Who drinks (alcohol)? Why or why not?

[Puspawarna]

One thing that has always struck me about our community is how little reference there is to drinking. Sure, the topic comes up sometimes, but we don't tend to have the type of jokes/assumptions about alcohol consumption that are common in other corners of the internet.

My assumption is that this is for any of several reasons:

1) Respect for local culture - while it is certainly wrong to equate all of Indonesia with Islam, it's true that overall the cultures here tend to frown on drinking for religious reasons. This can put a damper on making merry about experiences related to imbibing alcohol, even in a place like this forum.

2) Lack of access - "safe" alcohol can be very expensive here, and/or not available at all.

3) Genuine belief that alcohol consumption is wrong: many of us here follow Islam, either because we were born into the religion or sincerely adopted it later on.

Whatever ... I can think of a few more reasons, but they are probably just variations on the above.

As for me, I do drink alcohol, regularly and happily, and don't mind saying so. Regarding #1 above, I certainly try to respect culture and religion; I will omit alcohol from anything I am cooking whenever I have Muslim friends (or teetotalers for any reason) over, and if anyone of my guests says "no" to an alcoholic beverage when offered, that's fine and I always have plenty of non-alcoholic options available.

Regarding #2, at the moment I have affordable access because my husband's job includes duty free privileges; plus both of us do a ton of travel so it is easy to snag bottles whenever we return from outside Indonesia.

Regarding #3, I am not religious, so that's not a factor.

What about the rest of you? Are you non-drinkers for some reason? Do you drink but not mention it here? Do tell.

(If there is anything incoherent about this post, you can blame it on the glass of wine I just drank. )

 

[brian@bekasi]

I drink and I have regularly all my adult life. I joined the Australian Air Force at 17 and from then it was and is part of my own culture. Those were the Vietnam years when drinking was the norm and indeed expected in service life. This service culture continued throughout my 20 plus years in the Air Force.

I have have used alcohol over the years for both enjoyment and self medication. I suffer from bad anxiety and panic disorder from my service years and alcohol has help very much to bring me down.

A few drinks have also played an important part in my social life and enjoying is something I do not regret.

I drank wine in Australia with a few spirits from time to time. In Indonesia I can not afford wine as indeed I don't think most people can regardless of income. Instead I drink beer and again with a few spirits from time to time.

I buy my beer directly from a brewery at a price far less than the supermarkets. Spirits can be bought at the same price as Australia if you find a good source.

Our family is christian and our network is generally Christian so my drinking is by tolerated some and considered normal by others who also enjoy a beer. I do not drink when in the company of other religions.

 

[jstar]

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4) Someone does not like the taste (after all, it is somewhat acquired).

5) People suffer from the Asian Flush Syndrome (https://www.healthxchange.sg/food-nutrition/food-tips/asian-flush-alcohol-red-face)

And the chance you will encounter somebody here with 5) is rather big.

I drink much less here than in Europe for instance. It probably has to do with supply (many casual eating places simply don't offer it). And I'm more of a social drinker; I don't really drink by myself at home. And if a group is all drinking hot tea or water, it is a bit awkward from time to time, even if the f-i-l couldn't care less.

 

[fastpitch17]

I don't drink except for the occasional good bourbon which would be straight up, no rocks. Ha, so never in Indonesia. Except for that maybe once a year bourbon before I came here, I don't think I had a drink of any kind for almost 20 years. I just got to a point that I decided that drinking was an expense I didn't need since drinking itself did nothing for me. So I don't drink around anyone. Religion makes no difference for me. If I wanted it, I could afford it from time to time. I would buy a bottle of good bourbon if it became available. Heck, Old Granddad would be just fine.

My wife does drink. Mainly wine and beer but does like some Liqueurs and a Rum and coke from time to time. She is Muslim and will drink in front of her family who are all Muslim but don't seem to care. We can afford what she likes to drink and have found some rums and liqueurs at good prices here. She likes the cheap wine but there is no such thing here as compared to the US. We are making some of our own. She is not shy about other people knowing she has a drink. She figures any problem with it is theirs, not hers and believes the Quran makes mention of not being controlled by alcohol, not about drinking itself. Plus, she swears more then I do. Thanks the kids for teaching her that.

 

[El_Goretto]

I only ever drink socially but ever since I have a kid, I'm not so social anymore so I don't drink much anymore.

As such, I don't hold my liquor very well anymore. I also get hungover much more easily so I don't enjoy it that much anymore.

I will rarely say no to a good margarita at Hacienda though.

 

[Bad_azz]

I used to think nothing of drinking anyone under the table in my youth and worked most evenings in bars for 25 or more years ...
& now - I just don't want to.

Well, sometimes I want to- but I have to be in the mood for it.

There was a deciding factor that triggered my distaste of going out for a beer... my grandmother lived with us and I would help her to bed at 9pm- and one night a week I would go out to see live bands play- so off she went to bed & off we went out, I came back in 2&half hours later (not at all drunk - I add) to find her on the floor- she had fallen about 2 minutes after I had gone out the door & had been stuck there all stressed, afraid and cold for 2 & half hours.

That hit me like a smack in the chops with a frozen cod... and I went right off drink culture that night.
Even the stink of it makes my stomach lurch at times.

