What has a similar-ish flavor to Apple Cider Vinegar?

August 4, 2024 3:54 PM

I'm hooked on herbal tea, brewed cold, with a little fruit juice and apple cider vinegar at night. I assume it's the sourness of apple cider vinegar that makes it more... robust? The problem: it's easy to end up drinking a tablespoon of apple cider vinegar a night, which falls within guidelines but probably isn't the best for a daily habit. Am I overthinking it? What can I use instead, or in addition if I cut back the proportion? I don't want anything unhealthy or caffeinated since I drink this often at night.

Here's my basic recipe:

I put 2 tea bags in a pitcher of water & leave it in the fridge for 2 days.

Then, I fill an empty 1/2 liter bottle with it & add 1 tablespoon of apple cider vinegar and 1/2 to 3/4 cup of fruit juice (depending on the kind of juice & tea. Cranberry, usually).

I figure, 3/4 cup of fruit juice a day, over a period of hours, is fine. I don't have any issues with sugar, but I don't want any more sugar than I need, especially at night.

Generally speaking, I'm not big on overly sweet things. I drink coffee black, prefer red wine and dark beer.

I just want to make sure this habit is as healthy as it can be while still keeping it tasty.

posted by 2oh1 to Food & Drink (20 answers total)

I don’t have any knowledge about whether or not apple cider vinegar is something you need to be concerned about, but have you tried a squeeze of lemon?
posted by BlahLaLa at 4:05 PM on August 4, 2024 [1 favorite]

This seems like an extremely normal amount of vinegar to consume. Source: making salads.
posted by chesty_a_arthur at 4:05 PM on August 4, 2024 [26 favorites]

My friend, you want shrubs! That's the name of vinegar based fruity drinks meant to be sipped. Check out Apple State Vinegar and I know there are some other shrubberies in the PNW.

If those are too strong for you, there's always kombucha!
posted by panhopticon at 4:06 PM on August 4, 2024 [13 favorites]

What exactly are you concerned will happen with that daily intake of the vinegar? There have been multiple studies on the benefits of ACV, which generally recommend 1 - 2 tablespoons per day.

Honestly, I don't think you should be concerned about this. Brush your teeth well and monitor your stomach for unusual upset, but its a foodstuff and should be fine in the amounts you're drinking it.
posted by anastasiav at 4:12 PM on August 4, 2024 [9 favorites]

Yes, you are overthinking this. It is totally fine to consume a tablespoon of apple cider vinegar per day.
posted by ssg at 4:17 PM on August 4, 2024 [3 favorites]

Response by poster: anastasiav: "What exactly are you concerned will happen with that daily intake of the vinegar?"

To be honest, I don't know. It's mostly about the fact that this quickly became an every night habit.

Last year, I decided to stop drinking for a week in order to prove to myself that I didn't have a drinking problem. I'd tried drinking things like seltzer with a bit of fruit juice instead of wine, but it was just so unsatisfying. This time, instead of seltzer, I tried cold herbal tea. Meh. So I added a little fruit juice. Eh. So I added a splash of apple cider vinegar. Whoa! That's a winning combo!

My goal was to quit drinking for a week. That was 10 months ago. I went from being a daily drinker to rarely drinking at all and not missing it even a little.

Now that I have a new daily habit, I want to make sure I didn't unintentionally trade one bad habit for another.
posted by 2oh1 at 4:51 PM on August 4, 2024 [6 favorites]

No you're fine.

I have heard anecdotally that a lot of sober folks do shots of vinegar for the same burn rush. It's fine.

Add a fluoride rinse (like ACT) to your dental routine at night. That's good practice anyway without the beverage, but it also hedges against the only area of extremely minimal concern here, which is your tooth enamel over time.

You're not getting any more acid than a heavy salad eater or a daily soda drinker.

Don't overthink this. You're fine. Enjoy your tasty drink!
posted by phunniemee at 4:56 PM on August 4, 2024 [4 favorites]

There seem to be some health benefits to ACV, if there is a risk to having it daily it's that taken undiluted it may ittitate the esophagus. Since you're having it in tea, you're good. enjoy! Congrats on quitting, that's got to feel good.
posted by 5_13_23_42_69_666 at 5:02 PM on August 4, 2024 [3 favorites]

A quick search on Google Scholar shows that there are multiple studies that have passed ethical board reviews giving 30 ml (approx 2 tbsp) daily. While passing an ethics review doesn’t automatically mean “it’s fine,” it does mean that there are currently no major concerns about giving someone that dosage—which is double what you’re describing. Perhaps looking at some of those will help?
posted by moosetracks at 5:17 PM on August 4, 2024 [1 favorite]

Seconding shrubs (a.k.a. drinking vinegar). I often add a splash to a glass of flavored seltzer mixed 80/20 with fruit juice, or just to a glass of seltzer. I'm working my way through a couple of bottles from Siren Shrubs right now.

