Mindful drinking
January 7, 2014 2:56 AM Subscribe
I can idly finish a bottle of wine. How do I not?
Sometimes I get home from work and open a bottle of wine. Throughout the rest of the evening I'm talking with my housemates, reading metafilter, watching some Netflix, snacking on food, chatting with people online and drinking wine throughout. By the point when it's time to go to bed 5 hours later I'll have finished the bottle of wine without really thinking about doing so.
I think I want to not do that? I don't really feel adverse effects from this, which is why I have trouble with not doing it. I have a pretty high alcohol tolerance, don't get hangovers, and wine is delicious. But I don't want to be the type of person who finishes a bottle of wine in one night. And between the calories and the price of the bottle it I think it would probably be a good idea to have that open/around for 2-3 days.
So, how do I achieve this? I read in French Women Don't Get Fat that the author got half-bottles of wine to solve this sort of thing (so that the she could have a stopping point, not have good wine spoil by sitting open, satisfaction of finishing), but those are more expensive. I've also considered making a blanket "don't eat or drink anything with alcohol or caffeine 2 hours before bed" rule for myself which would help, but also seems like a workaround instead of a mindfulness solution.
Sometimes I get home from work and open a bottle of wine. Throughout the rest of the evening I'm talking with my housemates, reading metafilter, watching some Netflix, snacking on food, chatting with people online and drinking wine throughout. By the point when it's time to go to bed 5 hours later I'll have finished the bottle of wine without really thinking about doing so.
I think I want to not do that? I don't really feel adverse effects from this, which is why I have trouble with not doing it. I have a pretty high alcohol tolerance, don't get hangovers, and wine is delicious. But I don't want to be the type of person who finishes a bottle of wine in one night. And between the calories and the price of the bottle it I think it would probably be a good idea to have that open/around for 2-3 days.
So, how do I achieve this? I read in French Women Don't Get Fat that the author got half-bottles of wine to solve this sort of thing (so that the she could have a stopping point, not have good wine spoil by sitting open, satisfaction of finishing), but those are more expensive. I've also considered making a blanket "don't eat or drink anything with alcohol or caffeine 2 hours before bed" rule for myself which would help, but also seems like a workaround instead of a mindfulness solution.
Is a half bottle really more expensive than a full bottle (rather than just more expensive per volume of wine)? If you bought the same number of half bottles as full bottles per week, wouldn't that solve your problem?
posted by Omission at 3:09 AM on January 7, 2014 [8 favorites]
posted by Omission at 3:09 AM on January 7, 2014 [8 favorites]
Easy: turn it around, give yourself less time: you open the bottle not before 10 p.m. Drink water before that. Appreciating water is plenty mindful, if that's what you're after.
Also buy a vacuvin kit to keep the remains in the bottle fresh. Win: more wine next day.
As to the relatively higher price of half bottles, it is what you pay that you lose. A half bottle per sitting is still cheaper than a whole bottle.
(And before people chime in with "you've got a problem, etc.," perhaps you test yourself staying without alcohol for, say, a week or so, to make sure you haven't got a problem.)
posted by Namlit at 3:10 AM on January 7, 2014 [6 favorites]
Also buy a vacuvin kit to keep the remains in the bottle fresh. Win: more wine next day.
As to the relatively higher price of half bottles, it is what you pay that you lose. A half bottle per sitting is still cheaper than a whole bottle.
(And before people chime in with "you've got a problem, etc.," perhaps you test yourself staying without alcohol for, say, a week or so, to make sure you haven't got a problem.)
posted by Namlit at 3:10 AM on January 7, 2014 [6 favorites]
From a purely practical pov: Get wine in bottles with screw caps (many decent ones have them, these days) and then pour yourself a glass and put the bottle somewhere that will take some effort to reach. Also, find something nonalcoholic, like nice mineral water, that you can enjoy instead, and start off with that on alternate days.
posted by rpfields at 3:11 AM on January 7, 2014
posted by rpfields at 3:11 AM on January 7, 2014
Do you empty your glass before you refill it? If you're just topping up your glass over the course of a few hours it is easy to drink the whole bottle without realising it. One idea that occurred to me is to decide how much you want to have, say two small glasses. Then take two separate glasses out. Pour one, finish it, and when you want the next one you have to put it in the other glass. That way you have a clear 'this is my second and last glass' message and when it's empty you're done for the night. You might also find that when it comes time to pour your 'new' glass, if you take a minute to really consider whether you want it or not, you might decided that one was enough.
posted by billiebee at 3:11 AM on January 7, 2014 [10 favorites]
posted by billiebee at 3:11 AM on January 7, 2014 [10 favorites]
Best answer: If you like the wine and you're having fun, it's easy to do. Five hours is quite a lot of time to be sitting down drinking on a schoolnight though. The alcohol is an issue but potentially so is the amount of time you're up and about. At the risk of sounding like your mother, think about going out and exercising and/or going to bed earlier. Your future self will thank and repay you for time put in at the coalface keeping fit and healthy in your twenties and thirties.
If you're OK with the timepend, then set limits on drinking. Don't drink before 7pm and don't drink after 10. Make drinking wine special rather than habit. If it's just fun juice then it's dead easy to get used to drinking 750ml, which is really just three big glasses.
I love wine too. Something a wine loving friend and I both started doing independently was not really drinking during the week, which effectively translates as Sun-Wed inclusive. Then open up something nice on Thursday and either drink it with a friend/partner or keep half for Friday. If you want, go wild on Saturday. That system still allows you the odd night out early week or a consolatory glass of wine after a difficult Monday workday, but if you can more or less keep to not drinking midweek it really cuts down on 'habit' drinking.
