My Continuing Misadventures With Alcohol

[Forsaken Lover]

Well I dunno where to put this.It's the food forum and has mostly food topics but I did see the thread about water so... If this should go elsewhere, my apologies.

A short primer on my history with alcohol:

My first ever remembered experience of tasting alcohol is some champagne at a wedding. Besides this, I have a lot of family members who drink beer. To say I found the smell of said beer disgusting would be an understatement.

About three years ago now, I decided I wanted to try beer though. Not that garbage juice in a can that most Americans drink. I was assured there are a billion-and-one kinds of beer out there. Good beer that is nice for drinking, as opposed to getting drunk while repressing your urge to throw up aka American beer. I made a couple threads asking about it online and eventually settled on a Brown Ale. I don't like coffee so people said I hate bitter things and recommended sweet drinks. Brown Ale sounded right up my alley.

Bought it, tried it, hated it.

Fast forward to me moving to Texas. Went to a club with my girlfriend who had me try some of her mixed drink. Hated it. It reminded me of when I went to Starbucks once. You see, I hate coffee as I said so I got one of the sweet coffees with like whipped cream in it or whatever. Problem is, once you get passed that delicious layer, it's all coffee and it's all bad. Same deal with the mixed drink. The fruity part was fine but then alcohol just overpowers everything and ruins everything.

Now, my latest attempt was a bottle of sake. This was about two or three months ago now. I got it partly to try it and partly just to try and get drunk.If it isn't obvious, never been drunk before. I wanted to see what it felt like. To curb a potential hangover, drinking liberal amounts of water was suggested. Let's just say I ended up needing my gallon of water for something else. I had a glass of my sake and I'd force myself to take a gulp at which point I'd promptly have to start chugging the water in order to choke it down. I drank about...I dunno,half the bottle,never got drunk. Maybe got tipsy, I dunno. Ended up giving the bottle to a friend of mine because if I had tried to force myself to drink any more of it, I'd have been sick.

Welp, my latest experiment is on its way here. In spite of everything, I keep trying. Why? Because every time I report on my failures I'm told "you're just not trying the right things." I am missing out apparently on all the great beer and wine and sake and cider and and and....

Well what I decided to try this time was some sherry. This one to be precise
http://www.wine.com/v6/Hidalgo-Alame...px?iid=recs_eb

Had it recommended to me by a wine person who also said to try a "port" if I want other potential starter drinks.

It will be arriving sometime tomorrow. At this point, I'll settle for "meh." If I canjust drink it without feeling like I'm going to gag, it will be a victory. A small part of me is holding out hope it will actually be delicious.

And if this doesn't work...I dunno what to try next. I've tried so many sweet drinks, maybe I should actually go for something dry.

[escobert]

I don't like the taste of pretty much any alcohol. I just don't drink.

[Shauna]

Haha, not liking bitter things and deciding to drink any sort of beer or ale. When people say that one beer is sweeter than another they mean that on top of the already bitter beery taste. Also most wines are bad places to start, especially sake. That is one strong drink.

What was your "mixed drink"? That's specific enough to be literally anything.

Drink cocktails.

[Iceglow]

Something like a mohito which are suprisingly disgustingly sweet yes, maybe a dachari?

Still, alcohol is an acquired taste. No one ever liked their first taste, it's pretty disgusting lets be honest. First time I tried Guinness I thought someone was trying to poison me. That being said, after a few pints, the taste wasn't so bad in fact it was quite nice. I suppose that was the alcohol talking. It's somewhat easier to get used to the taste if you have the peer pressure of a social group around you. I'm not even kidding, going out in college was one of the key parts of learning to like alcohol. If I hadn't been a social butterfly I doubt I'd like the variety of drinks I enjoy now.

[blackmage_nuke]

Your post doesnt seem to indicate any soda/pop/soft drink mixed with an alcohol like rum and coke or jack and coke or vodka and orange juice which is what most people drink when they dont want to taste alcohol and dont have the money for fancy cocktails. Unless thats what you meant by mixed drink in which case it was mixed badly if its just soda+alcohol and it seperated into layers.

[Forsaken Lover]

I don't have a clue what the mixed drink was. My GF just handed me a glass and said "try this."

I don't like orange juice though, what else goes okay with vodka? 'cuz I always see that combination in particular and I'm wondering why.

[Pumpkin]

I'm not a huge alcohol fan so I don't drink often. I especially dislike red wine and beer. I don't like bitter and dry. There are a few mixed drinks I do like though, usually fruity, and usually not tasting very alcoholic. As far as pure alcohol, I dun mind vodka but it's still not something I have often at all and it is usually mixed in with something.

