👀 The Ultimate Non-Alc Glossary!

(For funsies, I recorded this intro as a voiceover for you ^).Boy do I have an exciting set up of updates for you. Where to begin?

1. Last night I joined fellow drinks writer Allison Robicelli for a gorgeous Michelin-starred tasting menu at Xiquet in Glover Park, DC. The 14 course experience practically made me cry tears of ecstasy, and the icing on the cake was how many NA wine options they had to offer! French Bloom sparkling brut! Lyre’s new new Rosé Classico! And my favorite of the evening, Missing Thorn’s rosé.

   

2. I teamed up with fellow Substack writer Elle Reads Library Books on an epic national park drink / book pairing experience. Elle is an American expat living in Brazil who has read over 3,000 books (OMG WHUTT) and most of them have been library books! This was maybe some of the most fun I’ve had writing in a while (besides literally every time I log into my June writing workshop with Tawny Lara).

3. For all you new readers, scroll down to read one of my all-time most popular posts: The ABCs of NA. Think of this as the ultimate NA glossary.

4. Join me and June ZPN sponsor happie founder Pete Olander on Monday for a Substack live (5pm EST / 4pm Central / 2pm PST)!

5. LET’S GOOOOOOOOO. TGIF, baby.

6. PS: Seeking newsletter sponsorships for Q3 (July - September). Are you a non-alc brand? Hotel? Cruise line? Event series? Fellow writer? Want to patron the non-alc arts and sponsor Zero Proof Nation by Laura? Reply to this email and let’s discuss, like they do on Cawfee Tawk.

   

With so many terms floating about pertaining to the adult non-alcoholic industry1, I thought it was time for a glossary. What you see below is actually an updated version of a collection of terms I wrote for an event in 2021 — yes, I’ve been doing this for a hot minute. While people were (sober) curious then, they’re chomping at the bit even more now to learn, read, and consume non-alc content and beverages voraciously. This will be a living document and as there are more terms that enter our lexicon, I’ll be sure to make updates.

Thanks for reading! Make sure to comment / restack / tell all your friends, shout from the rooftops, send carrier pigeons, etc.

Am I missing any terms you’d like to see in the next version? ⚡️

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ABV
alcohol by volume; the FDA considers beverages with up to 0.5% ABV to be non-alcoholic

adaptogen
non-toxic, plant-based substance said to increase body's resilience and ability to return to homeostasis

AF
alcohol-free (but also "as f*ck")

alcohol
ethanol, liquid created by fermentation of grains, fruits, or other sugars; toxin; drug

alcohol-free
can be used to describe a state of being; when on labels in the USA, this must mean 0.0% ABV2. In the UK, “alcohol-free” can mean an ABV of 0.05% or less while “low-alcohol” refers to any product with 1.2% ABV or below.3

aperitif
beverage sipped before a meal meant to stimulate the appetite

bitters, alcohol-free 
liquids meant to be used in dashes to add nuanced flavor to drinks, often using vegetable glycerin as a preserving agent (e.g. All the Bitter — try our coffee cherry collab bitter while you’re at it!)

bitters, traditional
liquids meant to be used in dashes to add nuanced flavor to drinks, using alcohol as a preserving agent (e.g. Angostura)

booze-free
sans booze, whether talking about a drink or a lifestyle

booze-free babe
a fabulous babe of any gender who chooses to not drink alcohol

booze-free bar4
a bar without the booze; for some, that’s an oxymoron, but why should it be? a booze-free bar is a social space with delicious hangover-free beverages that enable authentic connection; it can be a brick-and-mortar space (e.g. Sans Bar) or a pop-up event / mobile mixology service (e.g. Free Life).

botanical
of or pertaining to plants (e.g. Tenneyson, (parentheses))

California sober
more commonly known as “cali sober,” a lifestyle where alcohol and harder drugs are abstained from; use of cannabis is allowed.

CBD
cannabidiol, 1 of 113 cannabinoids in cannabis/hemp plants, CBD has been used for pain relief and anti-anxiety purposes5

dealcoholization
the process by which alcohol is removed from a liquid; usually non-alc beers and wines go through the dealc process. There are various types of dealcoholization, some of which are vacuum distillation (using spinning cone columns), arrested fermentation, and reverse osmosis.