What is more, you'll love the wine you drink more when you drink it. Especially if you commute quantity for quality. Assuming you can afford it, drinking half as much allows you to trade up from, say, $10 a bottle to $20 a bottle. Picking wisely, that's a huge leap in quality.
Also - my experience with whites and reds is that they are almost always fine the next day. I don't vacuvin but do recork and honestly some of the reds are actually better the day after.
Finally - I have lovely big wine glasses but I have also, for once, developed some discipline. If you're struggling to stop yourself repouring another glass then go for smaller glasses.
posted by MuffinMan at 3:27 AM on January 7, 2014 [3 favorites]
If you're OK with the timepend, then set limits on drinking. Don't drink before 7pm and don't drink after 10. Make drinking wine special rather than habit. If it's just fun juice then it's dead easy to get used to drinking 750ml, which is really just three big glasses.
I love wine too. Something a wine loving friend and I both started doing independently was not really drinking during the week, which effectively translates as Sun-Wed inclusive. Then open up something nice on Thursday and either drink it with a friend/partner or keep half for Friday. If you want, go wild on Saturday. That system still allows you the odd night out early week or a consolatory glass of wine after a difficult Monday workday, but if you can more or less keep to not drinking midweek it really cuts down on 'habit' drinking.
What is more, you'll love the wine you drink more when you drink it. Especially if you commute quantity for quality. Assuming you can afford it, drinking half as much allows you to trade up from, say, $10 a bottle to $20 a bottle. Picking wisely, that's a huge leap in quality.
Also - my experience with whites and reds is that they are almost always fine the next day. I don't vacuvin but do recork and honestly some of the reds are actually better the day after.
Finally - I have lovely big wine glasses but I have also, for once, developed some discipline. If you're struggling to stop yourself repouring another glass then go for smaller glasses.
posted by MuffinMan at 3:27 AM on January 7, 2014 [3 favorites]
The French, at least, will often buy their everyday wine in a container of several litres - and then decant it into pitchers for serving. In your would be looking for a 250ml "quart pichet" to make your bottle last 3 days - or one holding 375ml if you want it to last 2. The wine is usually served with a carafe of water and, of course, something to eat. You might try these tricks to make it stretch a little further.
posted by rongorongo at 3:33 AM on January 7, 2014 [4 favorites]
posted by rongorongo at 3:33 AM on January 7, 2014 [4 favorites]
The choice in half-bottles is pretty limited, too. Buy a decanter and a vacuum cork. Decant as much of the bottle as you want to drink, and store the rest under vacuum for tomorrow, somewhere inconvenient enough to get your attention so that you have to make a real choice to keep drinking.
posted by gingerest at 3:34 AM on January 7, 2014 [2 favorites]
posted by gingerest at 3:34 AM on January 7, 2014 [2 favorites]
I've read French Women Don't Get Fat too, and I seem to remember that she and her husband would keep empty half-bottles and immediately decant a full bottle upon opening, to enjoy the second half the next night.
posted by jaynewould at 3:42 AM on January 7, 2014 [3 favorites]
posted by jaynewould at 3:42 AM on January 7, 2014 [3 favorites]
Pouring one glass and then using a Vacu Vin stopper is a good idea. No need to decant anything.
My own opinion is that buying half-bottles doesn't work so well. Apart from the fact it's needlessly expensive (compared to making a bottle do two days) and the selection is poor, to make the system work it's best to drink a single glass, no topping up: and half a bottle is a pretty large glass. You might want to make a bottle last three days. With a vacuum stopper you can keep it for ages without it going off, so no problem with dry days or days when you're out, either.
Or hey, you might want to go the other way and drink 50cl per evening, which would still be way easier to manage with full-size bottles. (Two bottles of the same stuff last three days)
Alternatively, why not get married? I've found this reliably means I get to drink less than half of any bottle I open. Of course a Vacu Vin is a good deal cheaper.
posted by Segundus at 4:47 AM on January 7, 2014 [3 favorites]
My own opinion is that buying half-bottles doesn't work so well. Apart from the fact it's needlessly expensive (compared to making a bottle do two days) and the selection is poor, to make the system work it's best to drink a single glass, no topping up: and half a bottle is a pretty large glass. You might want to make a bottle last three days. With a vacuum stopper you can keep it for ages without it going off, so no problem with dry days or days when you're out, either.
Or hey, you might want to go the other way and drink 50cl per evening, which would still be way easier to manage with full-size bottles. (Two bottles of the same stuff last three days)
Alternatively, why not get married? I've found this reliably means I get to drink less than half of any bottle I open. Of course a Vacu Vin is a good deal cheaper.
posted by Segundus at 4:47 AM on January 7, 2014 [3 favorites]
I understand if some sort of wine saving tool is useful to you as a way to prevent you from accessing the wine but realistically any young bottle of wine can easily survive and often improve after a day or two open.
posted by JPD at 4:49 AM on January 7, 2014 [4 favorites]
posted by JPD at 4:49 AM on January 7, 2014 [4 favorites]
Only drink wine after you've cooked something with it.
posted by empath at 4:57 AM on January 7, 2014 [2 favorites]
posted by empath at 4:57 AM on January 7, 2014 [2 favorites]
If it is Thursday evening, for example, then the rule is "This wine bottle is for Thursday AND Friday."
