Blooming into the new year: two alcohol-free drinks recipes you will love

Each year heiter contributor Elisabeth Grindmayer makes the conscious decision to skip alcohol in January. Sometimes she goes on even longer and extends her alcohol-free weeks to February and March. She doesn’t see her tradition as a form of deprivation. To her it’s a little detox after the holidays and an opportunity to let both body and mind bloom again.​ It helps her clear her thoughts, regain energy and have clarity for new ideas. January is her month to plant seeds that can grow and eventually blossom in summer.

Discover two of Elisabeth’s latest alcohol-free drinks recipes. She used them with Aronia as base. You can read more about the superfood and its health benefits below.

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Blooming Aronia Tonic

A refreshing “virgin aperitif”. The bitter notes of tonic beautifully balance the tannins of Aronia and create a combination that is ideal to be enjoyed with goat cheese or fried appetizers. My tipp: choose Tonic water that is not too sweet and more dry in taste. 

I believe that an alcohol-free drink should look good too, so before serving I slightly dipped the rim of the glass in honey and then in dried flowers that I had collected from the kitchen garden last summer.  I always store various edible flowers in jars –– calendula/marigold, cornflowers, chamomile, rose petals, to name a few. I love sprinkling them over salads like confetti, or using them as a garnish for drinks and you know what? It never fails to make me feel "heiter"! For this drink, calendula and its warm yellow brings a lovely glow and creates a nice contrast to the deep red tone of the drink.

Ingredients:

60ml Aronia juice

120ml tonic water

15ml fresh lemon juice

Large ice cube

Garnish: a little bit of runny honey and dried edible flowers (here: calendula/marigold)

Preparation:

Place some of the honey on a small plate and a few dried edible flowers on a second plate. Briefly dip the rim of the glass in the honey, then in the dried flowers so that they stick. Fill the glass with ice cubes.

Pour the Aronia juice and lemon juice in the glass and stir. Top up with dry tonic water. Done.

Black Tea Aronia Highball

Simple, but with depth. The tannins and malty notes of the black tea and the tart Aronia: the result is an aromatic drink that almost resembles a dry red wine. It pairs wonderfully with hearty dishes like roasts, braised vegetables, or mushrooms.

Ingredients:

50ml Aronia juice

100ml strong, cooled black tea e.g. Assam

10ml lemon juice

Optional: 5ml maple syrup

Ice cubes

Garnish: lemon zest

Preparation:

Fill a highball glass with the ice cubes.

Mix the cooled black tea, Aronia juice, and lemon juice; shake or stir well. If you’d like, add the maple syrup. Personally, I prefer my drink to be not too sweet, so I skip it. Fill the glass with the drink and garnish it with the lemon zest. Enjoy!

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Good to know: Aronia is a true powerhouse. In Elisabeth’s native Germany and her chosen home Sweden, it's an old cultivated plant: undemanding, frost-resistant, and wonderfully adapted to cooler climates.

Aronia is rich in antioxidants and polyphenols that protect cells and have anti-inflammatory effects. Especially during the wet and colder months of the year, Aronia is the perfect booster for your immune system. Elisabeth explains that we don’t necessarily need far-traveled superfoods like Goji or Açaí berries when Aronia practically grows on our doorsteps. Pure Aronia juice is available in the form of juice and powder at many health food stores and organic shops these days. The taste is tart, slightly sour, and tannin-rich – a great base for alcohol-free drinks.​

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Munich-born Elisabeth Grindmayer lives on an 100-year-old forest farm in the wild nature of Southern Sweden. She works as freelance photographer and author (for magazines, publishers, and brands), primarily in the areas of food, kitchen gardening and slow living. With the help of the recipes and stories of her cookbooks “Ein Jahr in Schweden" (Hölker Verlag 2024) and “Weihnachten in Schweden” (Hölker Verlag 2025), she takes her readers on a culinary and visual journey to her newly chosen Swedish home. Learn more about here here: elisabethgrindmayer.com

Where Edinburgh feels like home: living abroad in Scotland

The first winter morning light in Edinburgh feels different from home. It reminds me of 6am in Bangkok, when the city is still and the air is cool. But the light that filters through my apartment window here, in a small three-storey flat, is not the same as the light that once touched the windows of my high-rise home in Bangkok. It is softer, colder, and carries a scent of sea air.

