Day 93 - Honeycrisp Apple Spumante (Non-alcoholic)

I did not drink alcohol for almost 4 months starting in Mid-February, what a year to go sober!  It was the longest I've gone without drinking since my freshman year of college.  On November 22nd 2019, I went to the doctor because I had some soreness in my chest and some dizziness.  They sent me to the hospital.  It turned out I had a blockage in one of my arteries and I had to have a stent put in.  I was put on a few different meds after, some that I need to take for life, one was a blood thinner called Brilinta (later it changed to Plavix) that I need to take for at least a year.  This was all quite a bummer so I was determined to get healthy.  I started eating better and exercising regularly.

Early February, Laura and I went on a lovely trip to Turks and Caicos in the Caribbean.

It was the most beautiful place I've ever seen but I was scarily out of breath while we were down there.  I thought it was a side-effect of the Brilinta, which can sometimes cause shortness of breath.  When we got back, I went to the cardiologist to switch from Brilinta to Plavix.  They suggested I get a chest CT to check for possible blood clots and lo and behold, I had 'em, a pulmonary embolism, hooray!  So then I had to start taking Eliquis to break up clots in my lungs.  I would need to take it for 6 months.  I was now taking two major blood thinners so would need to be very careful about getting hurt so I wouldn't bleed out, and I bruise like a bastard.  My doctor said I should stop drinking while on Plavix and Eliquis because alcohol also thins the blood.

I did not make it the whole 6 months without drinking.  As a world-wide pandemic kicked in and things were stressful, I started drinking a little the last couple months but during the sober period, I experimented with non alcoholic beers, cocktails and wines.  It was a learning experience.

There are a lot more NA beers than there used to be.  There are NA versions of every style: Stouts, Porters, Lagers, IPA's, Weiss beers, Radlers, ect...  I tried several.  Unfortunately, most of them taste like a watered down version of the real thing.  I found two German options that were pretty good, Buckler Lager and the best one, Paulander Weizen-Radler.  I am not usually into Radlers (more commonly known as Shandy) but this is the only NA I have tried that tastes like a High-Octane beer.

I tried some NA cocktail mixers:  Seedlip Grove 42 Citrus and Ritual Whiskey Alternative.  They have a variety of ingredients that try to mimic alcohol, heat from peppers, citrus, herbs and I made some cocktails.

Now for the review:  Lautenbach's Orchard Country Honeycrisp Apple Spumante (Non-alcoholic).

It is from a vinyard in Fish Creek, WI.  It is very sweet, not very exciting.  I would rather go for Welch's Sparkling Cider than this.  As a kid, I would sometimes have Welch's sparkling cider or grape juice for occasions like Thanksgiving and that stuff is pretty good!

Live and learn and then get Luv's!  Next time I review the Liberty apple.  God bless us, every one.  Crunch on!