The Not Drinking Alcohol Today Podcast

Redefining Rituals: Natalie Battaglia on Mocktails, Motherhood & Mindful Living

• Isabella Ferguson and Meg Webb • Season 3 • Episode 114

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Get ready to be inspired by Natalie Battaglia, the creative mind behind The Mindful Mocktail! In this episode, Natalie opens up about her transformative journey from struggling with alcohol dependence to crafting elegant, delicious non-alcoholic beverages that elevate any occasion. We dive deep into her personal story, exploring the power of mindful rituals, the art of creating visually stunning mocktails, and how to celebrate life without alcohol—all while embracing wellness and joy.

In this episode, you'll discover:  
• Natalie’s raw and honest account of her relationship with alcohol  
• How aesthetics and creativity breathe life into her mocktail recipes  
• The obstacles she overcame on her path to a healthier lifestyle  
• How motherhood reshaped her approach to drinking  
• Valuable lessons from Annie Grace’s Live Alcohol Experiment  
• Why inclusivity matters in the non-alcoholic space  
• Fun, innovative mocktail recipes perfect for any celebration  
• A peek into her fabulous Mindful Mocktail Recipe Book (on pre-order in Australia and for purchase internationally)

Whether you're sober-curious or just looking for ways to enjoy life more mindfully, this episode is packed with inspiration and practical tips!

NAT'S MINDFUL MOCKTAIL RECIPE BOOK

Pre-order (in Australia) or purchase (International orders) here: https://mindfulmocktail.com/MINDFUL-MOCKTAIL-RECIPE-BOOK/

LEARN MORE ABOUT NAT:

Nat: https://mindfulmocktail.com

Insta: https://www.instagram.com/themindfulmocktail/

MEG

Megan Webb: https://glassfulfilled.com.au
Instagram: @glassfulfilled
Unwined Bookclub: https://www.alcoholfreedom.com.au/unwinedbookclub
Facebook UpsideAF: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1168716054214678
Small group coaching: https://www.elizaparkinson.com/groupcoaching


BELLA

Web: https://isabellaferguson.com.au
Insta: @alcoholcounsellorisabella
Bi-Yearly 6-Week Small Group Challenges: Learn more: https://www.isabellaferguson.com.au/feb-2025-challenge
Free Do I Have A Drinking Problem 3 x Video Series: https://resources.isabellaferguson.com.au/offers/JTFFgjJL/checkout
Free HOW DO I STOP DRINKING SO MUCH Masterclass: https://resources.isabellaferguson.com.au/offers/7fvkb3FF/checkout
Online Alcohol Self-Paced Course: ...

Speaker 1:

Today I'm really excited to have Natalie Bataglia on board and the Not Drinking Today Zoom room. Natalie, which I'm sure many of our listeners would already know, creates the most glorious mocktails. You might have seen some of her mocktails on Instagram and she's the founder and creator of the Mindful Mocktail and has a beautiful book that's soon to be released but is on pre-order in Australia and we'll get to all of that and you'll have all of those details here, so please stay tuned. But I just wanted to say first of all, a huge, heartfelt welcome.

Speaker 2:

Natalie, thank you so much for having me. I know this has been a long time coming and I've been seeing it in my calendar and I've been really excited about it, so I'm just heart-felt Welcome, natalie. Thank you so much for having me. I know this has been a long time coming and I've been seeing it in my calendar and I've been really excited about it, so I'm just grateful to be here. Thank you for asking me.

Speaker 1:

Oh, you are so welcome. I wanted to first of all just say your production quality of your mocktails on Instagram is just insane. It's off the charts. The colours, the textures, the utensils. You can almost smell and taste these mocktails. It's just a delight for the senses, incredible.

