When I get home at night my favorite thing to do is pour a beverage to nurse while I make dinner and to sip on while I do whatever it is I need to do that evening. My favorite beverages are rich and complex in flavor with many layers and great aromas. Of course, my favorite drinks are all alcoholic: wine, bourbon, and beer. But there’s the problem - My main reason for drinking is to enjoy the taste. Most nights I don’t want a buzz, I don’t want the calories, and I could do with a little less cost. But when I try to enjoy a non alcoholic drink they all taste like kids drinks. The ones I can think of are overly sweet, usually carbonated, have simple flavors and don’t really have any enticing aromas. Are there any substitutes for alcoholic drinks that offer similar complex flavors but without the alcohol?
I don’t know if I’d call it a substitute for alcoholic drinks - but good quality tea is a world unto itself.
This is exactly what I was going to post. Iced herbal sun tea will have complexity, if no oomph.
Trying different varieties of ginger beer amuses my palate.
And trying to brew an espresso “godshot” at home is a wonderful adventure.
GUS and Belvoir have some good options. Appletiser’s not too bad either.
My favorite for parties is Belvoir Elderflower Presse.
Decaf tea and coffee come to mind, as well as cocoa. Non-alco beers exist. I wouldn’t necessarily recommend them, but they are an option.
Cranberry juice and soda water. Any juice or fruit purée and soda water works.
Chai tea has rich flavour. Instant decaf coffee with vanilla syrup or whatever flavouring you want. Both can be hot or iced.
There are none, and this thread is an abomination. 
If you could transfer that attitude to salads…They can be made and enjoyed while you cook the other stuff and wait for it to get ready. Plenty of complex tastes possible in your choice of unusual greens, specials herbs and dressings…and you’ve gotten your vegging in already by the time you start your meal !
When I want flavor to sip and savor without alcohol or caffeine, there’s a whole world of herbal teas out there. They’re only sweet if you add it yourself. I like a dab of honey to many, it seems to bring out more flavor without becoming overly sweet.
Carbonated water, juice of one lemon, two dashes angostura bitters. Glass of vodka/rocks served on the side.
Just got back from the store- Crystal Light is selling New! Adult Beverage Flavored! Crystal Light, just in time for this thread.
They had appletini, mojito, and margarita flavors. In the powdered beverage aisle.
I searched long and hard for something relatively cheap and easily available that I could drink as much and as consistently as beer. Water gets too bland, I don’t want any caffeine in my evening drinks and most sodas are too sweet and/or the taste wears out quickly.
But **Cherry 7-Up **has stuck, for me, especially the diet. Tart, dry, zingy but not sweet or cloying. More consistent than ginger ale, which tends to be either bland and sweet or too spicy (Vernor’s).
You can try something along the lines of mineral water and cocktail bitters. Or tonic. My mother in law likes gin and tonics for the tonic, and a tonic with a twist of lime is a fairly grown up drink.
Some bitters are alcoholic, but if you are using them for a dash of flavor, you aren’t going to get buzzed, unless you are an amazing lightweight.
There are lots of homemade bitters recipes, and if you visit a bar of the type where the bartender. Considers himself a mixologist, he probably makes his own.
In addition to ginger beers, Caribbean malt drinks are pretty strongly flavored.
I also like Clamato, especially spiced up with horseradish, a little Lea & Perrin’s, and some Tabasco. A seafood Virgin Mary.
lemon, lime and bitters.
Thanks all for the suggestions so far! I have had some ginger beer and really like it! Last night I did tonic water, lime, and bitters. Surprising how similar that feels to a cocktail. I’m looking forward to trying a few more suggestions after my next trip to the store.
It may sound odd, but a tall glass of ice-cold club soda with a dash or two of balsamic vinegar is very refreshing.
One drink I love, especially in the summertime, is Kahlua over ice in a tall glass of sparkling water. Yes, I know Kahlua is a liqueur, but once you mix it up like coffee-flavored soda pop, the alcohol is greatly diluted. It’s also pleasantly sweet, but not overpoweringly so.
Or replace the balsamic with bitters. Same idea, cooler label.