If I set that hard rule, I notice that on Thursday I find myself drinking less and saving more for Friday. I won't finish the bottle because that would suck for Friday. The reasoning is that I want to maximise my enjoyment and the first few glasses are always better than the last few.
posted by vacapinta at 5:07 AM on January 7, 2014
If I set that hard rule, I notice that on Thursday I find myself drinking less and saving more for Friday. I won't finish the bottle because that would suck for Friday. The reasoning is that I want to maximise my enjoyment and the first few glasses are always better than the last few.
posted by vacapinta at 5:07 AM on January 7, 2014
I find that it is difficult for me to not partake in something when I already own it, but easier not to buy it in the first place. Not saying you have to stop buying wine entirely, but when you go shopping maybe just buy one bottle instead of however many you currently buy. If you sometimes pop out just to buy a bottle, make a rule not to do that? Alternatively, you life with housemates, could you not split the bottle with them?
posted by Cannon Fodder at 5:29 AM on January 7, 2014 [1 favorite]
posted by Cannon Fodder at 5:29 AM on January 7, 2014 [1 favorite]
I do this all of the time. Wine is a great beverage, especially vinho verde - drink it as you see fit! Just make sure you have lots of food in your stomach, and you aren't doing this too too regularly. I think of this as a casual summertime activity. Other people in your life should be your cue for this (provided they aren't drinking multiple bottles of wine per night -- that's a whole different story!).
If you're worried about how this might impact your cooking, cook with the wine before drinking the rest of the bottle, or cook from a dedicated boxed wine box source.
Another idea is to shop for gorgeous wine stoppers on Etsy or at your local farmers/crafts market, and use those.
posted by oceanjesse at 5:31 AM on January 7, 2014
If you're worried about how this might impact your cooking, cook with the wine before drinking the rest of the bottle, or cook from a dedicated boxed wine box source.
Another idea is to shop for gorgeous wine stoppers on Etsy or at your local farmers/crafts market, and use those.
posted by oceanjesse at 5:31 AM on January 7, 2014
Buy expensive wine. Seriously. That will slow you down, for sure.
Use smaller juice glasses, like the Italians do.
Only drink while cooking and eating a proper meal. Take out? Have a beer instead.
Drink seltzer or club soda or bubbly mineral water (instead of flat water) with a lemon or lime in there, in between glasses of wine. I don't know why, bubbles feel slightly festive and also, satisfy/inhibit the urge to glug.
posted by thinkpiece at 5:46 AM on January 7, 2014
Use smaller juice glasses, like the Italians do.
Only drink while cooking and eating a proper meal. Take out? Have a beer instead.
Drink seltzer or club soda or bubbly mineral water (instead of flat water) with a lemon or lime in there, in between glasses of wine. I don't know why, bubbles feel slightly festive and also, satisfy/inhibit the urge to glug.
posted by thinkpiece at 5:46 AM on January 7, 2014
Enjoy a glass of wine with dinner. Then switch to lovely waters for the rest of the evening, or just a nice big glass of water.
The water is much better for you than wine and you may find that you're getting better sleep.
I can't think of anything worse that randomly drinking wine and not appreciating it.
posted by Ruthless Bunny at 6:00 AM on January 7, 2014
The water is much better for you than wine and you may find that you're getting better sleep.
I can't think of anything worse that randomly drinking wine and not appreciating it.
posted by Ruthless Bunny at 6:00 AM on January 7, 2014
You could try the half-bottle approach without paying the premium:
Buy at least one half bottle of wine, and a vacu-vin or something similar. Save the empty half bottle. When you open a full bottle, immediately pour half into the empty half bottle, and seal it up. The wine you save will keep for at least a week without deterioration.
Before I acquired the vacu-vin, I would open bottles with a two-tined opener (one brand is the "ah-so"). This extracts the cork without damage, and, more to the point, can be used to re-insert a cork (with some luck regarding neck diameters, and with a bit of practice). It is possible using this device to re-bottle the half you don't drink with a cork. I have on occasion kept wine for months this way. I wouldn't try it on something very old but it's remarkably effective.
posted by mr vino at 6:01 AM on January 7, 2014
Buy at least one half bottle of wine, and a vacu-vin or something similar. Save the empty half bottle. When you open a full bottle, immediately pour half into the empty half bottle, and seal it up. The wine you save will keep for at least a week without deterioration.
Before I acquired the vacu-vin, I would open bottles with a two-tined opener (one brand is the "ah-so"). This extracts the cork without damage, and, more to the point, can be used to re-insert a cork (with some luck regarding neck diameters, and with a bit of practice). It is possible using this device to re-bottle the half you don't drink with a cork. I have on occasion kept wine for months this way. I wouldn't try it on something very old but it's remarkably effective.
posted by mr vino at 6:01 AM on January 7, 2014
You say that you open the bottle and leave it on the counter, and spend the next few hours hanging out, occasionally hitting the bottle up - and you also say that you've got housemates around the house. And then at the end of the night the bottle's empty.
Possibly a dumb question, but - do you know whether your housemates may be helping themselves to wine as well?
posted by EmpressCallipygos at 6:04 AM on January 7, 2014 [2 favorites]
Possibly a dumb question, but - do you know whether your housemates may be helping themselves to wine as well?
posted by EmpressCallipygos at 6:04 AM on January 7, 2014 [2 favorites]
Actually, come to think of it, that'd also be a good way to cut back on your own consumption - open one bottle of wine, but invite your housemates to share it with you. And stick to only opening one bottle on a given night.
The more people drinking it, the less wine each individual person would have.
posted by EmpressCallipygos at 6:15 AM on January 7, 2014 [1 favorite]
The more people drinking it, the less wine each individual person would have.
posted by EmpressCallipygos at 6:15 AM on January 7, 2014 [1 favorite]
I was thinking the same thing as EmprsesCallipygos -- if your housemates are wine drinkers, why not share with them? You can alternate who buys the wine too to cut down on cost.
