To wonder about the age you give your kids alcohol?

[MatersMate]

so, this started with my Auntie and Uncle saying when you're 14 you cna have an alcoholic drink with a meal in a pub. Then we got talking about how old we were when we had our first glass of alcohol, my feckless Dad gave me homebrewed wine aged 8 and I was sick as a dog. Anyone have any under age drinkers?

Forgot to add, I'll be following the example I was set and allowing my children to try wines etc with their meals at home. I'd prefer them to grow up with a responsible attitude to alcohol and think this is a good way to encourage that.

I was allowed to drink when I was 8 and probably younger - it was just a non event.

My parents didnt really drink- mum would have had one glass of wine, dad would have had a bottle of beer or two if we were hosting or at a family friends for dinner, or having a BBQ while camping.

I think it was a healthily attitude and balance and I rarely drink and if I do it's a glass or two of wine. I tried tequila once and never ever again!

I remember having about a third of a glass of wine a couple of times when on holiday when I was about 6 (this was in an hotel; things were differerent in the early 1970s). I remember feeling slightly widdled and quite liking it.

I remember being disappointed that beer tasted so nasty when I was about 14, though that was before I understood about real ale. I think younger children find most alcoholic drinks unpleasant, apart from those ludicrously sweet "alcopop" things.

The DTs (5.10) have had an occasional tiny taste and see us having the odd glass without any down side or drunkeness. I agree there's nothing like prohibition for encouraging interest and we don't intend make alchohol a big deal. At the moment they're not particularly interested.

In this day and age there is no reason to give a child alcohol.None. At. All. I also hate drunk adults at kids parties, bloody tossers, go to the pub out of my sight.

It is 14 to drink wine with a meal in a restaurant

Well apparently when I was a tot my dad would take me to the rugby club and I have a little sip of everyone's drink. My mum always wondered why I slept so well those nights.
First drink I remember having i was about 11 and in Cornwall and a family friend bought me and my cousin some barcardi breezers. I got quite drunk and later in the fish and chip shop the owner gave me a lolly to shut me up hahahaha (not much as changed since then really, I still get loud, chatty and giggly nowadays!)

We don't actively give them alcohol at home, although DS3 has been sticking his finger in a sweet glass of sherry and sucking it from a very young age... This is mainly because (sherry apart), they have never been particularly keen and not enjoyed the odd taste of wine or beer they have tried.

We do acknowledge that as teens, drinking does go on outside the home and that there is realistically little you can do to control this without being too heavy handed and risk pushing them away and perhaps them then not telling you what does go on.

18!!!!

I have an underage drinker. My 20 month old, who sometimes has a sip of my wine. she loves it

I recall a family wedding where I was stealing Champagne, I'd have been about 8. Didn't end well
Whilst we've never actively encouraged alcohol (DH and I rarely drink) we've never discouraged it. I think DS had the odd can of beer at home from about 15 at special occasions and DD would have a baileys or a snowball from a similar age. Neither are really big drinkers. DS is 22 and rarely drinks now, he never really went mad through his teens either.
DD is 17 and someone bought her a bottle of Vodka blue for her birthday a few months ago, it's still cluttering up the fridge unopened. She moves it out of the way to get to the Vimto.
I raised a pair of hellraisers

Apparently at my cousin's 21st birthday party I went around clearing everyone's glasses and taking them into the kitchen. I then drank the dregs from each glass.
I was five.
I had a very bad hangover the next day.
Gotta love the 70's!

I still drink like a fish but my dd (13) won't touch it. (I offered her a glass of bubbly last christmas and she looked at me like I was offering her rat poison.)

I had sherry with lemonade or weak bucks fizz from about the age of 8/9. In my 30's now and drink very little, probably average less than 2 units per week. Personally I believe that it was this approach which has made my relationship with alcohol a good one and I plan to do this with my own kids.

cheesecakemom, there's a difference between giving a child a strong alcoholic drink and letting them have a little try or a watered down one. If children see a sensible attitude towards alcohol from a young age they're much less likely to go nuts once they're old enough to get hold of it themselves.

