During my research for the oldest available recipe books on non-alcoholic drinks, I noticed different purposes beyond marketing for the now-hip Dry January and Sober October.
Among the titles for teetotalers published between 1990 and 2010, I came across two catering exclusively to pregnant women, Margarita Mama and Preggatinis.
I also ran into the 1980s effort from Equal called Mocktails: Refreshing Non-alcoholic Recipes From Equal, Low Calorie Sweetener. Another red-headed stepchild I uncovered from the same era was Ocean Spray’s Refresh a Better Way … With Ocean Spray. Neither of these are in-print.
After trying to hunt down books from the 1970s, I discovered the National Woman’s Christian Temperance Union of Australia’s Drink to Your Health. Sadly, this one is out-of-print too.
Digging for earlier publications led me to Prohibition, Ken Burns and Lynn Novick’s documentary about what led to the 18th Amendment and the law’s impact on US drinking culture. No doubt I made time to learn from these two about the true origins of spirit-free drinks: spirituality and politics.
If you don’t have time to watch all of Prohibition, or if you’re more of a reader, at least check out this mix of clips and writing that preface the film.