Speaker 2:

Thank you so much. I do put a lot of work into making it a really fun space online, because I know when I stopped drinking and we can probably go into that but there weren't a lot of fun spaces online for non-drinkers and I really picked up on that quite early. It was, you know, a good five years ago now that I, when I stopped, and I just thought to myself you know what? We need a space, we need to be represented online somewhere and, it's just to be honest, somewhere. And it's just to be honest, it's evolved even better than I ever could have imagined. So I did learn. I guess what I have learned is that we taste with our eyes first. So it was important to me that these drinks not just tasted great, but also that they looked great, and you know that we still got to experience the ritual of pouring ourselves a pretty drink and a delicious drink, even though we weren't drinking alcohol, and that's really where the whole idea came from.

Speaker 1:

Oh, it's absolutely brilliant and it kind of um, uh, it's I relate, relate or liken it to like dopamine dressing. It's the dopamine of the colour and the movement of these beautiful creations and because it's not just a mocktail or a drink, there's more layers to that. Isn't there For men and women that want to be included in the ritual, have something that's fun and sophisticated, it's elevated beyond lemonade and an umbrella. It's inclusivity and choice, isn't it? It's got a bit of a deeper layer there.

Speaker 2:

Oh, it really does. I mean, when you know, if you go back to my very sort of first followers, you know who are still around to this day and like there's just a handful of I call them like my cheerleaders, like they're my people and they've been around my first, like 500 followers, and so many people just say it's just never been just about the drinks. You know, it's just not. The drinks are great, but it's certainly not where it even stemmed from. And I noticed, when I first started the Mindful Mocktail, every time I shared it was really more about my personal story. Then, you know, if you scroll right back, every time I shared a drink I shared a story about my struggles with alcohol or the challenge I was having that day in terms of not drinking or a situation where I'd been, you know, triggered to drink and how I coped with it. And that was really how these original connections were made through these personal stories rather than the drinks. So, yeah, I think that should be my tagline it's not just about, it's never just been about.

Speaker 1:

Oh, why don't we go there? Because I think it is part of just the beauty of your book. Your profile on Insta is that you are a woman who is creating these beautiful mocktails, but you've also made the decision and the choice to be alcohol free. I'd love to hear a bit more about your story and what led you to make that choice.

Speaker 2:

Well, sure, well, we'll go from like the nice, bright, colourful, fun things to like the truth of it all. No, I shouldn't say that, but you know it started from a darker place. It really did Like anything. I think that ends up beautiful. Really in life it generally starts from a darker place. It really did Like anything. I think that ends up beautiful. Really in life it generally starts from a darker place and I, oh gosh, I don't even know where to start, but really just I, um, I grew up as an Aussie kid in the eighties, so it goes without saying I had alcohol around me all the time, like my parents, and we've had.

Speaker 2:

My parents and I we've had lots of conversations about my drinking and their drinking and how their drinking might have influenced my drinking. And you know, all of these conversations are very open and honest and there's no animosity there or anything. You know, this is just, I suppose, the way me and so many of my friends were raised, that we saw our parents drink to celebrate and commiserate and there was just always a reason in our household to to pop the bottle. So of course I guess it goes without saying that when alcohol is sort of part of your everyday life as a child. When you see it, then, when you grow up, you tend to take on the same or similar drinking habits. Because my house was very much full of love, like it wasn't an angry, drunk household we're talking about. You know two people who were able to. You know we, our house was filled with love and and joy and all of the things, but alcohol just happened to always be present. So when I grew up and moved out, I essentially just took on a really similar you know, really similar drinking habits and, if I'm really honest, those days my drinking never bothered me. All of my friends drank.

Speaker 2:

I built, of course, as drinkers. Do you tend to build a life with other drinkers? You know the boyfriend that I was seeing aters. Do you tend to build a life with other drinkers? You know the boyfriend that I was seeing at the time. He used to drink a lot and it was just never really an issue. We would do the whole thing that most people were doing in their early twenties. You know we'd go out Thursday night, friday night, Saturday night, sunday night. Drinking would always be involved. The thought of not going out and not drinking was almost laughable. Um, and then I separated from that relationship and I met someone else who is my now husband and it was quite fascinating because he is Italian. And here I am thinking I've met this Italian guy. We're going to be having pizza and pasta and red wine and red wine things and that, oh my goodness, I was so excited.

