"Aren't Mocktails for Kids?"

It’s more common than you’d think to meet someone who lives on a campus once considered the “#1 party school in the United States” but doesn’t drink alcohol. At the University of Alabama, I saw a clear need for another option, whether you drink or you don’t. It’s clear that among my classmates, there is a “fear of missing out” when opposing beliefs come into play. 

I’ve been mixing mocktails in my kitchen since I was a child, figuring out how to combine orange and watermelon juice for my elementary school friends. As a gifted problem solver, I shouldn’t have been surprised when my path led me to entrepreneurship from the suburbs of Ohio, let alone mixing drinks. 

But there is a stigma from the moment you turn eighteen. When I purchase supplies to enhance Refraction's mocktails, the lady at the counter assumes that I’m in a sorority mixing alcohol for my friends, never mind my age or ID. When I explain to others that even though I had wine overseas, I'm not interested in drinking at home, I hear audible gasps. Many of my friends have countless stories about going out and partying tipsy, so it’s easy to decide that my own experiences are less valid when there is no designated driver involved. 

There’s nothing wrong with having alcohol with your friends or on a special occasion. But during this transitional period of our lives, we are not given another option: Mixing juices in our kitchen before company arrives or quietly signaling to the bartender that you'd prefer soda is awkward, tiring, and so uncool.

Refraction Mocktails are not just cool. We're an engaging, upscale option that fits into a new adult lifestyle. Rather than sheepishly coming up with ideas you tuck away in the back of your mind, you can watch them come to life with a skilled bartender and a dash of ingenuity. You can carry a drink that makes you confident in front of your friends, be more willing to dance at the wedding reception, or feel ready to explore the next big event in your community. 

Refraction is tearing down the “fear of missing out” by shifting your perspective. After all, mocktails aren’t just an elementary school phase - they’ve matured alongside you. 

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