Why Doesn't Blake Lively Drink? The Actress Has a Line of Mixers

In November 2021, Gossip Girl alum Blake Lively stepped out in New York City for an event for her new drink mixer line, Betty Buzz. Announced two months earlier, Betty Buzz is a line of sparkling non-alcoholic drink mixers that can either be combined with liquor or sipped straight from the bottle. Blake, who doesn’t drink, wanted to create this collection of standalone mixers to showcase how delicious mixed drinks can be sans alcohol.

Now, you be may be wondering: Why doesn't Blake Lively drink? Honestly speaking, it doesn't really matter. The actress and mom-of-three is allowed to make her own decisions. But considering she's married to actor Ryan Reynolds, who co-owns Aviation American Gin, it does seem a bit odd. We decided to do a little digging into Blake's relationship with alcohol and her inspiration behind creating Betty Buzz. Keep scrolling to find out why Blake Lively says no to alcohol but yes to drink mixers.

While some celebrities like Dax Shepard gave up drinking in hopes of living a healthier lifestyle, Blake Lively’s situation was different. She never actually started drinking, so she never had to attempt sobriety. "I don't drink. I've never tried a drug ... it's not like I decided on these strict lifestyle choices and I'm enforcing them. It's just something that I genuinely don't have a desire for," she told Allure in 2012.

But the Betty Buzz founder doesn’t seem to have any issues with alcohol or with folks who do drink. In fact, Blake actually loves crafting cocktails for others. She told USA Today in 2018 that she is the "in-house mixologist" for her friends and family. For her, she's attracted to the mixing process, not the taste.

Blake also stands by the idea that the mixer is what does most of the heavy lifting in a cocktail when comes to taste. "It became clear mixers are the unsung heroes of the drink world and deserve just as much love as alcohol," she said in a press release announcing Betty Buzz. That being said, she and her team worked over the course of three years to perfect each mixer for Betty Buzz.

Why Betty Buzz? Blake explained that she chose the name Betty Buzz to honor her late father, actor Ernie Lively. "My dad's name was Ernest Brown Jr. but he was known as Ernie Lively," she said in the press release, explaining that when he married her mom, he took her last name. Because of this untraditional name swap, any success that he or Blake experienced was under a name that wasn't his.

"So when I was working hard to build this company, I wanted any success to be in a name that was meaningful to him. Betty was his mom and his sister's name," Blake shared, noting that "Ernie would not be the best name for a mixer." She also explained why she added "Buzz" to the brand name: "Because why should alcohol get all the fun? Try it. The bubbles and flavors feel like a buzz of joy," she remarked.

Blake's father Ernie Lively died on Jun. 3, 2021, at age 74 of cardiac complications. He had more than 100 acting credits to his name, including roles in TV shows like The Waltons, The Dukes of Hazzard, The X-Files, and That '70s Show. He also appeared in American Pie 2, Air America, and Turner & Hooch. He famously played the father of Blake's character in the Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants films as well. His death came a few months before Blake introduced Betty Buzz.

The Betty Buzz line features five flavors: Tonic Water, Sparkling Grapefruit, Meyer Lemon Club Soda, Sparkling Lemon Lime, and Ginger Beer. Made from clean ingredients with no artificial sweeteners, flavors, or colors added, each flavor either be mixed with liquor or sipped straight from the bottle. You can check the Betty Buzz website to see if the product is sold in stores near you or you can order online.

Since launching, the line has garnered nearly 100,000 followers on Instagram. Actor Hugh Jackson is also obsessed with Betty Buzz, as seen in the video above.