Zero alcohol beer and children
Discussion
My 9 year old son always asks for a non alcoholic lager if we ever go out to a restaurant or pub. I have so far managed to dodge the issue and he ends up with an apple juice or coke.
He wants the lager to appear more grown up and I can entirely understand both the mischievous nature of the request and the desire to be 'one of the chaps' at his age.
I assume it's entirely legal to let a child have a zero alcohol beer, but is it right?! I'm uncomfortable with it.
A suitably silly Saturday subject.
He wants the lager to appear more grown up and I can entirely understand both the mischievous nature of the request and the desire to be 'one of the chaps' at his age.
I assume it's entirely legal to let a child have a zero alcohol beer, but is it right?! I'm uncomfortable with it.
A suitably silly Saturday subject.
I don't think it is illegal per se, the law is around the consumption of alcohol being illegal under a certain age. It IS very wrong though, I'm sure you would invite major attention from lots of people (namely police and/or social services) when people in pubs/restraunts THINK they see your child drinking and you letting him get away with it!!
I would have loved to have had a dad who would let me pretend drink at that age, but I got a hard no as I'm sure most people did!
I would have loved to have had a dad who would let me pretend drink at that age, but I got a hard no as I'm sure most people did!
Explain to him that non-alcoholic beer isn't cool, as it's pretending to be something it isn't. Also explain to him that it tastes foul (seriously, I wouldn't drink lager unless it made the pain go away, and non-alcoholic stuff usually tastes really, really bad; might be worth buying a can for home to let him have some and understand) and that if he really wanted to be grown up he would order water so he could enjoy the taste of the food.
Either that or bribe him. That seems to work really well.
Either that or bribe him. That seems to work really well.
My Dad would get us a half of bitter shandy and a packet of crisps when we sat with him in the pub garden on a Sunday. That was nearly 40 years ago and a little older than 9. Maybe my younger brother was about 10 or 11.
I have to say that I wouldn't let my lot drink an imitation lager in a restaurant especially with all the PC crap around. The attention would get me.
I have to say that I wouldn't let my lot drink an imitation lager in a restaurant especially with all the PC crap around. The attention would get me.
yoof full chav said:
As it's still classed as beer, even if it is zero alcohol, then i assume it would be illegal to let him have it. Maybe this would get a better response in the plod and the law section 
But the laws surround the consumption of alcohol, not the consumption of "beer".Hmmm, why not let him have it?
Its non-alcoholic, so what's the harm?
TBH by prohibiting him from having it, you're just setting yourself up for problems in the future. He'll think drinking is a big deal, and "wrong", so he'll want to do it even more. Simple child psychology TBH.
My parents used to offer me small quantities of alcohol when I was a child. I therefore grew up thinking that having a drink was no big deal, whereas my mates were strictly prohibited even up to their 18th, and they just lied about it anyway.
Its just another drink! He'll probably hate the taste of it anyway....
Its non-alcoholic, so what's the harm?
TBH by prohibiting him from having it, you're just setting yourself up for problems in the future. He'll think drinking is a big deal, and "wrong", so he'll want to do it even more. Simple child psychology TBH.
My parents used to offer me small quantities of alcohol when I was a child. I therefore grew up thinking that having a drink was no big deal, whereas my mates were strictly prohibited even up to their 18th, and they just lied about it anyway.
Its just another drink! He'll probably hate the taste of it anyway....
Buy him a bottle of something like Kaliber or Clausthaler in the supermarket. They all taste pretty awful and he can then see why he has to wait until his teenage years before being able to appreciate the taste of beer. Blame it on puberty or something
At least it might get you 4 or 5 years before he wants to try again.
In a public place all you will get is tutting and people glancing at you and if it is local to you word will get back to school etc.
At least it might get you 4 or 5 years before he wants to try again.
In a public place all you will get is tutting and people glancing at you and if it is local to you word will get back to school etc.
Maxf said:
I used to drink pints (only one normally) of bitter shandy from around 12/13 years old - in pubs with my dad.
It didn't do me any harm. Good job this thread appeared before lunchtime as I'll be too f
ked up after 12 to reply 
My dad was the same, used to let me drink beer/bitter shandy from around that age.It didn't do me any harm. Good job this thread appeared before lunchtime as I'll be too f
ked up after 12 to reply I also remember my first ever hang over, on holiday, Menorca, drinking dads drink which I thought was Cloudy Lemonade, turns out it was Gin and bitter Lemon. I was about 10.