Speaker 2:

And then I, to my utter despair and dismay, I realized that he actually came from a family of people who really didn't drink at all. So his dad would enjoy a little port or something before bed, like a little nightcap or something. But this whole caring wine with food and things that I had grown up with, you know, damien, he had no experience with. So we went through this. It never caused any friction between us, but we certainly had a few conversations where, you know, I thought he was the odd one and he thought I was the odd one and you know, and you know, we'd go to parties and he would drive and I would drink, and that was just like the pattern that our relationship followed and again, really never seemed to cause any issues.

Speaker 2:

You know, I would have your standard messy drunk nights, but I certainly wasn't one of those, you know, traditionally like messy drunk people where I would end up in hospital or anything or committing a crime or anything like that. Yeah, it was always a joke between my friends and I that I could hold my alcohol really well, like I could have a glass of wine and you just I would be sitting here talking to you like I am now, which is sometimes more dangerous. Might I just add yes, yes, I think it's worse, because no one knows exactly how much you've had to drink, and it really helped me hide it later.

Speaker 1:

Yeah.

Speaker 2:

That's, you know, remaining very poker-faced. But after a few years, damien and I decided to get married and have kids, and that was when everything changed. Of course, your entire life changes when you have kids, but it wasn't just that. It was, I suppose, I didn't do the newborn stage very well and I was missing my old. I loved my baby so much, but I was missing my old life.

Speaker 2:

Yes, and you know feeling sad, you know, about the life I used to live, and resentful is not the right word, but I just remember thinking I can still be the person I used to be, and of course, part of my identity was the wine, was the alcohol, and I was looking for something to take the edge off. And so I went from, you know, going out, like before I had Nathan. You know, I was going out in a social environment, drinking with my friends and having fun, and then I found myself, like drinking at those same levels, standing at home while Nathan napped at the kitchen bench and I was folding the washing and downing a bottle of red wine. And you know, I feel like the drinking, the social drinking, to this day, was never my issue. As I said, I didn't get in trouble, not a messy drunk, didn't embarrass myself any of the things, but I developed this pattern of drinking alone and because Damien didn't drink either, I was like truly alone. It wasn't like he would come home and we'd share a bottle of wine, it was just me drinking to excess, daily almost, and then hiding it and then getting through this, going through this pattern of, you know, taking the recycling bin out so no one could feel how heavy it was, and I had this drinking cupboard at home where I would have all my bottles of wine lined up and I'd have all my glassware and instead of like pouring a glass of wine and drinking it at the table like a normal person cooking dinner, I would, I would hide it, I would have it in this cupboard and just, yeah, just when I look back, you know, I guess one moment where I really thought oh my god, man, you're gonna have to get some help here.

Speaker 2:

Um, I knew Damien had gone out of the room and he wasn't going to be gone for long, and so I yanked the pork out of the bottle and I just stood there and gulped the wine directly from the bottle. And it's so weird to me now, even when I think about it because we never thought about my drinking. He was always like it doesn't seem to affect much except your own wellbeing. So if that's what you want to do, then go for it. So it's not like he ever would have even commented about how much I was drinking, but I think because I knew I was doing the wrong thing, doing the wrong thing.

Speaker 1:

Yes, yes, Natalie, I actually just had a moment because I had well, no, I talk about it a lot, but it was certainly a behaviour that I had probably, I'm sure, a million billion times or escalated. I'd gone down the track a fair bit, but that's not to diminish the fact that any form of hiding the alcohol, it strikes you to the core, doesn't it? It's a real moment where you think, whoa, where did this turn a corner? Did your partner ever kind of have a conversation with you around? Hey, Nat, what's going on here? Or was this all driven from you? To make a bit of a change, or was this all driven from you?

