This is one of those things that I thought I would get an easy answer from the inter web but not so much. I am losing weight, in the long run by shedding a few bad habits, but short term I am also doing a low carb diet. I didn’t drink alcohol during January as part of this (lost 15 pounds already)but now I am entering a phase where I am adding back a limited amount of alcohol.
Spirits have zero carbs. I assume that is because any residual sugars in the fermentation get left behind in the distilling process. So if I make a mead, cider, or even beer that is fermented to complete dryness it seems to me that since there is no residual sugars there should be no carbs if I don’t backsweeten. Is this correct or am I missing something?
That’s correct, but there are a couple subtleties you may be overlooking. First, it’s almost impossible to get a grain-based beverage to ferment completely dry - even the ultra-light lagers made using enzymes have a couple grams of carbs per serving. And second, a beverage that ferments to 1.000 is ~82% attenuated and would have a relatively large amount of residual carbs.
Oh right, alcohol is less dense than water so 1.000 is not fermented to “complete dryness”, correct? I have made some beers with Brett that have fermented to under 1.000.
This isn’t answering your question but I only really drink beer now during the weekends and then usually only one or two. My wife and I drink red wine, which has a hell of a lot less carbs than beer (like 3 or 4 grams per 5 oz). And it is the kind of thing you can sip on without getting drunk. Well, too drunk. 
During the week I drink very little, maybe a glass of wine before bed or often nothing at all.
I absolutely LOVE bourbon … but I have all but given that up because I inevitably end up drinking way, way too much. The wine is a good way to relax and unwind without filling up on a bunch of carbs and keeping drinking moderate.
Your totally right. One of my habits I am changing is moving from drinking, mostly beer, 5-6 nights a week to only drinking twice a week. I wasn’t getting drunk very often but having 2-4 beers most nights, and not really savoring them. Many of my favorite beers are higher gravity so those calories add up. We make most of our mead dry which should compare favorably to wine so that will replace some beer. I also don’t drink bourbon straight much any more because it’s so sweet it goes down too quick. I prefer scotch, usually Islay, as a sipper.
I think that you are technically correct in terms of carbohydrates; but ethanol does have calories. I think that spirits are a way to pack the volume of alcohol delivered by beer/wine/cider in less volume with fewer additional carbohydrates.
And empty calories too
im doing the same thing.
im just trying to use my willpower as best as i can to keep drinking down to one or two nights a week.
-sparkling water is my go-to if im feeling a craving but shouldnt drink. get a good one and you can get some interesting flavour, bubbles, slight bitterness and it keeps booze out of your mouth.
-also dark chocolate with very low sugar amounts. enough to give you a strong taste and a dose of theobromine and interesting chemicals.
Yes, I have been drinking lots of sparkling water, which I enjoy. Also herbal teas.