ETA: And another thing, he used to ask if I wanted a shandy
Edited by WorAl on Saturday 26th February 12:31
Semi hemi said:
How about cans of shandy at 2% or less? Freely available to kids at the grocers.
Let him have one, betting is he will not be making a habit of it, be lucky if he finishes the bottle before he is asking for a coke
Think they all have to be 0.5% or below. When I used to work in a bar we had a traditional ginger beer for sale in bottles and remember a dad getting funny about it as it read something along the lines of "typically not more than 0.05%abv"!Let him have one, betting is he will not be making a habit of it, be lucky if he finishes the bottle before he is asking for a coke
The law will be fine with regards to anything labelled as "alcohol free" even if they aren't quite 0%
Interesting side note I believe you can still nip into supermarkets and go down the booze section and buy a certain bottle that is 44.7% at any age as it's deemed non-alcoholic!
ETA: virtual pint for guessing
Edited by samdale on Saturday 26th February 11:56
This is where we go wrong. By demonising alcohol, we only increase its attractiveness to the 'rebellious youth'. No wonder having your stomach pumped at 14 becomes a string to one's bow.
And the Americans are even worse - the consequences of kids going to college at 17 having never touched a drop, in concert with zero-tolerance policies on campus, means the kids get totally out of their tree - dangerously so - then can't get help because of the terrible trouble they'll get into.
The southern Europeans, by introducing wine at meal times to children and treating it like no big deal, have none of this nonsense. A night out in Barcelona is generally a very civilised experience, except for the Brits who think drinking to vandalism is the mark of a proper night out.
Give your lad a non-alc, and if he likes it, let him have the odd beer at home.
By the time his mates are raiding their parents' booze cabinets and smuggling rocket fuel out of the house in their pockets, he'll hopefully have the idea that this is not really such a great plan.
And the Americans are even worse - the consequences of kids going to college at 17 having never touched a drop, in concert with zero-tolerance policies on campus, means the kids get totally out of their tree - dangerously so - then can't get help because of the terrible trouble they'll get into.
The southern Europeans, by introducing wine at meal times to children and treating it like no big deal, have none of this nonsense. A night out in Barcelona is generally a very civilised experience, except for the Brits who think drinking to vandalism is the mark of a proper night out.
Give your lad a non-alc, and if he likes it, let him have the odd beer at home.
By the time his mates are raiding their parents' booze cabinets and smuggling rocket fuel out of the house in their pockets, he'll hopefully have the idea that this is not really such a great plan.
samdale said:
Semi hemi said:
How about cans of shandy at 2% or less? Freely available to kids at the grocers.
Let him have one, betting is he will not be making a habit of it, be lucky if he finishes the bottle before he is asking for a coke
Think they all have to be 0.5% or below. When I used to work in a bar we had a traditional ginger beer for sale in bottles and remember a dad getting funny about it as it read something along the lines of "typically not more than 0.05%abv"!Let him have one, betting is he will not be making a habit of it, be lucky if he finishes the bottle before he is asking for a coke
The law will be fine with regards to anything labelled as "alcohol free" even if they aren't quite 0%
Interesting side note I believe you can still nip into supermarkets and go down the booze section and buy a certain bottle that is 44.7% at any age as it's deemed non-alcoholic!
ETA: virtual pint for guessing
Edited by samdale on Saturday 26th February 11:56
NDA said:
I assume it's entirely legal to let a child have a zero alcohol beer, but is it right?! I'm uncomfortable with it.
Your son wants to do something that you're uncomfortable with and you ask about it on the Internet. Why can't you just say NO to him? He's 9 and you're the parent.Do you want advice from total strangers about everything your son wants to do? Just say NO.
Are people now afraid of their children.
samdale said:
Interesting side note I believe you can still nip into supermarkets and go down the booze section and buy a certain bottle that is 44.7% at any age as it's deemed non-alcoholic!
Angostura Bitters?Let him have a no-alcohol Cobra and he'll be begging for a Coca Cola to take the taste away. Bloody stuff tastes like liquid Weetabix.
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