Speaker 2:

to make a bit of a change? It was really driven from me. I mean, as I said, he knew he had only ever known me as a heavy drinker. Do you know what I mean? So it was almost like it didn't. It wasn't odd, it sounds really bad. I mean, even when I tell this story now and think back, I'm like I can't believe we had both fallen into this pattern of just my drinking was normal. But I think you know, for a lot of people you know it is their normal. But I did have a bit of a turning point where, which I'm happy to share if you'd like to hear about it.

Speaker 1:

Please, I'd love to, because all of these conversations there's often one, two, three, if not a hundred women that just go. Oh yeah, me too it's. Yeah, it's all part of the oh the good stuff about sharing.

Speaker 2:

So please, if you're keen to, I'd love to hear. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Sure I do get some raised eyebrows when I tell this story sometimes, so bear with me, but I have people talk about like their classic rock bottom moment yeah, usually something glorious like being arrested or, you know, injuring themselves or something like that. I don't have anything like that, but what I do have is and this was like the last thing that happened in a culmination of very small things that just added up. A couple of little examples was I remember once I was standing at the kitchen bench drinking on a Friday afternoon and my husband was due home from work any moment, so the door was open and my little toddler's like toddling around and he would have only been I don't know three. And we live on like this raised sort of belt like area oh, there's this big hill that sort of you know where our driveway goes down. So we have this balcony and I remember coming out there one day and seeing Nathan standing up on the pot plant near the balcony like pier. And just when I say these little things, that certainly wasn't a little thing, but these are the kinds of things that had happened in the lead up, like to this moment that I'm about to describe, my grandma had passed away and I was doing the eulogy and I it was a Saturday afternoon and at that point I was like, pretty much, as I said, everything was an excuse to you know, have some wine. And I'd said to my husband my two. So I'm home with my husband, my two boys, and I said to him I'm going to go up to the study and I'm going to finish this eulogy because I need to get it back to the funeral director tomorrow and I'm going to take a wine with me.

Speaker 2:

So I'd taken this bottle of wine and I'd gone up into the study and I'd been in there for a while, probably had two or three glasses of wine, typing away, and Damien calls me down from the kitchen and says can you just come here for a minute? He had this really strange tone to his voice and I walk into the kitchen and he had been meal prepping for the week so he had all of these nuts on the counter, right. So he's got these pistachios and these walnuts and he's separating them all out into little containers for the week. And I walk into the kitchen and I see my son who was then. He would have been five, I think four or five then and he is sitting on the bench with his dad having an anaphylactic reaction to the nuts.

Speaker 2:

So we didn't know that he had a nut allergy. We certainly knew after that, but we didn't know at the time so we didn't even think that it was an issue for him to be around nuts. But I just remember walking into the room seeing him there, not really realizing what was happening, but knew that he was in medical danger and that he was having some sort of reaction to something. And just for this fleeting moment, my reaction was that I was really shitty because I knew I wouldn't be able to keep drinking for the afternoon.

Speaker 1:

Yeah.

Speaker 2:

I knew I would go back to my wine and I was like this is just interrupting everything and I just had this moment where I was annoyed at him, oh my gosh, and it was fleeting. It was a split second before we, you know, sprung into action, called the ambulance, did all of the things. But later on I really had a moment and I was obviously ready to hear this because I think all of these signs had been there for a long time, like lots of things. I remember 15 years prior to this googling am I an alcoholic? Wow, I've known for a very long time that I don't think that this is right. What, how? My relationship with alcohol and how it's going. And it was like that moment where in my head I'm putting the booze before my son. That was the moment.

Speaker 2:

And you know I tell that story to parents, especially mums, and they're like that's normal. You know that's normal. Like, of course, you're frustrated because you know you have to stop drinking and you have to stop having fun, because your kids hurt and these are bless their little hearts, but they're usually my drinking friends and I'm like no, it's not. Or, if it is normal, I don't want that to be my normal. So I made a decision that day that that wasn't going to be my normal anymore, and I can have a drink again from that day, nat.

