Some alcoholic drinks more acceptable than others

[Wellhellotherelove]

Why is it more acceptable to talk about having a ‘cheeky glass of wine’ or to have things around the house talking about how great gin is, but you wouldn’t really see the same for cider, vodka, a rum and Coke?

Thinking about the days pre covid when I’d quite often be at ‘work drinks’ most weeks and without fail, despite a whole pub’s worth of drinks, everyone would either be drinking beer (mostly the men), wine or gin and tonic.

I cannot ever think of or imagine someone saying ‘a vodka and coke please’ - but why??

You’re just as likely to get smashed on wine or gin as you are on rum, cider etc.

I see women on social media who for the most part try and demonstrate a healthy lifestyle yet quite often will have a photo of them with a large glass of wine. It’s never seen as a problem.

I’m not tee total by any means, so this isn’t a judgey post (i love a g&t!) I am genuinely interested as to how certain drinks have become more acceptable and how someone posting about having a cheek wine every evening is not seen as anything unusual!

That was meant to be a grin not a mug!

It's just fashions. I liked gin before it became trendy again and it was seen as a bit of an old woman's drink, when it was all about Grey Goose and Absolut vodka.

I do think there's is probably some snobbery against drinks with coke though, although I like rum and coke. There are lots of rums on the market at the moment, so perhaps that be the next 'thing'.

It’s just marketing. Alcohol in champagne is alcohol the same as in special brew. Admittedly some does taste a lot nicer than others but it’s still just an addictive and dangerous drug. Read Alan Carr’s books on alcohol and your eyes will be opened.

The gin think is definitely fashion. When I were a lass early 2000s there were smart vodka bars and you had flavoured absolut in the freezer. Gin was out.

Same as my mum lives a martini and my grandma used to have a sherry or Campari!

@Happytentoes

It’s fashion , snobbery; flavoured vodka was the thing about 10 years ago; wine flights in some restaurants. Small craft gins and specialist tonics have elevated the middle class drink of choice into something to chatter about. But anyone who describes their wine/beer/gin as ‘cheeky’ is ridiculous ime.

This!

It's about being seen to be "cool". Gin is cool. Wine is cool. Cider? Yes if flavoured and drunken on a summers day in a pub garden - no if drunk any other time or out of a 2l bottle.

I hate it when people boast about drinking any alcohol. If you drink it, fine. Enjoy it. But it doesn't make you cool to post it on Facebook or call in "cheeky" (cringe).

Alcohol is just like any other drink. You like what you like. People need to be more authentic and less bothered about appearances.

PS: my favourite alcoholic drink is Malibu and I'll order that with work if I fancy it. I don't feel the need to order wine or gin.

Alcopops have always had a bad rep , and up until recenty so has cider but you could get just as hammered on champagne .
it seem that what ever the latest trendy thing is to drink is fine but dare to go for somethig a bit more normal and you may well get a lot of side ways glances

Its just marketing.

I dislike wine, I love beer but I’m a type one diabetic so have to ration it.

I mainly drink vodka, sometimes with a diet fizzy drink, sometimes on its own. If I’m eating out I typically drink just vodka on ice.

Remember a few years ago on the apprentice one of the teams tried to market a pink gin and they were laughed at. It was said at the time no one would drink pink gin!

There’s two things here: fashion, as a poster said. Marketing is clever and if you don’t drink the ‘popular’ drinks it makes you feel like you’re an outcast. And then there’s the way things are marketed - how many movies or shows do you watch where the very, very successful lead lady comes home and pours a glass of wine? Well if she can do that, so can I and I will feel as classy as here.

The mixer thing is true too. Coke, lemonade, etc no longer hold the appeal they used to and seem a bit ‘common’.

By the way - if you like tonic but are sick of gin, rum and tonic is my absolute favourite.

“Live, laugh, drink Malibu!”

I see the other secret Malibu drinkers have found this thread...

PS I recommend a cinzano and tonic or soda too.

Let's reclaim Archers and Lemonade! I had forgotten how much I loved it. I just need to get through the 50 billion bottles of gin in my cupboard first (lovely gifts, I'm not being ungrateful but....)