FDA
U.S. Food and Drug Administration6 

fermentation
metabolic process where yeast and other bacteria convert sugars present in a liquid into alcohol

functional beverage
made with adaptogens (to bring the body back to homeostasis), nootropics (to stimulate the brain), or other ingredients that have, well, a specific function, this type of beverage claims to serve a need. Hot take: you won’t feel much after just one beverage. To get the most results, you’ll have to drink these beverages consistently to feel results. As always, consult with your doc if you have any questions and/or if you take any meds like selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) or monoamine oxidase inhibitors (MAOIs).

functional mushroom
type of non-intoxicating edible mushroom that has a purpose; e.g. lion’s mane (known to support brain health, immune system, inflammation), cordyceps (known to boost energy, improve athletic performance, enhance immune function), chaga (known to support immune function, lower inflammation, manage cholesterol, improve blood sugar) turkey tail (known to support immune function and gut processes), etc. Little Saints is a non-alc brand that uses functional mushrooms.

garnish
fresh/dried herbs or fruits used to decorate a drink

ginger beer 
a spicier, more ginger-forward version of ginger ale; not beer

glassware
from highballs and wine glasses to beer steins and coupes, these are sexy receptacles to make your (booze-free) bevs pop

Global Map of NA
world map featuring non-alc bottle shops (brick-and-mortar and e-commerce), booze-free bars (brick-and-mortar and pop-ups), NA-friendly retail (shops not dedicated to NA but with substantial amount of options), and NA-forward hospitality (like Xiquet, with all those NA wines!).

Click the map below to see what almost half a million people have been buzzing about.

happie
non-alc brand and ZPN sponsor this month with a line of infused seltzers and functional mushroom beverages

infused
referring to a beverage infused with THC

kombucha
fermented tea beverages; usually at 0.5% ABV or lower

low and no / no and low
another term for beverage movement comprised of low and no alcohol

mental health
emotional, psychological, and social wellbeing

mindful drinking
related to sober curiosity; refers to a wellness-focused and proactive, rather than reactive, way to track alcohol consumption7

mocktail
non-alcoholic cocktail; some call the new "mocktail” a non-alc cocktail or ready-to-drink (RTD) that doesn’t use NA spirits; can alternatively be called alcohol free/spirit free/zero proof/NA cocktail

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near beer
non-alcoholic brew or malted beverage containing up to 0.5% ABV (e.g. Athletic Brewing, Partake Brewing, Mash Gang)

non-alcoholic (NA) / non-alc
a beverage considered as such by the FDA when ABV is lower than 0.5% ABV; also a term for the wider movement of adult non-alcoholic beverage culture

non-alcoholic bottle shop8
born out of the pandemic and an answer to “what to drink when you’re not drinking,”a type of specialty retail space that sells a wide variety of adult NA brands; akin to a “liquor store” sans the booze; can be a brick-and-mortar space (Generation NA, Killjoy, Sechey, Soberish, The Open Road) or a dedicated e-commerce site (e.g. Boisson,The Zero Proof). See the series below for interviews with global non-alc bottle shop owners.

prebiotics
plant fibers that feed the good bacteria in gut microbiome (e.g. beverages like Olipop, wildwonder, Mocktail Club, poppi)

probiotics
living strains of bacteria that add to the population of good bacteria in gut microbiome

Prohibition
nationwide constitutional ban on the production, importation, transportation, and sale of alcoholic beverages from 1920 to 1933; influenced by Temperance movement

recovery
a process of change through which individuals improve their health and wellness, live self-directed lives, and strive to reach their full potential (SAMHSA9)

RTD
ready to drink; typically a canned or bottled beverage

shrub
a reduction used in cocktails made of fruit, herbs, vinegar, sugar; can contain probiotics (e.g. from apple cider vinegar)

sober
the opposite of "drunk," sober is also a term many non-drinkers use to describe themselves; sober can be related to recovery but is not mutually exclusive

sober curious
term coined by Ruby Warrington in 2015; being intentional, curious, mindful about reasons why we drink; can result in trying on sobriety for a period of time (e.g. Dry January, a whole year, life, etc.)

sobriety spectrum
all the reasons someone might not choose to drink for the night or the rest of their lives; designated drivers, abstainers for medical/religious reasons; straight edge/non-drinkers; sober curious; health-conscious; in recovery

spanking
process of slapping herbs on hand to release oils/aromas…I swear, it’s true

spirit-free
another term for zero-proof or alcohol-free

syrups
viscous liquids made from dissolving of sugars; added to beverages for flavor

Temperance
movement started in early 1900s resulting in Prohibition; members believed alcohol was morally wrong10

zero proof
umbrella descriptor for non-alcoholic or the wider movement (see: Zero Proof Nation, The Zero Proof); when used on menus or on product labels, strongly suggested to truly be 0.0% ABV (although can still contain 0 - 0.5% ABV)

ZPN12
Zero Proof Nation, the world’s foremost non-alcoholic resource hub containing the one and only Global Map of NA