Can I call Edinburgh my home? I am not sure yet. I have entered my third year in this city, and each season brings change — new homes, new faces, and new ways of seeing.

There was a time when I was a student.

A time when I lived abroad again after graduation, seeking inspiration in California.

A time when I lived alone, without best friends or housemates.

A time when I did not know who I was, where I belonged, or what I wanted to do.

A time when I felt lost in my career and uncertain about my path forward.

After moving house five times within the city, I have begun to understand what it truly means to make a place feel like home. For me, it starts with rooting inward — learning to express myself honestly, no matter where I am.

Moving 9,800 kilometres across countries meant crossing worlds: geography, culture, values, and light. Bangkok was fast-paced, structured, and full of rhythm. Edinburgh is introspective, organic, and soulful.

Finding a sense of belonging

My first year here was all about exploration — discovering new streets, new knowledge, and new ways of living. I found joy in the simplest things: the architecture of the city, cosy cafés, independent stores tucked into corners, and the way spring water sparkles in the air.

Slowly, I began to rebuild and rediscover myself. I walked from the city to the sea, through Leith Walk to the Ocean Terminal where the Royal Yacht Britannia rests. The walk itself taught me to stay with myself, to notice the nature woven into the city, the diverse cultures along the road, and the dynamics of daily life.

Art, too, found me here. Edinburgh’s creative spirit hides in small corners — murals, galleries, and poetry in window displays. These details awakened my creative instinct again.

Creativity as a way home

Nature persuaded me to get closer to flowers, my way of expressing both art and emotion. It began with a simple bouquet I made for a friend’s graduation in winter 2023. That moment bloomed into something bigger. I learned new flower species, how to care for them in a colder climate, and how their lifespans echoed the rhythm of the city.

Working with flowers became a healing practice — a conversation between hands, heart, and nature.

Before this, I was trained as an architect, and I used to express myself through drawings and design, not words. When I first moved here, I had to strengthen my second language, English. During that time, I felt voiceless creatively. Slowly, I discovered other ways to express my feelings: photography, drawing, reading, and floral design. Each became its own form of meditation.

East meets West

Culturally, moving from Southeast Asia to Northern Europe has taught me independence and respect for solitude. Here, privacy and personal space are valued; freedom and human rights are protected. I have learned to enjoy my own company and to see independence not as loneliness but as peace.

Home, I have realised, is something that grows within. It is how I learn to stay grounded and perceive the world around me through an artist’s eye.

My flower project, Floral Reef & Co, has become my bridge between East and West, connecting my East Asian roots with this new landscape. What began as an online flower shop has evolved into a mindful floral brand rooted in Edinburgh. It embodies the balance I have been seeking: creativity, cultural connection, and well-being. Floral art has long held meaning in Asian philosophies such as Ikebana, where arranging flowers reflects the harmony between nature and the soul. In the West, I have found that same spirit expressed through well-being projects and community workshops. Here, art and healing coexist beautifully.

Homecoming

Sometimes, home finds you in the softest ways — through winter light, through nature, through the courage to start again. Feeling at home is not about returning to where I was born. It is about arriving at a version of myself that feels whole, grounded, creative, and open.

Just listen to yourself, and take the path your heart tells you.

Sara Ananrojwong is a multidisciplinary artist based in Edinburgh who connects people with nature through floral art, experience design, and visual storytelling. Her work explores the intersection of culture, place, and human experience — particularly how mindful living can support emotional well-being.