Speaker 1:

it's a really good, powerful story. I really love the story because it's powerful story. I really love the story because it doesn't have that big, loud crashing, flashing red light sign, but it is incredibly moving. It's almost the silence of it. That kind of gave me goosebumps, and you were saying, because it actually reminded me as well those moments where I knew I had to pick up the kids at a later time in the evening and I thought, oh great, well, that means you know I'm not going to be able to have my second or third or whatever glass of wine. So, with that powerful thought, what gave you the courage to stop? How did you do?

Speaker 2:

it Well, again I Googled.

Speaker 1:

Yeah.

Speaker 2:

And it turns out, I think you're. You're this naked mind coach, aren't you? Yes, that's right, that's right. Yeah, so I it's yeah, probably good that I'm here with you, because I called Am I an Alcoholic and I found an Annie Grace article and I did her 30-day live alcohol experiment.

Speaker 1:

So did I. I did exactly that same thing with my journal and my pen and those emails that came. Yeah Well, I did one with.

Speaker 2:

So you know how she has an online one, and then she has a lot about the live one. I don't know if she runs it anymore?

Speaker 1:

I don't think so, but I know that my co-host, meg, did the live version and loved it with. Emma Gilmore was one of the coaches.

Speaker 2:

I know Emma bless her heart amazing, amazing.

Speaker 1:

so did that? Tell me what happened? Did that work for you?

Speaker 2:

Oh yeah, by day 12, I was done Like, and again I think it was like the universe. I was ready to hear the message. I mean, I'd had whispers forever, like I just described to you. Like for 15 years I thought to myself is this normal, is this normal, is this normal, is this normal, is this normal? And it just gets louder and louder, and louder and louder as the years go on. And then when that thing happened with Nathan, it was like someone was grabbing me by my collar, shaking me going is this normal? Like this isn't normal. Um, so, yeah, I found it was all meant to be.

Speaker 2:

I googled am I an alcoholic? Or help with alcoholism, or whatever it was. I found Annie. Her live alcohol experiment was starting, I think like 10 days later or something. I signed up for it straight away and I, you know, participated in the conversations and I got the emails and I did all the things. But, as I said, by day 12, I don't think I've actually ever finished it, because by day 12 I was like I've just heard enough. I went down this complete rabbit hole of, um, what alcohol was doing to me, mentally, physically, all of the things. Um, I read I hadn't even read Annie's book at that stage. But I did a little bit later on and it just really cemented everything that I had already, you know, really just cemented everything I already knew, I think, and just knew from that day like I'm just so unbelievably done with this. You know this thing where you're just like can I swear?

Speaker 1:

You can swear yeah.

Speaker 2:

That expression where people just say, like true change comes when you just get sick to death of your own shit. Yeah, so sick of my own shit. Like just waking up every day feeling like rubbish, swearing. I wouldn't drink, usually by about midday. I'm like maybe I could just have one drink and then I would drink, and then the same thing would and I was just. It was just awful. When I think back, I can't believe I didn't do it sooner.

Speaker 1:

It's really a great reminder also how what's normal shifts quite suddenly. Because you know, back when my husband and I were big drinkers, our normal was he had his bottle of white, I had my bottle of red. That's what we would do every night, let alone then the Fridays, the Saturdays and the Sundays with other people. That was normal and it certainly wasn't what my parents were doing. But they sounded very similar to yours in that sense of that celebratory style of drinking in the household. And now I couldn't conceive of it. Imagine how unwell and how sick you'd feel. But it's a good chat, because there are still many households out there that having your bottle of wine a night in some people's reality is actually quite normal.