@superstardjs dammit I bloody love a Cinzano, difficult to buy these days though. Pubs just have Martini extra dry.

Gin is trendy now but it was known as mother's ruin for a long time so that wasn't always the case... 🙄🙄😂😂😂

Yeah it's just fashion! I also used to drink vodka and lime when I went out all the time (mid- 00's). I also remember buying bottles of Smirnoff Blue (blueberry vodka) and the explosion of the vodka based alcopops at the same time (WKD, Reef, Smirnoff Ice etc) which we all used to drink too, and the rose of the flavoured shot came around then too. Aftershock, Sourz. Blergh now but that's what was 'in' when I was in my early twenties.

We moved onto white wine when we were getting older and more 'sophisticated'. Pinio Grigio from memory. 3 bottles for £10 was very grown up

No one drank gin when I was 'young'. It was a mum drink. Then the marketers got hold of it!

Just marketing.

I reckon rum is next. It bloody should be! Nothing nicer than a spiced rum on ice, or a dark navy rum and ginger ale (with a splash of lime!). Especially in winter!

Gin had a revival in 2009 when they repealed the law from the 1700s that said it could only be produced in large batches. Largely thanks to the Sipsmiths guys. There was an explosion of small batch producers then and heavy marketing campaigns. That’s why it’s everywhere.

There’s a rebranding of rum due as well as they are tightening up or loosening (not sure which) the laws around what classes as rum.

But I know plenty of people who’d have a vodka coke at home. Probably not many who would admit to drinking that cheap cider in two litre bottles but they exist.

I guess it's fashion and marketing. Gin, wine and beer are seen as 'grown up' and professional after work drinks / drink at home etc whereas I guess vodka and rum are seen a bit more as younger / party / get pissed drinks - I guess also the grown up versus younger, getting pissed etc because G&T is not sweet tasting compared to vodka or rum and Coke.

I like G&T (and also enjoying non-alcoholic G&T at the moment as doing dry January) precisely because they're not sweet, are a little bitter and refreshing. I do also really like really good quality vodka though and always have a bottle in the freezer - absolute favourite drink is a dirty vodka martini (again, definitely not sweet) but agree that some people might see drinking vodka as more 'hardcore'.

Interestingly, marketing was the reason no one drank gin, after the gin craze in the 1700s when everyone was making it and drinking it (and going blind and not watching their babies or going to their jobs) there was a huge marketing campaign to demonise it, and glamourise drinking beer instead. It worked for the next nearly 300 years.

And completely agree, hate hate hate a 'cheeky' anything and signs / labelled (often in gold swirly writing) on coasters / mugs / glasses / totes / sweatshirts etc etc about Prosecco and gin (it's always these!)

I worked in pubs and clubs in the late 90s before social media happened and remember lots of marketing campaigns where hot, usually scantily clad girls would come in to offer free shots/alcopops and give away tat as prizes. After one of these promo nights, there would always be a run on that particular drink for a few weeks. I remember all sorts of bizarre alcopops, Aftershock (evil stuff), various types of vodka. Vodka and Red Bull was huge for a while. Vodka in general was far more popular than gin, and prosecco wasn't very popular at all.

It's all about the marketing. I was a gin drinker even back then though when the only choice in most bars was Gordon's.

I totally know what you mean.

Hate to be one of 'those' people, but it's all about minimising, normalising and defending alcohol abuse.

It's 'ok' to joke about Prosecco, wine and gin consumption (the whole 'harmless' 'mummy wine' culture), but if you said 'cannot WAIT to put the school books away and have a pint of cider and a vodka' you'd get raised eyebrows all round.

I gave up booze in September because I realised it had become a problem and I now notice this pernicious trend everywhere.

@Lemonyfuckit

And completely agree, hate hate hate a 'cheeky' anything and signs / labelled (often in gold swirly writing) on coasters / mugs / glasses / totes / sweatshirts etc etc about Prosecco and gin (it's always these!)

God yes. I seem to get this quite a lot with gin-related stuff. I hate any kind of alcohol-related tat, any pointless little signs with sayings, would never wear any clothing with slogans about alcohol or parenting etc. I just don't get it. I'm a coffee lover but I don't see nearly as much coffee tat in the shops.