Maybe have a glass of water going at the same time and alternate taking sips? This might help you be more mindful of what you are drinking.
posted by Shadow Boxer at 6:19 AM on January 7, 2014
Maybe have a glass of water going at the same time and alternate taking sips? This might help you be more mindful of what you are drinking.
posted by Shadow Boxer at 6:19 AM on January 7, 2014
Best answer: So I think you're looking for tips on being mindful, not workarounds that would prevent you from drinking. (like a rule, smaller bottle, etc) So that you'd reach that stopping point on your own.
Why not take a wine appreciation class? If you're near a place that grows wine, likely a community college will offer wine blending, tasting, vineyard planning, etc courses. You'll learn to appreciate the wine, and scorn bad wine. You'll start to shop for wines that will expand your palate/nose, maybe keep a journal of tasting notes. And since your tastings are more accurate before you've had a full glass, so maybe you'll offer the rest of the bottle around to your housemates with mini-lectures about what flavors and scents they can detect, and they'll become somewhat annoyed and try to steer you away from wine.
posted by fontophilic at 6:29 AM on January 7, 2014 [2 favorites]
Why not take a wine appreciation class? If you're near a place that grows wine, likely a community college will offer wine blending, tasting, vineyard planning, etc courses. You'll learn to appreciate the wine, and scorn bad wine. You'll start to shop for wines that will expand your palate/nose, maybe keep a journal of tasting notes. And since your tastings are more accurate before you've had a full glass, so maybe you'll offer the rest of the bottle around to your housemates with mini-lectures about what flavors and scents they can detect, and they'll become somewhat annoyed and try to steer you away from wine.
posted by fontophilic at 6:29 AM on January 7, 2014 [2 favorites]
Perhaps try some new wines and really note what they smell and taste like. Don't just pour a glass and sip idly while doing something else. Take the time to appreciate a new brand, from uncorking it to letting it air out (I don't drink, so the rituals may be totally different than what my exposure on TV lets me know), smelling it, tasting it, trying to find the "notes" (it's notes, right) in it, etc. That way, it's a deliberate, mindful experience.
posted by xingcat at 6:39 AM on January 7, 2014
posted by xingcat at 6:39 AM on January 7, 2014
How often is "sometimes"? Because if this is a once a month event then it's very unlikely to have any bearing on your health/fitness unless you live an otherwise unusually healthy and regulated existence.
If it's several times a week then you should stop drinking alcohol entirely for several months and see where you are at that point.
posted by cromagnon at 6:39 AM on January 7, 2014
If it's several times a week then you should stop drinking alcohol entirely for several months and see where you are at that point.
posted by cromagnon at 6:39 AM on January 7, 2014
Is it a particular type of wine? I find I can knock back New Zealand Sauvignon Blancs mindlessly. Could you shake it up a bit -- try a wine that you actually notice more, something new, explore something? Or is it just 'wine is awesome' in a very general sense?
posted by A Terrible Llama at 6:43 AM on January 7, 2014
posted by A Terrible Llama at 6:43 AM on January 7, 2014
Another suggestion: boxed wine. This won't work for you if you're a wine connoisseur who enjoys sampling a variety of fine wines, but there are lots of nice drinkable boxed wines out there.
Benefits of the box:
* You can't finish a box of wine in one sitting (or if you can, yeah, I guess you probably have a problem), so the "finished" feeling happens after a glass (or a pichet, as mentioned above), not after a bottle
* Box wine keeps very nicely for weeks, so you don't need to worry about it going bad
* Box wine is inexpensive, so even if you *do* drink more of it than you intend, at least it's $3 worth of wine, not $15.
Anyway, I treat myself to a glass or two of boxed wine several nights a week, and I find I drink it much more slowly than bottles.
posted by mskyle at 6:47 AM on January 7, 2014 [4 favorites]
Benefits of the box:
* You can't finish a box of wine in one sitting (or if you can, yeah, I guess you probably have a problem), so the "finished" feeling happens after a glass (or a pichet, as mentioned above), not after a bottle
* Box wine keeps very nicely for weeks, so you don't need to worry about it going bad
* Box wine is inexpensive, so even if you *do* drink more of it than you intend, at least it's $3 worth of wine, not $15.
Anyway, I treat myself to a glass or two of boxed wine several nights a week, and I find I drink it much more slowly than bottles.
posted by mskyle at 6:47 AM on January 7, 2014 [4 favorites]
It really is as simple as learning how to say "no" to yourself. I realize this isn't something that's particularly popular in our instant-gratification-obsessed culture these days, but you'd be surprised how much more control you have over things when you start saying "no" to them.