Speaker 2:

It's actually quite, you know, it's just what you do yeah, absolutely, and I think it's all about choices, isn't it? Um, I think you know, the longer I go so it's been almost five years now but the longer I move forward with this, you know, journey for want of a better word, that word's probably overused but I realised that, you know, I actually don't think I had an alcohol addiction. I think I had some sort of mental addiction and habitual sort of addiction. You know, because I will share with you, there's been two touch points over the last five years where I've told myself I'm going to try and I'm going to have one drink today and I'm going to see what happens. Yeah, it's been when I've been very I don't I'm not saying that this is not a good idea everybody, but for me I was like you know how Annie talks about data points. Yep, myself I'm going to try one with safe people and let them know exactly what I'm doing. So I'd say to my husband or you know, I was with my best friend another time I'm going to have one drink, don't let me have any more. I'm having one and I'm going to see what happens.

Speaker 2:

And honestly, I just am so far from wanting to drink now. It is unbelievable. And I tell you one drink. My sleep was shit but I did it, and I also wear like an Apple Watch and they're amazing, like the technology. Those things are pretty amazing. Now, both mornings, I've got print screens on my phone to remind me how bad it is for me. So we have heart conditions that run in our family. Both mornings I woke up and got an alert straight away that my heart rate was 29% higher the night before and like an alert like has something you know? Checked with your doctor? Has something gone wrong? It was just one drink, wow, one drink, and so I feel like data points can be beneficial if you're in a place where you can. But yeah, it's certainly not something I would recommend, unless you're years into this journey.

Speaker 1:

Agreed, agreed. I had this chat with the challenge members. At the moment where we're sort of getting to within the last week, we're talking about well, what are you doing in the next phase? Is it continue another bout of alcohol-free or is it mindful drinking and a dip your toe into that? We just talk about what the guardrails are around it and we're just thinking look, if you've had an alcohol use disorder mild, moderate, severe you've got to try and get at least a year under your belt.

Speaker 1:

I would have thought, just to get all your sober firsts and your system recalibrated. And even then the stats may show that people that jump back in without the guardrails can often be right back where they were very quickly. But there was one challenge member who and I won't mention her name but I'm sure she won't mind me saying she did have a glass of Prosecco in front of her for a celebration and took a few sips and then couldn't finish the rest and it was actually a lovely experiment to remind herself her choice. It's not deprivation, she's deliberately saying no and it's quite a nice thing for her to do again with those warning signs around.

Speaker 2:

Yeah, um, what? And let me be your data point because I can tell you right now both situations, as I said, very safe conditions with people who knew exactly what I was doing and why. Um, honestly, it tasted awful. Yeah, it was awful. My, my whole palate has completely changed. Tasted awful, did not enjoy it one little bit, slept, terribly elevated heart rate. I mean, if this is what one drink is doing, what were we doing? What was actually going to my body before? It's just crazy to me what it was actually doing to our bodies.

Speaker 1:

Agreed, agreed. God, the amounts, the amounts I was drinking. I'm turning 50 next year and I am thrilled just not to be doing all of those behaviors when it comes to alcohol that I was doing. Oh my god, hey, uh, now, before I just jump a little bit more into your mock tales, I just want to ask you this question was it easier, do you think, because your partner was just such a natural, easy non-drinker or minimal drinker? Did that make it easier for you? Or was it still just very much your own journey? Anyway?

Speaker 2:

You know what I think I mean in all honesty. I'm sure it makes it easier having a partner that doesn't drink. Yeah, I'm sure it would, if you know, if we're being honest. But regardless, it's still very much an individual thing, and he was sitting there most nights not realizing the internal battle that I was facing in terms of, you know, would be really nice to have a wine tonight. It would be.

