Newbie Alcoholic Beverage Advice

I have about 20 years worth of alcoholic beverage experience to share with the young ones. Like with any hobby(?), it can be very easy to get lost without a little guidance. I suspect most people get their first experiences in high school or college, where you are surrounded by other young, dumb kids also making poor choices (like real life reddit), so good advice while young is hard to come by. I would actually like to write a short novella about my experiences, I only have time for a bullet point list right now to kick the thread off. Also, like with the audio hobby, I know there are people here with far more experience, taste, budget, and ability to articulate and I look forward to reading about their experiences. Also a reminder that there are some great alcohol specific threads here for those wanting to learn about more, better drinks that will likely show up here.

First, some serious warnings:

1. Alcohol is a poison. There is a reason it's called intoxication when you drink too much. No matter how you dress it up, too much of it can kill you both in the short term and the long term. Try to learn your limits slowly, and always try to be responsible. Make good decisions before you start.

2. Never drink and drive (or operate any other heavy machinery... or light machinery... or anything really that could cause harm to yourself and others - particularly others). Even a couple drinks can impair your reactions and decision making to the point where you increase your odds of an accident. Particularly troublesome is that intoxication impairs your ability to judge your intoxicated impairment. If you are going to drink, make arrangements to get home before you start.

3. Alcohol is a money suck. Even cheap, shitty beer can chip away at your savings. To get beyond drinking to get drunk, and to actually discern and enjoy the nuances of the various types of alcohol, you will have to spend money. There are some great values to be had, but you still have to pay to really play. Dionysus help you if you get into the finer stuff.

4. Addiction is real - addiction to the buzz, the social facilitation, the taste, the hobby of collecting, and the real, hard, destructive physiological and psychological addiction of full blown alcoholism. Depending on a number of factors, it can be terrifyingly easy to find yourself with unhealthy drinking habits. During particularly stressful patches in my past, I turned to alcohol for comfort without really noticing at first. I was lucky enough to catch myself before I got too deep, but it really scared me how easy it was to get to an unhealthy place. Be careful. Be aware.

Now that those are out of the way, time to have fun!

1. Stay away from cheap beer. There just really isn't a point. It tastes like ass. Even though it is cheap, you have to drink too much of it to get drunk. And there is so much better stuff that barely costs any more. Don't listen to the hipsters who think drinking shitty beer is ironic and cool or whatever - they are just too poor and uninformed to drink better stuff.

2. Stay away from super cheap liquor. Again, there isn't really a point. Just like cheap beer, it will taste like ass, but now it will burn, and leave a horrible aftertaste.

3. If you are drinking just to get drunk, go with something like Everclear and mix it accordingly. No need to pretend you like shitty beer or liquor. Everclear tastes like "holy shit my throat is on fire and I can hardly breathe" so it mixes with just about anything sweet. I used to take a swig off the top of a Gatorade and put a shot or so of Everclear in. Almost tasted OK and it was good enough to get me through a fun, college night. Cheap, easy, unpretentious. But drink no more than that. With the higher concentration of alcohol, it can be easy to drink too much. As a bonus, if there are people trying to pressure you into getting drunk and you don't want to, just ask them to do a shot of Everclear with you. Even the most alcoholic of young ones can't stomach it, so many will back off. Actually, better to not drink just to get drunk.

4. Most liquors, even of decent quality will likely taste like ass if you aren't used to alcohol. I love, love, love me some whiskey now, but I had to "train" to get here. You have to get past the burn and the bitter before you can taste the actual flavors. If you want to get into nicer alcohols and really appreciate the subtleties, don't dismiss things right away and practice with entry level stuff like Bacardi, Stolichnaya, Jim Beam, Glenlivet, Tangueray, etc. They aren't good/great, but they aren't bad/horrible, so are a good place to learn about the different types of liquors. You can also mix them with various juices and sodas to make passable drinks.

5. Mixed drinks are a minefield. Sometimes, they are made to hide the taste of cheap liquor. Sometimes, they are just a way for bars to charge more for less alcohol. Sometimes, they are for people who just want to get a buzz, but don't like the taste of any liquor (also known as ninnies). Sometimes, they are "art" that don't actually taste good made by egotistical mixologists trying too hard. In general, I think it better to explore liquors on their own, so that you can appreciate them better and find ones that you like. You can waste a lot of time and money trying to find actually good mixed drinks. If you really want to go that route, find a good recipe book and make your own. I prefer liquors to stand on their own, but I still enjoy a well made Old Fashioned or Gin and Tonic.

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(Spent too much time so far and there is so much more than just these random bits of advice. Need sections for basics like definitions and recommendations. Will return to this later.)

 

Drink simple. The less sugar the better. Don't mix. Buy the best you can afford of whatever it is. Drink water.