But, if you need a workable strategy, emilyw has the easiest and most effective presented here. Pour yourself a glass in the kitchen, and then put the bottle away and go to another room to enjoy. Leaving the bottle out and within reach makes it far too easy to keep topping-off your glass.
posted by Thorzdad at 6:57 AM on January 7, 2014
But, if you need a workable strategy, emilyw has the easiest and most effective presented here. Pour yourself a glass in the kitchen, and then put the bottle away and go to another room to enjoy. Leaving the bottle out and within reach makes it far too easy to keep topping-off your glass.
posted by Thorzdad at 6:57 AM on January 7, 2014
Best answer: I find that the type of glass I drink my wine from influences how mindful I am of the drinking. A straight sided cup or typical wine glass is more conducive to taking reflexive "no thought involved" gulps than a glass with a bubbled out base and narrower rim such as the burgundy glass in this photo. That type of glass will force you to make a larger gesture as you take a sip that should make you think twice about what you're doing.
posted by Gonestarfishing at 7:15 AM on January 7, 2014 [1 favorite]
posted by Gonestarfishing at 7:15 AM on January 7, 2014 [1 favorite]
Why not just not buy wine? Or buy it once a month when you want to indulge yourself in an evening of wine-sipping?
posted by never.was.and.never.will.be. at 7:43 AM on January 7, 2014 [3 favorites]
posted by never.was.and.never.will.be. at 7:43 AM on January 7, 2014 [3 favorites]
The key to making your drinking mindful is to well, be mindful about it. Don't drink wine while you're doing other tasks. Open a bottle, sit down to a proper table, which you've set and lit with candles, have a nice meal, enjoy the wine and the company, don't have electronic devices out. As long as the conversation and camaraderie is happening at the table, you can keep drinking. Once you've left the table, or started pulling out the iphones or whatever, you switch to water (or, you could switch to brandy/cognac as an after-dinner sipping drink).
Buy nicer bottles, learn about wine appreciation and put your knowledge to work, sign up for a wine of the month club.
Make wine the focus of your activity, rather than the background noise.
posted by melissasaurus at 8:01 AM on January 7, 2014
Buy nicer bottles, learn about wine appreciation and put your knowledge to work, sign up for a wine of the month club.
Make wine the focus of your activity, rather than the background noise.
posted by melissasaurus at 8:01 AM on January 7, 2014
I have pretty much the exact same issue. My solution is to delay the start. I come home from work and make a mug of tea. Or in the summer, I make a shrub or juice with seltzer.
I don't pour wine until I sit down to dinner, which we tend to eat fairly late, around 8. (Pre-dinner snacks don't count, they don't get wine.) Also, put the bottle up somewhere rather than leaving it on the counter.
posted by desuetude at 8:29 AM on January 7, 2014
I don't pour wine until I sit down to dinner, which we tend to eat fairly late, around 8. (Pre-dinner snacks don't count, they don't get wine.) Also, put the bottle up somewhere rather than leaving it on the counter.
posted by desuetude at 8:29 AM on January 7, 2014
Best answer: I have this problem, and it became a serious calorie problem for me along with trashing my sleep and had to stop. I switched to using the tiniest juice glasses I could find at IKEA (I believe they are 5oz), and I have a big glass of something non-alcoholic but flavored before I open the wine, and I don't open it until later in the evening.
All the other little tricks - I belong to a wine club that is way too expensive but drink it anyway, boxed wine where I can't see the level is a terrible idea, we use wine stoppers all the time it's hardly an armed barricade, I put it away - have not worked on me. Effort is not a barrier - if I'm drinking my fussy diet margaritas (which have the alcohol halved so I'm not exactly rat-arsed without effort) I will go back in the kitchen and make another without even thinking about it.
Probably my biggest issue, besides liking wine, is that I'm thirsty in the evenings and wine is not exactly an optimal hydration solution. On nights that I don't drink at all, I'll look over and see that I've got a can of sparkling diet lemonade AND a glass of water, both nearly empty. Or I'll make a pot of tea and go to pour a cup and be surprised that it's empty. So I am clearly a mindless drinker of anything. I graze-drink, it's just what I do.
The little tiny glass, not opening the bottle until dinner (we sometimes don't eat until 8), and a big glass of something from the Sodastream while cooking seem to have done the trick. I've slipped in an informal No Wine on School Nights policy without a whole lot of angst.
For dietary reasons, it's actually better not to drink alcohol 2 hours before and after eating food, but that's the saddest option. It's less awful to not drink at all most meals.
posted by Lyn Never at 8:33 AM on January 7, 2014 [1 favorite]
All the other little tricks - I belong to a wine club that is way too expensive but drink it anyway, boxed wine where I can't see the level is a terrible idea, we use wine stoppers all the time it's hardly an armed barricade, I put it away - have not worked on me. Effort is not a barrier - if I'm drinking my fussy diet margaritas (which have the alcohol halved so I'm not exactly rat-arsed without effort) I will go back in the kitchen and make another without even thinking about it.
Probably my biggest issue, besides liking wine, is that I'm thirsty in the evenings and wine is not exactly an optimal hydration solution. On nights that I don't drink at all, I'll look over and see that I've got a can of sparkling diet lemonade AND a glass of water, both nearly empty. Or I'll make a pot of tea and go to pour a cup and be surprised that it's empty. So I am clearly a mindless drinker of anything. I graze-drink, it's just what I do.
The little tiny glass, not opening the bottle until dinner (we sometimes don't eat until 8), and a big glass of something from the Sodastream while cooking seem to have done the trick. I've slipped in an informal No Wine on School Nights policy without a whole lot of angst.
For dietary reasons, it's actually better not to drink alcohol 2 hours before and after eating food, but that's the saddest option. It's less awful to not drink at all most meals.
posted by Lyn Never at 8:33 AM on January 7, 2014 [1 favorite]
Those vacuum stoppers do work well.
If fontophilic is right and your concern is more with keeping track of what you drink than with cutting down, maybe moving a marble from one dish to another every time you have a glass will help you visualize it. Or get a package of those little ornaments you put on the edges of glasses at parties to tell whose drink is whose, and add one to the edge of your glass every time you refill it.
