What age did you let your children start trying alcohol!

[Whoopsywoo]

asking as I feel it shouldn’t until they are 16 my friend says I’m asking to be lied to

Amazing the amount of poster’s children who don’t get drunk or only have two ciders 😂. I hate to tell you but these are probably the ones getting shit faced in a park and crashing at anyone who’ll take them’s because they’re too scared to disappoint their parents by going home drunk ☹️.

Or... Not all young people get shit faced. I think it's more common for young people not to do it than when I was that age.

DD and her friends don't drink and I know this as an absolute fact. They're not interested in it either. No doubt they will experiment (all off to 6th form/college this year) but right now, they don't.

I agree with @ShowOfHands. They just don't drink like we did.

I very often had about a quarter of a tall glass of shandy topped up lemonade from around 8 years old. Very weak spirits at Christmas from around 13.

I couldn't imagine giving regular alcohol to my pre-schooler in just a few years time.

I didn't. She did it herself when she was about 15 behind my back.
Of course I wasn't best pleased (didn't tell her though I did the same myself)

Agree with @ShowOfHands DS first had drinks at home, started on the flavoured ciders and now will go on pub crawls at university. However in his friendship group at home of 5 two are absolutely zero alcohol and always have been.

oops drinks at home at 16

I’ve known other people’s kids start having glasses of wine with meals around 12, but mine aged 14 has no interest. I got him to try a sip of my alcohol free beer this year but he didnt like it at all so I think that will have put him off trying booze for even longer.

I think I was allowed to taste wine and beer around 14, maybe earlier. I thought it was disgusting and have been pretty much teetotal ever since. I was told that I'd change my mind. I have not. I hate drunkenness as well. Basically hate alcohol.

My sibling, on the other hand, was getting drunk at sleepovers at the age of 12 and has what I consider to be a problem with alcohol in the past.

It was mostly decided by our personality and friendship groups, not what our parents decided.

I'd let my 14 yo if he wanted but my DH is dead against it.

My 16 year old drinks on occasion. She likes prosecco and Malibu but certainly not regularly, by her own choice.
14 year old has tried alcohol once or twice but doesn't like it so don't need to worry about her yet.

Same but for us it was some form of sparkling wine, he said it was revolting

He is older now and has zero interest, that can change at any time of course but not every single adult drink so I don't 100% teenagers do either

I used to take sips of my DPs champagne/beer when I was just 7 or 8. And I let my DD drink wine coolers occasionally (like a few times a year) when she was about 14 or 15.

14 ish. She hates it.

A couple of my uncles are recovering alcoholics therefore my parents were so strict about alcohol. It was forbidden although I was drinking from age 12 and coming home obviously drunk age 14 so that was probably why they really forbid it. It didn't work anyway and I was a huge drinker up until my early thirties. I'm 40 now and tee total.

I think therefore if my daughter shows a interest and I think she could potentially do it behind my back I'll allow her small amounts in the house. It's really difficult to get the balance right. Alcoholism is rife in DHs family so it is a concern.

DS1 is 17 and not interested at all. DS2 is nearly 13 and would happily drink, but we dont let him yet.

Tbh prob about 16 for DS2 until we would let him drink at home

My 16 yr old just shared a can of kopperburg with her Nan while we played games.
15 yr old not interested.
12 hrs later and 16 yr old is asking how long it takes to get headache after drinking as she has one now.
I don't think she'll be a big drinker for a while

agree with this. I was awful as a teen and expected the same of my DC. I can honestly say DS1 doesn't drink as he is at home with us most of the time

My DS and DD both tried alcohol for the first time on the same day last year at my brothers wedding. DS was 17, DD 13. And genuinely was DS’s first try. He has since started Uni and obviously turned 18 and is starting to enjoy alcohol. Wish he hadn’t have started on vodka. DD hated it (Prosecco) and hasn’t had any since, no interest at all thankfully. By her age I was drinking in the parks

18. I'm not a lawbreaker.

honestly they’ll drink underage from early teens. Better to let them try it at home

It’s not illegal to your children alcohol at home, above age 5.

I think 16 is about right, but I plan to not make a big fuss about it. I’ll be happy to offer my 15/16 year old a white wine spritzer if we were out for a meal to normalise it, so it’s not a taboo subject

DS1 has had alcohol since 14, he's now 17 and is mostly really sensible with alcohol, we let him do as he pleases with alcohol, in fact we are on an AI holiday right now and offer him a drunk every time we have one, he probably accepts 30% of the time. 16 seems old to try for the first time IMO.

We let them taste if they want to. Ds has enjoyed small sips of wine from about 7 or 8 but dd totally uninterested. At Christmas ds will be allowed a watered down sherry-sized "glass" of wine or a shandy made with a tiny bit of beer. He's 12. (Dd will drink watered down orange juice in her sherry glass. Its always amusing to watch them)

I think v small glasses of wine or small beers on occasions pretty normal from around 14 or so around here. My nephews, 14 and 16, had a beer each at a family event recently and no one blinked.