Speaker 2:

You know, I don't want to say in any way, shape or form, it was easy, but what I will say is once I was armed with the knowledge from the live alcohol experiment and I had read Annie's book and I had seen the YouTube videos and I had all the tools in my tool belt in terms of podcasts and, you know, connections online and all of the things I did not want to drink it. Yeah, yeah, it was really and I did. I had, by that stage, like thrown myself into the mindful mocktail as well, so it was almost like I needed something to divert my attention. It was, I had all of it and I'm like, hey, there's this hole in my life, like it was a hole. I was, you know, we were in a relationship, alcohol and I so there was this hole that needed to be filled? What? How am I going to divert this energy into something else?

Speaker 1:

yeah, well, you have diverted your energy, all of your um, gosh, gosh. It's entrepreneurship, it's creativity, god, it's such a passion project and I have to share with you that as part of the challenge, we've shared links, some links from your Mindful Mocktail site during the course, just to sort of dip our toe into what are some glorious mocktails that we can do in that 5 to 8 pm risk window. That look amazing, they're healthy, they're colourful, it doesn't matter if the kids see you make them. It's actually quite a God. What's the word? I'm looking for where everybody joins in an inclusive process. Looking for where everybody joins in an inclusive process. And we made your watermelon fresca, your elderflower mojito, peppermint tea mocktail and a few of us made your one-minute Christmas mimosa. And we've just got all these photos which I should actually well, we should be sharing on your site. But they're glorious, they just add a bit of fun into the evening. I love them. Oh, that's good. Can I ask you what is your go-to Christmas mocktail?

Speaker 2:

Do you know what the mimosas that you, so I, just find at Christmas? I don't know about you, but I entertained for 35 people last Sunday here, and what I can tell you about Christmas is you want something quick and easy, so I do this every time. So I will make the Christmas mimosas. And if you're not comfortable with alcohol-free wine because I know some people aren't um, you know, you even can use something as basic as a flavored sparkling water. You can use a low sugar ginger beer or ginger ale. You, you can even use a kombucha, like just something. Sometimes it's not even about what's in the glass, it's about the fact that you've got one. You've got something like everybody else, so I would say some sort of Christmas mimosa. There's also on my website a really fun virgin cosmopolitan, which is that glorious red colour as well, so I really love those, and this one's probably more for your US clientele. But, having said that, we still make it at Christmas time. Here there's a mulled wine.

Speaker 1:

I was going to mention that one Amazing. Everyone loves the mulled wine.

Speaker 2:

The mulled wine is really cool too, because you can actually make it in a like a crock pot, like a slow cooker pot or just a crock pot on the stove, and then you can just leave it there.

Speaker 1:

The smell, the smell is beautiful, yes.

Speaker 2:

And it's a nice batch one. Sometimes it's hard to be making individual drinks for people, but anything that's in a nice batch like that makes life easier.

Speaker 1:

And a great gift.

Speaker 2:

Oh my gosh, I think it's such a good gift. You can mull it so you can go through the entire process of the mulling, so follow the whole recipe, cool it down and then just put it in a bottle. It's so pretty, like even just those little bottles you get from the $2 shops, like with the little cork things in them, and then you can, you know, wrap some dehydrated citrus or some rosemary with a little bit of twine. It's just such a sweet, thoughtful present that doesn't cost a lot of money and then it can be reheated just in the microwave or on their stovetop.

Speaker 1:

So yeah, I was just remembering about three Christmases back. It must have been three Christmases back. I tried one of yours. I desperately wanted to have my own mocktail, whilst all the rest of my family who have actually cut back significantly with me, and I made the strawberry daiquiri, but we didn't have a blender and the bar mix. Oh no, I tried it with the bar mix. We didn't have a blender on my Nutribullet and it was just intense. I'm not a natural cook, I'm not very food creative and, uh, it just took so long. Warning, do not do it with a bar mix. And everyone was eating it with a spoon. That kind of ended up like a sorbet.

Speaker 2:

I can imagine, little stick blenders would be strong enough to blend the strawberries, would they?