Shadow Boxer's recommendation of alternating water was AMAZINGLY helpful for me in giving up diet soda and other diet soft drinks. I didn't alternate sips, but I'd alternate a glass of water with a bottle of soda and massively cut down without even realizing it. Now I have one diet soda maybe a couple of times a month if I feel like it - and most of the time I don't.
posted by The Underpants Monster at 8:45 AM on January 7, 2014
If fontophilic is right and your concern is more with keeping track of what you drink than with cutting down, maybe moving a marble from one dish to another every time you have a glass will help you visualize it. Or get a package of those little ornaments you put on the edges of glasses at parties to tell whose drink is whose, and add one to the edge of your glass every time you refill it.
Shadow Boxer's recommendation of alternating water was AMAZINGLY helpful for me in giving up diet soda and other diet soft drinks. I didn't alternate sips, but I'd alternate a glass of water with a bottle of soda and massively cut down without even realizing it. Now I have one diet soda maybe a couple of times a month if I feel like it - and most of the time I don't.
posted by The Underpants Monster at 8:45 AM on January 7, 2014
Best answer: I like the idea of having a more mindful relationship with alcohol, but from what I can glean from the pop explanations of the latest research, it seems that what's most important for changing habits is to focus on them as habits. People who successfully change how they do things often trick themselves or bargain themselves into doing things a different way, until that new way becomes ingrained and they don't have to think about it - it is automatic.
For you, drinking a bottle of wine has become automatic. You don't have to be mindful or consider what you're doing to make that happen. To successfully change that habit, you are likely to have the best luck if you can lay down a familiar pattern of drinking only 1/3 a bottle of wine a night. That way, you don't have to put any extra effort into drinking less - it will be automatic. To do this, external rewards, rules or tricks would be helpful.
I think if you create mindfulness practices that are bigger than this specific behavior (meditation for example), that will help you be more mindful in your life as a whole, and that will probably be more effective than trying to develop mindfulness specific to one behavior.
posted by latkes at 8:48 AM on January 7, 2014
For you, drinking a bottle of wine has become automatic. You don't have to be mindful or consider what you're doing to make that happen. To successfully change that habit, you are likely to have the best luck if you can lay down a familiar pattern of drinking only 1/3 a bottle of wine a night. That way, you don't have to put any extra effort into drinking less - it will be automatic. To do this, external rewards, rules or tricks would be helpful.
I think if you create mindfulness practices that are bigger than this specific behavior (meditation for example), that will help you be more mindful in your life as a whole, and that will probably be more effective than trying to develop mindfulness specific to one behavior.
posted by latkes at 8:48 AM on January 7, 2014
I have on occasion kept wine for months this way.
Posted by mr vino
Eponysterical.
How about making it a conscious treat -- only buy good wine (for your personal definition of good wine) and only open it on nights when you want to enjoy sipping it over the evening. Don't open wine on busy weekday evenings where you are focused on other activities.
posted by Dip Flash at 9:13 AM on January 7, 2014
Posted by mr vino
Eponysterical.
How about making it a conscious treat -- only buy good wine (for your personal definition of good wine) and only open it on nights when you want to enjoy sipping it over the evening. Don't open wine on busy weekday evenings where you are focused on other activities.
posted by Dip Flash at 9:13 AM on January 7, 2014
I do this regularly with beer and these are some hacks that have worked for me...
- Don't buy beer during the week. If I have leftovers from the previous week, have at them, but don't buy anything new from Sun-Wed.
- Have a beer when I get home and over dinner, but around 8-9 make a cup of tea instead. I feel weird drinking a beer after having a nice healthy cup of green tea, so that's when I stop.
- Add up how much I spend on beer every week. Living in Colorado I'm spoiled and usually only buy microbrews, which are not cheap ($50/week for 4-5 6-packs). I ask myself if I'd rather spend that money while I'm at home watching Netflix, or on the weekend going out with friends.
- Ask my friends and roommates if they want a beer. If I hand out enough of them, there won't be as many for me to drink.
- Only drink if I go out, not at home.
posted by mrrisotto at 9:38 AM on January 7, 2014
- Don't buy beer during the week. If I have leftovers from the previous week, have at them, but don't buy anything new from Sun-Wed.
- Have a beer when I get home and over dinner, but around 8-9 make a cup of tea instead. I feel weird drinking a beer after having a nice healthy cup of green tea, so that's when I stop.
- Add up how much I spend on beer every week. Living in Colorado I'm spoiled and usually only buy microbrews, which are not cheap ($50/week for 4-5 6-packs). I ask myself if I'd rather spend that money while I'm at home watching Netflix, or on the weekend going out with friends.
- Ask my friends and roommates if they want a beer. If I hand out enough of them, there won't be as many for me to drink.
- Only drink if I go out, not at home.
posted by mrrisotto at 9:38 AM on January 7, 2014
Bota Box sells little wine boxes with 500mL (instead of 750mL) of wine in them that might feel more reasonable to consume in an evening. That said, I don't really feel like a bottle of wine over the course of 5 hours is so terrible, alcohol-wise. Which of course isn't to say you shouldn't lower what you drink if you want, but just, adding that perspective.
posted by spindrifter at 9:45 AM on January 7, 2014
posted by spindrifter at 9:45 AM on January 7, 2014
GEt a nice decanter and pour the night's wine into the decantur then fill your glass from that.
Try Essentuci or Borjomi mineral waters if you want something non alcoholic and special to drink afterwards. They are sparkling and taste like delicious rocks.
posted by WeekendJen at 10:45 AM on January 7, 2014
Try Essentuci or Borjomi mineral waters if you want something non alcoholic and special to drink afterwards. They are sparkling and taste like delicious rocks.
posted by WeekendJen at 10:45 AM on January 7, 2014
I am currently going through this exact same problem. For both money and calorie intake reasons, I'm cutting way down in the new year.