Shrubs are also apparently a thing you can make yourself at home, but I've never done it.
posted by soundguy99 at 5:55 PM on August 4, 2024

There's no need to worry, but staghorn sumac "lemonade" might be a flavor you'd enjoy.
posted by metasarah at 5:58 PM on August 4, 2024

Adding to the mouthwash comment, give it some time before brushing your teeth, and rinse your mouth before brushing your teeth as well. Ideally drink the mixture through a straw. I also enjoy drinking diluted ACV and as far as I can tell, the tooth enamel concern is the only thing to worry about if you’re not getting acid reflux or other symptoms.
posted by music for skeletons at 7:22 PM on August 4, 2024

I really like shrubs, but they have a lot of sugar. If you end up trying them, you'd want to substitute both the ACV and the fruit juice for them.

But I agree with everyone who says that's not a lot of ACV.
posted by lapis at 7:35 PM on August 4, 2024 [1 favorite]

Ah, what you want is a switchel recipe!

Good stuff and really quenches your thirst. Plenty of other recipes out there with mild variations. I like it with and without ginger.
posted by BlueHorse at 8:49 PM on August 4, 2024

Response by poster: BlueHorse: "Ah, what you want is a switchel recipe!"

That's a lot of sugar. It could be fun once in a while, but I don't want anything that has more sugar than what I'm already doing (which has not much). For a nightly drink, I think the less sugar the better.
posted by 2oh1 at 11:39 PM on August 4, 2024

Do you think vinegar has alcohol in it? It doesn't (well it has trace amounts, but nothing worth thinking about).
posted by creiszhanson at 5:42 AM on August 5, 2024

You are very much overthinking it. Being a daily drinker (including just one alcoholic drink a day) has been shown to have correlations with all kinds of undesirable health outcomes. Alcohol is just incredibly taxing on the body. Vinegar, on the other hand, has almost no such correlations.

If you are concerned about your tooth enamel you might invest in a water flosser to help make sure the acid is thoroughly removed from crevices, and switching to a more alkaline toothpaste (like a baking soda based one) to help reset your oral ph if needed. If you find your new evening beverage is causing heartburn or acid reflux, that can be very difficult and you should explore alternatives, though acidic foods don’t necessarily trigger that reaction and it could be caused by lots of other things. If you are diabetic you might have to adjust the fruit juice so you aren’t experiencing spikes or dips in your blood sugar at bad times of the day, but vinegar is unlikely to be much of a contributing factor. Other than developing a spontaneous vinegar allergy I can’t think of another reason for concern.

Vinegar is a secret tastiness ingredient in a whole bunch of things. It has a lot of the same culinary utility as wine and spirits, but without almost any of the alcohol. You might explore different vinegars. My favorite is probably sherry vinegar, and I’ve seen stuff like small batch artisanal rice vinegar made from sake that I am intrigued by conceptually, but not enough to splurge on. I use a lot of different vinegars because it is very good at balancing and enhancing flavors alongside or in place of salt, and I generally try to cook with less salt. Your vinegar tea concoction makes perfect culinary sense - bitter/herbal tea, sweet juice, sour vinegar. If you want to be adventurous, find some spicy bitters or add a dash of cayenne. That plus a salty and savory snack will get you every flavor all together.
posted by Mizu at 6:37 AM on August 5, 2024

hibiscus tea
posted by hortense at 8:14 AM on August 5, 2024 [1 favorite]

I think lime juice and lemon juice would be similar to vinegar. (I get the Santa Cruz brand.)

For the lime juice, I have been playing with lime juice, ginger (paste), and brown sugar, making a lazy-man's single serving "Agua de Sapo." I have never had the real thing and don't have a recipe, but I think I have been doing about 2 oz lime juice, 1/2 tsp ginger paste, and 2 Tbs brown sugar, and adding 2-4 oz of water or sparkling water and a few ice cubes. It is refreshing!

Also, for robustness, you might try a touch of molasses.

I've enjoyed tart cherry juice and pineapple juice, too to change things up.
posted by bruinfan at 8:25 AM on August 5, 2024

Lemon juice won't be any better than apple cider vinegar - since the only real health concern would be erosion of teeth/irritating esophagus/stomach (said as a person with acid reflux that has worn down my tooth enamel).

But diluted the way you are drinking it, I wouldn't be concerned.

If you are worried about your teeth, drink it through a straw (that's what my dentist told me to do when I still drank Diet Coke). If you don't have pre-existing reflux issues and no sign of it causes heartburn or anything, then I wouldn't worry about that part.
posted by litera scripta manet at 7:30 PM on August 5, 2024