, and found them surprisingly tasty. Hoping they can help me break my Coke zero addiction. The ginger lemon in particular is delicious.

  92. 92.

    BGinCHI

    June 3, 2021 at 9:56 pm

    @phein62: That sounds amazing. I’d love that.

  93. 93.

    BGinCHI

    June 3, 2021 at 9:57 pm

    @Narya: ​
      Will do!

  94. 94.

    BGinCHI

    June 3, 2021 at 9:57 pm

    @HinTN: ​
      GAME ON.

  95. 95.

    BGinCHI

    June 3, 2021 at 9:58 pm

    @quintillian: ​
      Gonna order from them this summer. Really appreciate the recommendations.

  96. 96.

    BGinCHI

    June 3, 2021 at 9:59 pm

    Thanks all for the tremendous responses here. So much to try!!

  97. 97.

    SFBayAreaGal

    June 3, 2021 at 10:10 pm

    @susanna: Where in Mt. View? I would love to try their yogurt mint drink

  98. 98.

    nclurker

    June 3, 2021 at 10:25 pm

    irish themed;

    paddy whiskey special:vanilla ice cream,a splash of cold black coffee,a shot of irish whiskey.

    run in a blender.second round,the same ,but with two shots of irish.

    continue upwards.great for hangovers.

    black velvets;champagne and guinness,to taste ,but about 50/50.

  99. 99.

    Central Planning

    June 3, 2021 at 10:45 pm

    @SFBayAreaGal: My wife loves the same refresher. So disappointed SBUX got rid of it.

  100. 100.

    TomatoQueen

    June 3, 2021 at 11:01 pm

    @BGinCHI: ​
     
    Tullamore Dew was the non-single malt drinker’s choice some forty five years ago when I were a lass and it were all fields round here…not sure I wouldn’t add a drop of water to it now. One mellows.

  101. 101.

    TomatoQueen

    June 3, 2021 at 11:07 pm

    @something fabulous: ​
     

    That sounds right, the Wodehouse origin (he was responsible for quite a lot and in a most particular manner). I picked it up from UK/Aussie/NZ online friends but if they got it from Monty Python that’s probably right too. I do associate the word ‘twee’ with Dorothy Parker tho, don’t know why.

  102. 102.

    RaflW

    June 3, 2021 at 11:33 pm

    Late to this, but I want to say that I’ve been thrilled with the recent surge of excellent N.A. beers in the US market. Europe has been light years ahead, so I knew it was possible, but the market here didn’t know what it wanted – because it’d mostly been offered garbage.

    Now, not all people in recovery agree that sub 0.5% beers are safe or appropriate. That’s cool. The program I work tells me that I can take what works and leave the rest. I drink 0.5% N.A.s the way I wish I could have consumed full-strength ones: occasionally, when they sound good, and only very rarely even have a second one on the same day. A six pack can last me 2-4 weeks. It was decidedly not like that for ‘real’ beer.

    All that said, if the taste isn’t triggering of a craving or relapse, there are some quite decent 0.0% N.A.s now too. Hairless Dog is my fave in that subcategory (shoutout to a Minneapolis brewer!).

    But I do prefer the trace alcohol ones. Mostly I think because the process of making the .5s allows a little more body and more malt. Faves in this category are the Hazy IPA from Sam Adams, and some specialty brews from Ceria, particularly Indiewave IPA (note: Not the ‘infused’ products!). I’ve liked Athletic Brewing’s IPA as well.

    At the other end, the $2.99 a six Penn’s Best is a decent ‘fake beer’ for lawnmower days or out on a sunny pontoon ride. Far better than the crap from the big American volume brewers (not even worth naming, but the products that in American minds made N.A. synonymous with ‘yuck’.)

  103. 103.

    billcinsd

    June 4, 2021 at 12:08 am

    @WaterGirl: 

    As a huge Librarians fan, if you are talking 12 episodes that is Season 4 as the first 3 seasons are only 10 episodes. They did move away from the Nicole Noone episodes after episode 6 until episode 12. This I would say was equivalent to the X-Files going to Monsters of the Week episodes. I personally prefer the Librarians Monster of the Week episodes. I particularly like episode 8 (written by the wonderful Kate Rorick) and episode 10.

    Drinks I like are Diet Dr. Pepper. I have not had any alcohol since 2013 when I found out I had Type 2 diabetes and congestive heart failure.

  104. 104.

    Tony

    June 4, 2021 at 12:37 am

    @Buckethead: Have you had their Victory Wheat?

  105. 105.

    Kayla Rudbek

    June 4, 2021 at 5:38 pm

    @Dagaetch: co-sign on the Olipop. Low-sugar and probiotic that tastes good. I liked the root beer flavor..

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