Dinner only drinking - a great way to cut back!

Maybe you pour yourself a gin and tonic when you get in from work? Uncork the wine when you start cooking? Allow yourself a nightcap with Newsnight?

When you drink throughout the evening, even though you may think you’re drinking moderately, it’s very easy to go over the government's daily unit guidelines.

If you and your partner often get through a bottle of wine in a night, for example, then you’re drinking beyond safe levels – half a bottle of wine contains at least 4.5 units, which is more than the 3-4 units for men and 2-3 units for women that the government advises people shouldn’t regularly exceed.

To keep your alcohol consumption within safe limits, then why not try being a dinnertime-only drinker?

If you do choose to drink, then only having alcohol when you eat is a good way to ration yourself – helping you to be healthier and look better. And you may also find that you appreciate what you do drink a whole lot more too.

Appreciation

“Wine is about food,” says Tracy Lee of Wine Angel. “They are intrinsically linked in our history and wine was only ever made to accompany food. Look at Europe – they drink wine with dinner as part and parcel of their culture and do so responsibly and enjoyably.

“If you explore which wines you like to drink with particular food (and vice versa), then your entire appreciation and attitude will be enhanced.”

Complementary pairings

Wine and food writer Natasha Hughes agrees. “In the same way that basil brings out the sweetness in tomatoes or horseradish adds piquancy to a slice of beef, some wines and some foods seem to complement each other, adding to our enjoyment.

“Pairing food and wine isn't simply a matter of trying to pair flavours, it's also about matching weight and intensity,” adds Natasha.

“You don't want to swamp a delicate dover sole, for instance, with a big, robust oaked chardonnnay – look for a gentler, more restrained wine – and similarly a light-bodied beaujolais might be overwhelmed by a hearty game stew.

“Wines that appear difficult to drink by themselves because they are high in acidity or tannins often make good food matches because the structural elements that make them seem challenging when sampled in isolation can help them to cut through rich food.”

Tracy’s wine app includes guidelines on matching food and wine. She says people shouldn’t be intimidated by the aura of mystery surrounding the subject: “Primarily, always remember that is comes down to personal choice,” she says.

Alternatives to wine

The same goes if you prefer beer to wine.

A lot of beers taste better when drunk with food too, and many bottles now suggest food matches. Try sharing a bottle of Belgian wheat beer with fish or an IPA with curry.

Of course, it’s not just alcoholic drinks that complement food.

In some upmarket restaurants, the non-alcoholic drinks are now as sophisticated as the wine list, with sommeliers (wine experts) experimenting with all manner of fruit and herbal infusions to match different dishes. Why not try experimenting with herbal teas and fresh fruit juices diluted with sparkling water?

Feel the benefits

Limiting your drinking to dinnertimes slows the rate of absorption into the bloodstream of the alcohol you've consumed and also allows your body more time to  process it before you go to bed (it takes about an hour to metabolise one unit of alcohol).

This should help you to get a better night’s sleep.

To feel the benefits of only drinking with dinner, stay within the daily unit guidelines – that’s approximately two small (125ml) glasses of wine.

Don’t be tempted to take the remainder of the bottle with you to the sofa for the rest of the evening – wine will keep perfectly well for a few days, or you can use your newly developed wine-and-food sense to experiment with cooking with leftover wine.

Page last updated by

Unknown, 10 May 2012.

Page checked on

17 Jun 2011