I think I was about 14 when first allowed a glass of wine at Christmas.

Much younger when given a sip of my dad's beer off his finger.

My dad also made each of his kids smoke a cigar when younger, to put us off. My elder brother and sister have never smoked since (in fact, it made my sister throw up). Didn't work with me as I'm now an occasional smoker and still enjoy sharing a cigar with my dad 30 years later hehe

I think all young people will want to try things, and I'd rather dd tries them at home, in a safe environment.

18 seems sensible to me. Alcohol is shockingly bad for young brains.

I refused to walk until I was 18 months. Then at 18 months my family were at a Christening, in a pub and I stood up and ran towards the bar.

DC have had a splash of wine in a lot of lemonade from about age 7.

DS1, on holiday in France. We were by the pool, OH & DS2 in the pool, I was sunbathing, DS1 was reading a picture book. He put down the book and walked into the bar, hauled himself up onto a bar stool, and said to the barman, "beer please" - he was 3. Barman was bored, I think as he pulled out some paper and pens and the two of them began drawing! I went into the bar to get DS1 and the pair were happily drawing! So I felt sort of obliged to have a while I was there.

haven't done it. am a bit of a lush and would rather the kids didn't have it at all. so far they aren't bothered ds(21) hardly drinks at all.

I don't get this 'continental' crap really. alcohol is a poison, why would i want to introduce my kids to it as if it's an ok thing to do.

I had a glass of cider at Hogmanay when I was 11 and thought I was so grown up...Dad and GPs used to give us tastes of wine to develop our palates from an early age and we were expected to drink in line with the adults at meals from about 16 - I remember struggling to drink a glass of white wine in time to be served red with the main course at a party. I had my first hangover at about 14 - at a wedding, at the after party in one of the bedrooms, I was allowed to serve myself a vodka and orange. I had no idea of quantities and did about half a glass of vodka topped up with orange juice. Was v sick the next morning. Reading that all back it sounds terrible!

First drink at a party was aged 15 - the birthday girl had a bottle of Archers hidden in her room, which was shared between 8 teenage girls.

My parents and our friends' parents started buying eg Archers or Martini Rosso for us to have at parties from approx 15/16.

Not sure what i'll do when my kids are old enough...or when will be deemed old enough.

i have teens, and i occassionally let them have a shandy or small glass of wine,i think supervised at home is better than them going to a park with their mates and getting drunk on cheap cider.

When DD1 was about 2 we went to stay with my parents in America. My mother used to give her the lemon out of her G&T, which she loved. When we got home she demanded lemon slices but was not impressed with my gin-free offering.

It is illegal to give alcohol to a child under the age of 5.

Mine have had the odd taste since they were about 10. My dad was an alcoholic whose habit killed him - they know to treat it with respect.

DD1 got her first taste of alcohol at 8 weeks. DD2 started on it at 2 weeks.

Ok not quite what everyone else has written about. They both needed a medicine that contains the same amount of alcohol as wine.

DD1 is now 6 and has asked to try wine and champagne at Christmas. She doesn't like it.

DD2 has the taste buds of a dustbin. She grabbed my glass of wine when she was 18 months, had a mouthful before I got it from her. Then she demanded more. Massive tantrum followed because I said no.

I think I was probably around 9 I remember being sick on creme de menth.

I have 2 boys in their early twenties and we generally had a relaxed rule at home, probably from the age of 13 if we were having a party they might have the odd lager (one ds was rather partial to champagne!). They both now drink fairly moderately, with probably once a month having a proper night out where they might role in during the early hours a bit worse for wear.

My BIL and his wife refused point blank to let their children have any alcohol before the age of 18. Their children went absolutely mad when the reached 18 literally going out and getting absolutely pissed several nights a week. Even now they tend to drink much more than the rest of us