LeNell's Beverage Boutique

Most bottle shops that claim a non-alcoholic section have a shelf of one dealcoholised wine and a four-pack of something hoppy. LeNell's, in Birmingham, is a different proposition: an independent shop with a genuine buying point of view, whose alcohol-free range has been chosen with the same attention as the rest of the store.

What that looks like on the shelf is brands that are actually good rather than merely available. Figlia is a bitter aperitivo built for the negroni-and-spritz slot, and it is the single most useful bottle for anyone trying to replicate the pre-dinner ritual without alcohol. Ritual Zero Proof covers the spirit categories — gin, whiskey, tequila alternatives — for people who want to build familiar cocktails at home. Eins Zwei Zero is a German dealcoholised wine range that behaves like wine at the table rather than like grape juice, which is the hard part of that category. The selection extends past those.

The shop goes further than stocking them. It hands out spirit-free cocktail recipes with the bottles and holds occasional tastings, which addresses the real barrier for anyone starting out: knowing what to do with a bottle of non-alcoholic gin once you have carried it home. Advice is the thing this category is short of, and it is not something an online retailer supplies.

This entry is graded three and is a bottle shop rather than a bar, so it has no signature drinks and no on-premise service — it appears here because a city guide that only lists places to sit is only half the answer. Someone building a home bar, or hosting, needs this address more than any of the others.

Open noon to 7pm Monday through Saturday and closed on Sunday, which is worth noting before making the trip.

One thing to be clear about, since this directory takes provenance seriously: LeNell's is a full-line beverage retailer, not an alcohol-free bottle shop. Most of the store is spirits, and someone avoiding alcohol entirely should know that before walking in — the non-alcoholic range is a well-curated section within a larger shop rather than the whole premise. For readers who find that environment difficult, the range is also largely orderable, and Noble Pursuits in Lakeview is the address for a room with nothing alcoholic in it at all.