For the month of January I'm not drinking at all (except for this Saturday's Mefi meetup, which is different). No buying wine or beer at the supermarket. No drinking no drinking no drinking. Period. (Again except for the one exception I've granted myself for Reasons.)
Because I like to nurse a delicious beverage of an evening, much like you do, I am drinking lots of herbal tea. So far I find that it hits the spot nicely. Probably because I mostly just want something to do with my hands.
After January, the following goes into effect:
- No going out specifically to acquire alcohol. If I'm out, I'm out till the next time I go grocery shopping.
- I'm considering some kind of limit on the amount I can buy, like maybe one bottle of wine per shopping trip. I'm also thinking of limiting my beer/wine shopping to only when I happen to be at Trader Joe's, because the selection at my regular supermarket isn't even that good.
- Luckily I have to drive home after going out, so I already limit myself to one or at most two rounds of drinks. I'm hoping to concentrate my drinking more on specific social events and less on lazing about the house with a bottle of wine and Netflix.
posted by Sara C. at 11:24 AM on January 7, 2014
For the month of January I'm not drinking at all (except for this Saturday's Mefi meetup, which is different). No buying wine or beer at the supermarket. No drinking no drinking no drinking. Period. (Again except for the one exception I've granted myself for Reasons.)
Because I like to nurse a delicious beverage of an evening, much like you do, I am drinking lots of herbal tea. So far I find that it hits the spot nicely. Probably because I mostly just want something to do with my hands.
After January, the following goes into effect:
- No going out specifically to acquire alcohol. If I'm out, I'm out till the next time I go grocery shopping.
- I'm considering some kind of limit on the amount I can buy, like maybe one bottle of wine per shopping trip. I'm also thinking of limiting my beer/wine shopping to only when I happen to be at Trader Joe's, because the selection at my regular supermarket isn't even that good.
- Luckily I have to drive home after going out, so I already limit myself to one or at most two rounds of drinks. I'm hoping to concentrate my drinking more on specific social events and less on lazing about the house with a bottle of wine and Netflix.
posted by Sara C. at 11:24 AM on January 7, 2014
Oh, and re the half bottles, the reason they are more expensive is because usually only relatively upscale wines are available by the half-bottle. If you want to go this route, you should treat yourself to one half-bottle of really nice wine, and then re-use the bottle with whatever you typically drink.
A funnel, vac-u-vin, and the rubber stoppers meant to go with it will keep you sorted in terms of preserving the second 375 ml of wine in the smaller bottle. (Though less air in the bottle will help all on its own, even if you just recork rather than doing the vac-u-vin thing.
posted by Sara C. at 11:31 AM on January 7, 2014
A funnel, vac-u-vin, and the rubber stoppers meant to go with it will keep you sorted in terms of preserving the second 375 ml of wine in the smaller bottle. (Though less air in the bottle will help all on its own, even if you just recork rather than doing the vac-u-vin thing.
posted by Sara C. at 11:31 AM on January 7, 2014
Best answer: One of Tolkien's professors (Sisam, iirc) was a stingy Yorkshireman whose solution was to make his housekeeper buy a small barrel of beer and then sell it to him by the glass, at cost. Youn could try a similar arrangement with your housemates.
posted by i_am_joe's_spleen at 12:11 PM on January 7, 2014 [2 favorites]
posted by i_am_joe's_spleen at 12:11 PM on January 7, 2014 [2 favorites]
I think Sara C is my alter ego ... I could have written that post.
I'm like you - if the bottle is open, I'll finish it. It wouldn't matter if I had a vacuum seal, a decanter, an expensive bottle, or really any of the suggestions above.
I will also be stopping in January, mostly to cut calories, secondly to get more sleep (because I will stay up later to finish that last glass).
I'm finding that counting calories using a web app (there are lots of them; I use myfitnesspal) really helps. I give myself two nights a week of cheating, whether it be out with friends or at home with a bottle of red and netflix.
posted by kanewai at 12:28 PM on January 7, 2014
I'm like you - if the bottle is open, I'll finish it. It wouldn't matter if I had a vacuum seal, a decanter, an expensive bottle, or really any of the suggestions above.
I will also be stopping in January, mostly to cut calories, secondly to get more sleep (because I will stay up later to finish that last glass).
I'm finding that counting calories using a web app (there are lots of them; I use myfitnesspal) really helps. I give myself two nights a week of cheating, whether it be out with friends or at home with a bottle of red and netflix.
posted by kanewai at 12:28 PM on January 7, 2014
> Another suggestion: boxed wine. This won't work for you if you're a wine connoisseur who enjoys sampling a variety of fine wines, but there are lots of nice drinkable boxed wines out there
I like Black Box Cabernet Sauvignon, if this is the route you go. I think it could work. Take the box out, pour your one glass for the night, put the box back up high in the cupboard so you don't mindlessly top off your glass next time you're in the kitchen.
posted by The corpse in the library at 1:43 PM on January 7, 2014
I like Black Box Cabernet Sauvignon, if this is the route you go. I think it could work. Take the box out, pour your one glass for the night, put the box back up high in the cupboard so you don't mindlessly top off your glass next time you're in the kitchen.