I drank a lot more when I was like 14-15. I used to just mix everything together. Everyone said that was horrible but I actually liked it that way and I never got sick or anything. Haven't tried it in years though so I dunno how I'd feel about it now.

I think lots of things go good with vodka because it kind of adopts the taste of whatever it's with. I've had chocolate and vodka that I really liked and there are a lot of fruit mixed with vodka drinks. I'm certainly no expert though since I don't drink very often but it seems to go with a lot of things

[Pant Leg Eater from the Bad World]

I don't like orange juice though, what else goes okay with vodka?

You can mix vodka with nearly anything. It is a wonderful substance. Any particular type of juice that you like? Vodka will probably go nicely with that. Clear soda? Perfect. Wanna get crazy, try mixing it with an energy drink like Red Bull or Monster.

Prefer darker soda like Coke or Dr. Pepper? Mix with spiced rum or some sort of whiskey.

The trick is in not putting too much alcohol in your mixed drink, especially if you don't like the taste of alcohol by itself. I'm somewhat of a freak in that I enjoy drinking alcohol straight, so my mixed drinks tend to be stronger than most. Experiment a bit and you should be able to find something you like.

Or don't. Don't feel pressured to drink because it is cool. It isn't everyones thing. And to be honest, and I'm sure you already know, drinking can be dangerous and lead down a dangerous path.

But it can also be a blast. Hope you find something that works for you! Cheers!

[Shoeberto]

Try a dessert wine. Ask someone for a recommendation at whatever store you go to. White Zinfandel is particularly common and accessible, but there's a lot of much better dessert wines too. Don't pay less than $10 a bottle (for 750ml... I recommend avoiding 1.5L bottles unless you know what you're looking for) or you're asking for a hangover. You mention sherry and port in your post, which are more traditional "dessert" wines, but are a terrible intro to them imo. Make sure if you ask an attendant at a store to mention that you want something sweet.

One thing about alcohol that no one ever seems to talk about is how you drink it. It's sort of the same deal as coffee. For most booze, you aren't supposed to drink it like soda or water or juice. Unless you get troutty watered-down beer, or sickeningly sweet "flavored malt beverages," it's best enjoyed sipped. Let it flow around your tongue, and open up your airways to appreciate the aromatics. If you just take a big ol' drink, straight from the glass down your gullet, all you're going to get is the nasty ethanol and bitterness. The bitterness is supposed to be a part of the experience, but it's not the whole thing.

You can try those flavored malt beverages (Smirnoff Ice, Mike's Hard Lemonade, etc). Just drink water alongside them if you plan to have more than one... it's basically cheap booze + lots of high fructose corn syrup, which is a recipe for a hangover if you overdo it. Their whole target market is people who want to get drunk but don't want to drink alcohol so it might be a good gateway.

I saw you mention not liking screwdrivers (orange juice + vodka), but cranberry juice is a good substitute. And be sure to mix it yourself. Start by just adding a splash of vodka to a glass that's 8oz or larger, then fill the rest with juice. Stir it thoroughly before drinking. And I do mean just add a splash - you won't get drunk, but you'll get a feel for how diluted the alcohol is compared to the juice, and can adjust for future drinks. Don't let someone who enjoys alcohol mix your drink, because they'll make it too strong. Never spend less than $20 on your vodka, it's hangover city. If you don't like cranberry juice, then just grab and juice you do like and throw it in there.

I think you have the right attitude for trying to appreciate alcohol - it's challenging, but if it starts to click, it can be very rewarding to explore new things. But you do have to start by finding something you like, and then expanding from there.

edit: As mentioned above, there's also absolutely no reason you have to drink if you just don't like it. In its healthiest form, drinking is a hobby like anything else. Not all hobbies fit all people.

[Calliope]

There's nothing wrong with just not drinking alcohol - if you honestly just dislike it, there is little to be gained by going on a quest to find something you will tolerate for the sake of fitting in at social events.

If you are going to keep experimenting, I'd recommend that you never drink bottom-shelf swill. Go to a nice bar, and just tell the bartender that you'd like a flight (beer, cider, wine, whiskey, and gin flights are pretty common), or just straight-up tell them you don't have much experience with alcohol and are exploring. If they're any good they'll ask questions to get an idea of what you like. On that note, what kinds of things do you like to drink? You can probably build a cocktail around whatever your usual beverage of choice is.