 

This is what I was approaching, but with too many words

 

The funny part about good alcohol is that it's not about the alcohol. Alcohol is a good solvent to extract all sorts of flavors but the alcohol itself is not a feature most people really want unless you just want to get drunk.

I don't take a stance against mixing like a lot of people do. Granted you shouldn't be mixing a single malt scotch with coke (My grandmother cursed me after I did that with Cardhu). But a good cocktail can bring up the qualities of the spirit you are drinking while toning down the alcoholic taste. Here's one with rum.

2oz white or amber rum (no spiced rum)
Teaspoon brown sugar (start with less and add more to taste)
Squeeze of lime
Ice

By the way, here is the basis of basically most (good) mixed drinks if you want to experiment

Sour element + sweet element + spirit

 

First learn to smell and taste.

After taste remember the first impressions, following transitions and the aftertaste.

That is how you develop to appreciate a drink. Just filling yourself up only gives you a hangover.

Take your time to do this and appreciate the process. After a while you start to understand the appeal of certain drinks and why people drink what they drink.

In my case, I like red wine with a smoky and slightly bitter character. It forces me to drink slowly and enjoy the drink more. Getting tipsy slowly is more fun.

 

One rule I like to try to stick to is to only drink things that I enjoy enough that I'd drink them if they weren't alcoholic- if that makes sense. Not a teenager any more drinking horrid crap just to get smashed.

 

Totally agree with the "drink the best you can" advice. Also would say be open to trying new things, and it's totally okay to hate what others like and vice-versa. It's all about what makes you happy (much like audio!).

Other great advice is if you are drinking to the point of excess, towards the end of the night be sure to alternate one glass of water with one glass of your favorite adult beverage. Then be sure to always brush your teeth before going to bed and take some Tylenol as well. Then in the morning drink a few glasses of water as well. Sounds stupid, but makes life much better the following day! Cheers

 

I learned Captain Morgan smells kinda good. First taste, not too bad. Then the burning kicks in. Once swallowed, no more burning. Aftertaste isn't too strong, and is actually somewhat nice.

But that burning part in the middle is where I had issues.

 

Sober BUJ would place a large glass of water on the night stand. Drunk BUJ would come home, see it, and drink it. It saved me many a brutal hangover...

 

@spwath booze may not be your thing, and that's totally fine.

 

I think I just should have something less strong than 50% and better tasting, at least for my first time

 

Also use a coaster

https://www.head-fi.org/threads/sch...bable-start-up.701900/page-1946#post-14044562

 

There are basically two big drinking cultures around the world. Some people are binge drinkers, they like to hit it hard but then they may go for weeks without touching alcohol. Others are moderate drinkers, they might have 2 glasses of wine a day but then they never or rarely go beyond that.

Alcohol in general is probably not good for you but I think one of the biggest mistakes you can make is try to be both an every day social drinker and a weekend binge drinker, that's a sure-fire way to up your tolerance and develop a real dependence. So watch out for that if you move in different social circles and some of your friends are everyday social drinkers and some are weekend warriors. Joining both of them for a drink is probably going to be bad long-term choice.

The other thing is never try to fight a depression with alcohol, alcohol itself is a depressant and It also messes with your sleep and can induce mental imbalances and increase anxiety. Many people turn to alcohol as a way of self medicating a depression but that's a seriously bad idea. Sure, if something really bad happens... many people have a stiff one and I've been there myself. But you can't keep drinking day after day because you're depressed. That's a seriously slippery slope and you'll only make yourself more depressed in the end. If you're in a depression see a doctor and never self medicate with alcohol, lots of lives ruined that way.

I enjoy a drink as much as the next guy but it's definitely a poison and we should be aware of that, some respect is in order. I always like to imagine that if alcohol was invented today there's no way in hell it would be legal, it would be outlawed just like crack or coke. The only reason it's really allowed is because of tradition and social norms.

 

Dude...

 

What?

Are you saying that isn't that bad, or the other way around?

 

I prefer to drink for the taste, regardless of the alcohol content. I've got a really large alcohol supermarket that imports all kinds of beer and wine from all over. Really great place to try something new.

Currently I have a thing for Stouts and IPAs, but my moods change every so often.

50% is generally considered to be a pretty high alcohol content. Most "strong" liquors are around 30-40%.

 

You know, this 100 proof Captain Morgan is growing on me. Not too bad. Only Burns for a bit. Actual taste isn't too bad

 

Take it easy on the liquors and wines over 15-20%.

They can surprise you and before you know it you are no longer thinking about what to drink next. Even a Belgian Chouffe can bite you before you know it. After the second glass you are warned...

 

Hmm, ok. Well last night I just had 7 shots of the 100 proof, and I'm fine. No hangover either.

 

Dude....