In the article, following elements of a sober way of life are revealed on the basis of in-depth biographic interviews with nondrinkers: conditions, motives, social roles, and social practices of nondrinkers. Types of nondrinkers are fixed by criterion of habitus (“natural“, «former “culturally drinking»“, “former alcohol-addicted“). It is shown that objective conditions and subjective opportunities of formation/choice of a sober lifeway differ depending on a habitus and vital events. Using P. Bourdieu’s concept of capitals it is found that motives of the choice and maintaining a sober lifeway differ by criterion of orientation on the capitals (“preservation“, “increasing“, “completion“); motives of the choice and maintaining a sober lifeway are connected both to the personal capitals (“egocentrism“), and the public capitals (“soсiocentrism“). V.I. Ilyin’s concept of the sociocultural field, E. Goffman’s dramaturgic approach and concepts of social identity and frames allowed to ascertain what social roles are played by nondrinkers in situations of alcohol consumption on the brink of sociocultural field (“active“, “rational“, “passive“, “conformal“, “protest“). It is concluded that these social roles reflect behavior practices of nondrinkers (“active intervention“, “rational behavior“, “a passive co-presence“, “conformal behavior“, “protest behavior“).