If you're going to go to a bar and socialize, get a low-priced single malt scotch, and really stretch it out. Bartenders will let you nurse a single scotch far longer than the equivalent dollar amount of beer. Also, most people's bodies recognize that scotch isn't all that good for them, so you will feel biological pressure to not drink very much at all.
Extreme version: tall soda w/ lime. some bars won't even charge you because they will assume you're driving and want to encourage responsible behavior, and no one will bother you about "come on just one drink!" because it looks so much like a voda/gin and soda.