posted by The corpse in the library at 1:43 PM on January 7, 2014
Sparkling water works well for me with this. I buy it by the case and make that the thing I will continually drink in the evenings. I love having a glass of wine on the counter while cooking to sip from, and then top up when I have the meal, but then I should be done for the evening (sometimes I slip up on this, but this is my strategy anyway). I put the bottle away (basically just back on the counter, which helps for me, I don't need to go to elaborate lengths to keep myself away from the bottle. Then I sip sparkling water the rest of the night. I have bottles of it in every room of the house.
posted by sweetkid at 2:47 PM on January 7, 2014 [1 favorite]
posted by sweetkid at 2:47 PM on January 7, 2014 [1 favorite]
wine can be frozen and thawed just fine, fie, wine snobs.
posted by bruce at 3:44 PM on January 7, 2014
posted by bruce at 3:44 PM on January 7, 2014
I disagree, and I'm the furthest thing from a wine snob (see my comment about enjoying boxed wine, above). Just this afternoon I thawed some white wine I had frozen to use in cooking, and it had some pretty bad sediment. Fine for Spag Bol, not so good for drinking.
posted by The corpse in the library at 4:52 PM on January 7, 2014
posted by The corpse in the library at 4:52 PM on January 7, 2014
If you have housemates, then pour two of your housemates a glass of wine when you pour yourself a glass of wine. Then you won't be drinking more than half the bottle.
posted by mermily at 5:45 PM on January 7, 2014 [1 favorite]
posted by mermily at 5:45 PM on January 7, 2014 [1 favorite]
Response by poster: So many great answers. Thank you!
Oh, Lyn Never — graze-drinking is the perfect term. I definitely do that. When I have any coffee, tea, or water around me it also just disappears.
I always offer wine to the housemates! But they are usually drinking their own wine/beer and refuse.
Changing the type of wine glass I drink out of is a brilliant idea. The housemates and I have been riding the “drink wine out of jars” hipster wave, but perhaps it is time to get some real wine glasses.
The habit vs special occasion mindfulness advice also helps a lot.
posted by anonymoosemoosemoose at 6:34 PM on January 7, 2014 [2 favorites]
Oh, Lyn Never — graze-drinking is the perfect term. I definitely do that. When I have any coffee, tea, or water around me it also just disappears.
I always offer wine to the housemates! But they are usually drinking their own wine/beer and refuse.
Changing the type of wine glass I drink out of is a brilliant idea. The housemates and I have been riding the “drink wine out of jars” hipster wave, but perhaps it is time to get some real wine glasses.
The habit vs special occasion mindfulness advice also helps a lot.
posted by anonymoosemoosemoose at 6:34 PM on January 7, 2014 [2 favorites]
If I feel like wine but want to take it slow, I'll go for a crisp white, and mix it with club soda and a squeeze of lemon.
posted by 5_13_23_42_69_666 at 7:10 PM on January 7, 2014
posted by 5_13_23_42_69_666 at 7:10 PM on January 7, 2014
Oh man, it's so easy to gulp things out of mason jars. I don't know why that is exactly, but I am totally guilty of that. I think it has to do with the informalness of it. It doesn't feels like a special thing. It just feel like gulping booze out of a shitty jar.
Get some nice, delicate, big ass wine glasses. The kind you that open to the widest part very low to the stem and then curve inward, and fill only to the widest part. Then do a lot of swirling and shit. Apparently this makes the wine taste better or something, but really it's just an added part to the ritual and gives you something to do with the wine other than just drink it. Wine at night can really easily turn into a 'keep myself occupied' thing, and making the habit a kind of longer, fancier ritual is nice.
Also nthing tea. I started drinking lots of tea a couple years ago and a lot less booze. Tea takes a long time to sip and enjoy and scratches the same sort of habit itch that wine does, but is healthier and cheaper (usually cheaper...). And it's hard to drink wine after having a nice cup of tea. Get really into it - buy nice loose leaf tea, get a nice kettle and a cool strainer.
posted by Lutoslawski at 9:55 AM on January 9, 2014
Get some nice, delicate, big ass wine glasses. The kind you that open to the widest part very low to the stem and then curve inward, and fill only to the widest part. Then do a lot of swirling and shit. Apparently this makes the wine taste better or something, but really it's just an added part to the ritual and gives you something to do with the wine other than just drink it. Wine at night can really easily turn into a 'keep myself occupied' thing, and making the habit a kind of longer, fancier ritual is nice.
Also nthing tea. I started drinking lots of tea a couple years ago and a lot less booze. Tea takes a long time to sip and enjoy and scratches the same sort of habit itch that wine does, but is healthier and cheaper (usually cheaper...). And it's hard to drink wine after having a nice cup of tea. Get really into it - buy nice loose leaf tea, get a nice kettle and a cool strainer.
posted by Lutoslawski at 9:55 AM on January 9, 2014
Get some nice, delicate, big ass wine glasses. The kind you that open to the widest part very low to the stem and then curve inward, and fill only to the widest part. Then do a lot of swirling and shit. Apparently this makes the wine taste better or something, but really it's just an added part to the ritual and gives you something to do with the wine other than just drink it
Yeah, I do this, too. I drink red wine pretty exclusively and those big wide glasses are perfect for that.
posted by sweetkid at 10:02 AM on January 9, 2014
Yeah, I do this, too. I drink red wine pretty exclusively and those big wide glasses are perfect for that.
posted by sweetkid at 10:02 AM on January 9, 2014
This thread is closed to new comments.
Alternatively, if you honestly don't even notice that you are drinking the wine, this seems like a waste of wine and you could perhaps just stop buying it in the first place? Or stop drinking it while you are doing other things, and instead only drink it when you are able to focus on how tasty it is.
posted by emilyw at 3:08 AM on January 7, 2014 [8 favorites]