How important is alcohol?

I will confess to having had an alcohol problem, my late DH was an alcoholic which didn't help. I rarely drink now as I am on my own & need my driving licence.

I do enjoy a glass of wine with lunch if some-one else is driving. I often have wine in the house for cooking but my preference is rose to drink.

I love a G&T or Vodka & Tonic occasionally.

I have no problem with any-one choosing to drink or not drink, it's a personal choice. I do object to some-one who becomes unpleasant when drinking.

I used to drink a lot of beer, I could match any man drink for drink & still be standing

I don't drink alcohol at all from Monday to Thursday and have a couple of glasses of fizz every night at the weekends which is lovely. The new Puritanism scares me. When did people start thinking they could condemn others for what harms nobody?

I'm not a big drinker but always have a full wine rack and various spirits in the cupboard. I also keep sliced lemons in the freezer and small cans of coke in the fridge. My kids get on to me for not dtinking anoigh and at one of my recent health checks the nurse asked if I could drink a bit more so she had something to put on her chart. ?

I always have a glass of wine if I go out to lunch or dinner and may even have one when home alone, though the bottle lasts me for days. I can't remember how long I've had the gin and whisky.

Well I like a nice brandy and my OH likes whiskey The Irish kind though he collects any whisky thats old or unusual.Nothing wrong with enjoying a few drinks ladies ,its not illegal or criminal as far as I'm aware .I dont drink often because I have a very busy life with work and grandkids and a chronically ill daughter but I do like to kick off my shoes and settle down to relax with a glass of something nice at least once a week

That's all fine by me. I mean those that like a few drinks and those that don't and all points in between.
The couple I mentioned in the OP (I was virtue signalling and didn't want to appear too damning when I said that they weren't alcohol dependent btw), plan their holidays around the availability of alcohol it seems to me. I think it may be hard to be around them on social occasions although DH likes them and wants to see more of them. I might just have to resign myself to being thought of as a right old misery! Oh well.

In my young student days I used to drink (Cider, 1/3d a glass ...lasted all nght !

Then working in various places in the City (Lawyers and Accountants) a notice would go up on Friday afternoon as to which watering hole the gathering was to be in after work ...everyone put £5 behind the bar (there were a lot of us and in those days £5 went a long way !!) Normally, despite many attempts to get me blotto , for me nothing worked ,,,,it seemed I was immune to alcohol ! Much to the chagrin of everyone else who was under the table !....all my life, I have drunk so far (70 this year) I have never been drunk ,,,,,,watched many others get drunk and have even had the odd competition with the tequila slammers .....so now, for years I haven't drunk anything other than what I like the taste of ,,Perrier, normally, sometimes with lemon .....and if people dont like it that's there problem....at least they know they always have someone to drive them home !!

I have never been a drinker YUK tastes horrid - I'll go with the lime and sodas.

Just the odd g&t or glass of bubbly! My DH tho drinks nearly every evening and admits that he couldn't do without! He just manages one or two evenings off then he succumbs......i can't stop him and i suppose he'll end up drinking himself to death. In the meantime he's great company and a very talented musician still working at 72!

I'm with the drinkers please. A glass or two with the evening meal or out in the garden on a lovely summers evening. Perfect. I do try to have weeknights off, but I often succumb by Wednesday.

GemmagG, can I join the table please? I was beginning to feel outnumbered because I do like a drink. I aim for 3 alcohol days a week though have been known to succumb. A vodka and tonic, and some wine at weekends but far less than we used to. We don't go out much so a quiet drink at home is something we both enjoy.

I use loads of wine when cooking as well

Some of it even goes in the food!

But the alcohol burns off when cooking so you're not actually imbibing any!

And me!!

And I use loads of wine when cooking! So not prissy about it...

Alcoholic father!!! Addictive family!

I drink, but not a lot. I never drink at lunch time, it makes me feel ill. Even on special occasions I have no more than two or three glasses over the whole event. I have never been off my face, in fact DD called me "power freak" to my consternation.
I appreciate that people enjoy drinking a little more than necessary, that the social boundaries become blurred, but not for me thank!

Love a glass of wine when cooking

What day are we talking about
Gemma I must put it on my calendar ?

Prossecco (is that the correct spelling????) is very much alcoholic annsixty I drank a bottle two glasses of the stuff last Friday during a rare night out with my girl cousins. One of my cousins husbands sent me a photo of a woman stuck in a cat flap with the strap line

BREAKING NEWS

WOMAN STUCK IN CAT FLAP EVEN THOUGH SHE SWEARS SHE ONLY HAD TWO GLASSES OF PROSSECCO ON A COUSINS NIGHT OUT!

I have decided that I am definitely having, gillybob, annsixty, Kittylister, maggiemaybe, Anya and craftycat on my table. Greyduster you can also join us, I too enjoy a glass of ginger beer particularly on a nice sunny day!.
I never drink during the day as even one glass of wine will give me a fuzzy head!. I can honestly say that we don't know anyone who does not enjoy a glass (or two) of wine?.?. A little of what you fancy!!.

I usually have a glass of red with my evening meal. Well or white if it's fish.

I enjoy a glass of wine when eating. That's all though. The only other time I may indulge is perhaps Pimms on a hot day. G&T once in a blue moon at say Christmas bashes.

Champagne or, if feeling frugal, Prossecco, is definitely not alcoholic.
Perish the thought.

I used to love a gin and tonic, Pimm's and lemonade and wine with a meal. Alas, I can no longer drink any of them due to acid reflux. I'm also having difficulty with fizzy soft drinks. I'm now very careful with what I drink, it's mostly tea or water as I'm not really keen on fruit juices.

used to be able to knock back a whole bottle of wine in one sitting, but now anything more than half a glass goes straight to my poor old arthritic knees and is agony - therefore not worth the very small pleasure!!

I can feel drunk without any alchohol, if I'm in a "silly mood"! I'm a cheap date, one sherry and that's it.

Having had a parent who became alcohol-dependent in their late 40s & who died from alcohol-related disease at 58, I have always been wary.

I do drink (wine) at social occasions & at home in moderation & not every week. I have never been drunk; I have felt "tiddly" a few times but dislike the feeling of loss of control of both mouth & brain.