[sharkythesharkdogg]

Like everyone else has stated, if your reason for drinking is to feel accepted or something, then you really have no reason at all. Don't feel self-conscious. If others are making you feel self-conscious, smurf 'em. Alcohol isn't something that should be combined with peer pressure.

However, if you're just naturally curious on your own, some of these suggestions are decent.

Since you seem to really pick up on the taste of alcohol easily, I'd focus on daquiris, fruity drinks, maybe a pina colada, and make sure it's really easy on the alcohol. Focus on the mixers, and mask that alcohol. Once you have a few mixed drinks in the system, you may find you can finally add a little more alcohol and have it still not taste nasty.

Most importantly, please don't drink too much. You should be enjoying yourself, and if you're not, don't bother. It's nothing super special in the first place.

[Forsaken Lover]

I have 3 reasons for trying alcohol:

1. I was curious at first. It was something new to try.

2. I want to see what it feels like to get drunk.

3. A person asked earlier what I mainly drink and the answer are dark soda. Coke, Dr. Pepper and A&W Root Beer mainly. I wanted to try to find new things to drink and enjoy regularly instead of the soda. I thought alcohol might work.

But I have my sherry! And...I want my $40 back... Passing this one off to my friend too. What really bugs me even more than the taste is the smell. It smells exactly like the sake. The taste is different but there's still an overwhelming grossness to it that prevents me from enjoying it. But again, worst thing is the smell. I read reviews about the "nose"of alcoholic drinks and they're all full of it. One person asked me to describe what I smelled and the best I got is"medicine smell." The sake smelled like that and the sherry smells like that. It turns my stomach immediately.

I think I might just give up. Getting drunk is not worth the $100+ dollars I've poured into this. So what if I never know what it feels like, I'll also never know what it feels like to hold a million dollars. Some things just aren't meant to be.

My other drinks I'm thinking about trying are teas and coffee. I know there are lots of different types of both out there and much better than the ones I've tried. Of course, I also have to buy the appropriate kitchenware for them... Sigh.

[Freya]

Schnapps. I highly recommend them if you're not a alcohol person. They are sweet and are good for shots. I have a problem with most booze when taking shots but not with schnapps.

If you want the beer affect but don't like beer, I don't either, try the hard apple cider. It's super popular lately so they are easy to find. I recommend Strongbow honey.

As for hot teas. Honestly any flavored ones will help ease you into tea land. Heck I again loved the spiced apple one (see a trend with me here lol) or even the cherry is good. Most grocery stores have a bunch of bagged hot teas next to the coffee area. Here at work on my desk I have 3 boxes, I just use the hot water spout they have here for us. Vanilla Carmel, spiced chai, and green tea!

Just boil a pot of water, pour it into a cup, put a bag in there and let it steep for a few mins. Easiest and cheapest way to have hot tea. Heck if you want to just throw a bag or two into the pot

[Shorty]

Adding to the advise of others - go to a bar and have the bartender make you something. If they're good at their job, they will know their liquors and what works well with what mixers. They will be able to make you something to your preferred taste. Tell them sweet or not sweet, dry or not dry, heavy or light. They will be able to make it for you.

[Shoeberto]

3. A person asked earlier what I mainly drink and the answer are dark soda. Coke, Dr. Pepper and A&W Root Beer mainly. I wanted to try to find new things to drink and enjoy regularly instead of the soda. I thought alcohol might work.

...

My other drinks I'm thinking about trying are teas and coffee. I know there are lots of different types of both out there and much better than the ones I've tried. Of course, I also have to buy the appropriate kitchenware for them... Sigh.

I mentioned it above, but if you do decide to try it again at some point, don't try to drink alcoholic beverages like soda. This is a problem that a lot of people have when first trying alcohol, and it's a recipe for a bad time. Soda doesn't have any real subtlety to the flavor, it's just sweet, fizzy, and drinkable. I say this as someone who really likes soda! But drinking alcohol, or tea, or coffee are slow experiences that are to be savored if you really want to get the full experience.

If you want to try hot beverages, tea is definitely more accessible than coffee. I like a good licorice tea, which is herbal and has no caffeine. But a good hot Earl Grey is good too, and fairly easy to find at your everyday grocery store. I'm a big fan of coffee, but it's the kind of acquired taste that you have to work at. imo, it's best to try to drink it black... again, by sipping! If you chug it you're gonna have a bad time (until you get used to it, at least). But tea and coffee are also wonderfully complex beverages that you can really get into, and are definitely a good alternative if you're just looking for something new to try.