Speaker 1:

no, no, no, and I wonder I'm gonna have to tell. I thought should I take a photo and show Natalie one day, one day if I might get to interview her? And here we are. But I like your idea of the virgin cosmopolitan and the mimosa really, really works. And look, I didn't want to. I also had that point and you mentioned it really before which was, yes, the beauty of your mocktails are also that there are 101 options there if you want to have a creation that does not mimic alcohol, Because I forgot that this is actually quite a massive. Well, it is a very unique individual decision and it's a massive. People just just want the choice. They want the choice. They're going alcohol free. Is it going to trigger or not trigger? So it's a big issue. So that's that's the other massive bonus from your beautiful mocktails, Natalie.

Speaker 2:

I love them yes, I have had a few stories from people and I usually put a little disclaimer in any post of mine that has a non alcoholic wine or non-alcoholic spirit, because they can be very triggering for some people. And I think it was a good, I would say, eight or nine months after I stopped drinking alcohol, that I dipped my toe in with um. The first one was a Geissen Sauvignon Blanc, which is still one of my favorites to this day, but, um, it took a while and I probably wouldn't even recommend it like super early on if you're uncomfortable in any way, because it can be a bit of a gateway back into the real thing.

Speaker 1:

Now, Natalie, this book would be a glorious present for anybody. It's great to have a website, but it's so much better to have that tactile, colourful book where you can plonk it on and e-bookmark the pages. Give us the lowdown on when Australians can order it and the pre-order process and how they would go about getting their hands on your book.

Speaker 2:

Oh, absolutely. Well, it's available for pre-order now. So we'll include the link probably in the show notes, I'd imagine and when you click on the link it'll take you through to the sales page. So you're just looking for the section marked Australia, because it's available worldwide, which is really exciting. So it's available for pre-order now. It will be available on the shelves by the end of February, which means all of the pre-orders will also be sent out at the end of February. We're really trying to get it out on the shelves now, like before Christmas. But we had a huge shipping delay. It was devastating. I had a big cry and then I had to get over it. So if you're in you, if you're in the US or Canada, good news. It's available now, but for our Aussie listeners it will be the end of February.

Speaker 2:

And the book really came about because the number one well, I guess the top requests I have had since I started the Mindful Mocktail is that no one wants to go from a alcohol addiction to a sugar addiction. So can we please keep them lower in sugar? Can we please make them a little bit more functional? You know nourishing, can we have some health benefits thrown in and can we possibly avoid, where possible, uses of, like multiple bottles of non-alcoholic spirits where it can cost you, you know, 90 just to make a drink or two right. So I heard all of those requests loud and clear. They've been the top three for the last five years that I've had and I basically took all of that advice and I put it into this book.

Speaker 2:

So every recipe was designed in consultation with a nutritionist to make sure that they're the very, very best that they can be. They're both nourishing they're lowering refined sugar compared to what you find in those, you know, traditional mocktails and they're made with easily accessible ingredients. So ingredients that you can, you know, at very best, find already in your fruit bowl or fridge or, at worst is a quick click of a button online. But general, just everyday ingredients that can be found in your, in your fridge or fruit bowl.

Speaker 1:

Fabulous and I can also say it helps to have beautiful glassware and your garnishes, the whole lot. It's just beautiful. Nellie, just remind our listeners where they can follow you find you.

Speaker 2:

Well, sure. So I have a website which is mindfulmoctowlcom. All of my recipes are there available for free. There's hundreds there, and the main. I'm on across all the social platforms, but the main social platform would be Instagram, and you'll find me at the mindful mocktail there.

Speaker 1:

Yes, you have to go. Follow the mindful mocktail on Instagram and you won't be able to get off the page. It's just, it's mesmerizing, it's beautiful. My love of color just draws me in. I think glorious. It has been a delight to talk to you. Natalie draws me in, I think glorious. It has been a delight to talk to you, Natalie. Wish you all the best with your book and can't wait to see more of your creations online.

Speaker 2:

Thank you so much for having me. It's been a pleasure.

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Isabella Ferguson

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Meg Webb

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