[intellirogue]

One thing I've found fascinating since moving to Germany is that you'll be judged here if you say "I don't drink beer", but drinking non-alcoholic beer is perfectly acceptable. It's not the alcohol that people care about.

[wirrbel]

Depending on the region, "I don't drink beer" can sound a bit snobbish (as in "I only drink wine and champaign"). Other than that I've never heard anything bad when I ordered Apfelschorle (apple juice + carbonated water mix). And I think "Alkoholfreies Weizen" would even be accepted among very beer-centred groups.

One cultural difference between Germany and the states is, that drunk-driving is much more actively shunned so its more acceptable to not drink.