The New Drinking Ritual: What Is Bookending?

The art of bookending: starting and ending your evenings alcohol free

Our friends at The Wine Society recently introduced us to the world of 'bookending' - starting your evening with something non-alcoholic, moving onto alcoholic offerings, then ending the night with a non-alcoholic drink of choice. 

Think of it as giving your evening a beginning, middle and end, drinking with intention so to speak. 

Start with something that piques the palate:

Rather than opening with a glass of wine or a cocktail, a bookended-evening begins with non-alcoholic serve that feels like part of the occasion. Something complex, refreshing, potentially sparkling, and interesting enough to sip while you catch up, cook dinner or settle into the evening. 

Our drink of choice: 'Soon, My Friend' artisanal kombucha - crafted exclusively by L.A Brewery's Louise Avery and Freddy Bulmer (Wine Society) - a bottle designed to be "just as at home at the dinner table as any fine wine" - Freddy Bulmer. 

Made from a long, slow kombucha fermentation, 'Soon, My Friend' has the character and complexity you’d expect from a good bottle of wine, just without the alcohol. The perfect starter to an evening, with its zesty, wine-like acidity and fermented complexity, making it a wonderful companion to food. It’s crisp and vibrant, with lifted green-apple skin, berries and floral jasmine, followed by spiced lemon, a hint of ginger and a sour-apple finish.

Tasting notes:

Crisp sparkling tea, green-apple skin, berries and jasmine.

On the palate:

Vibrant with apple, spiced lemon, a hint of ginger - a fresh and focused structure. Driven, but with succulence and a sour-apple snap to the finish.

Serve chilled, and poured into your favourite wine glass. Shop, 'Soon, My Friend'.

Move onto drinks that carry you through the heart of the evening:

Now, if wished, you can explore alcoholic drinks that complement your mid-evening occasion, whether you're seeking wines to pair with dinner, or a cocktail to serve with canapés.

Our wines of choice: The Wine Society’s Pioneer range - a collection celebrating producers who go above and beyond in their approach to craft, land, wildlife and people. Handpicked wines from vineyards full of life and energy, where synthetic chemicals are non-existent or kept to a bare minimum. 

From expressive whites to elegant reds, these are wines made with a sense of place and purpose - ritual-led, considered and taste-first. 

Finish with a non-alcoholic digestif:

To conclude, we'd lean towards a non-alcoholic cocktail, such as our 'Midnight Rose Martini', or Botivo x L.A Brewery Ginger Spritz. The perfect way to draw the evening to a close. 

Why bookending works:

There’s no rulebook to bookending, the idea is simply to make every drink an intentional choice.

For some, that might mean enjoying fewer alcoholic drinks overall. For others, it’s a way to make social occasions more flexible. And sometimes it’s about discovering that the beginning and end of an evening can be just as enjoyable as the middle.