 

[fastpitch17]

I used to think nothing of drinking anyone under the table in my youth and worked most evenings in bars for 25 or more years ...
& now - I just don't want to.

Well, sometimes I want to- but I have to be in the mood for it.

There was a deciding factor that triggered my distaste of going out for a beer... my grandmother lived with us and I would help her to bed at 9pm- and one night a week I would go out to see live bands play- so off she went to bed & off we went out, I came back in 2&half hours later (not at all drunk - I add) to find her on the floor- she had fallen about 2 minutes after I had gone out the door & had been stuck there all stressed, afraid and cold for 2 & half hours.

That hit me like a smack in the chops with a frozen cod... and I went right off drink culture that night.
Even the stink of it makes my stomach lurch at times.

That is something that could stay with you for a long time.

 

[Bad_azz]

That is something that could stay with you for a long time.

Yes- it is well over 10 years ago and I remember it vividly.
But if I am in the mood for a beer I can sink half a can in one gulp and hand the rest over to hubby... or I can just as easily have a few pints and no worries .
I do have a fondness for black sambuca - I just love the taste of that.
A fine brandy or a fine malt whisky too.

& a few years back at my ex's funeral I was so ripped up I managed probably a litre & half or more of vodka- I stopped counting after 30 double shots- I was seeking oblivion but sadly didn't get it- and that is another reason I don't waste my time drinking booze much- I don't really get drunk on it.
I maybe talk more/ louder- but I have never passed out drunk/ never forgotten anything that happened on a night out due to being drunk or any such thing as that. If anything i just feel sleepy but still tend to be the one that sees others are home safe & help them if they are out of it etc.

 

[Smallworld]

My alcohol consumption in Indonesia went down because of those factors:

- it is expensive (any kind of alcohol sold in the shop vs Indonesian min. salary), not to mention luxury type of alcohols like wines, whiskies or vodkas
- not so common maybe because of the culture (how many pubs are here vs how many are in EU)
- less choice (look at supermakets they only sell tiny fraction of 5-8 kinds of beer),
- my friends circle here in Indonesia is not into drinking alcohol, they will go to restaurant and eat or eat sweet cakes/buns ect.

My culture (back at home in EU) is a bit different;

- everyone is drinking especially on the weekend
- alcohols are dirty cheap and easily accessible in any shop (after showing ID card for age above 18),
- 500 kinds of vodka's alone, 1200 kinds of beer, 2200 types of wine! A 500 ml bottle of vodka -40% alcohol- cost around 50 000 rp almost the same as 2 x 330ml of beer here
- we have plenty of places to drink alcohol most of them is in walking distance to any shop selling alcohol (most often behind the shop)
- any sort of events there is alcohol being served (birthdays, weddings, funerals, new house, new tenant, new tire in the car). Name any sort of event here and in 99% it will be "baptised" with rivers of alcohol
- you need something to be fixed in the car/house..... the price would be xx + a bottle of vodka (not everyone), you need some favour (eg. some small welding) a bottle of vodka sometimes will do

 

[Banana72]

Who drinks? Me.
Do I drink that much now? No.

Combination of reasons: 1. Lack of access..and although now spending Rp.300,000 on a (supposedly) $10 bottle doesn't shock me as much, still don't buy it as frequently as I was in the US. I probably drink once a month..if that, which brings to number two...

2. Hard to find like minded people in my area to get together for monthly "tastings". Would be great to meet up at a friend's house, bring a bottle each, coordinate among maybe 6-10 people max..and do a semi-pot luck appetizers like I used to do back in PDX. My tasting group had about 5 couples plus myself and a couple singles...so we usually taste (or guzzle..) up to 10 bottles at every tasting...with different theme every time, man it was fun and i learned a lot about differentiating different tastes...but I'm sure I'm out of practice now.

3. My reasonably high SGPT/SGOT (liver enzyme)..not super duper high, but about twice/three times normal level.

But with the right group/friends, I could see myself enjoying a bottle over dinner with maybe 4-5 people.

Edited: I'm talking strictly red wines.

 

[Banana72]

I will rarely say no to a good margarita at Hacienda though.

Plaza Arcadia, right? Dang good food too...they had BOGO free Margaritas for a while (not sure if they still do or not..)

 

[Bad_azz]

ooooh I like margaritas too, a drink I had never tried until a couple of years ago... & a BOGOF is always worth knowing about for such matters.

 

[Banana72]

Not sure why I've always felt much guiltier after just a glass of Margarita vs even a couple glasses of red or a couple pints of Stouts/Porter....maybe I read too many articles saying that red wines/dark beer are good for you..

 

[waarmstrong]

Drinking gives me the shits. Wasn't always that way, but alcohol has never been a big part of my modus operandi, anyway.

These days, there are other ways to do drugs legally -- more so than when I was coming of age.

I should probably note that I am in the USA for the time being. Consequently, none of the thread starting points apply well in this setting. Come to think of it, they did not apply well when I was living in Jakarta. Some of my Indonesian family drink, some don't. Most all of them are pretty blase' about social drinking. The drinkers are not particularly overt, meaning they do consider the setting and number of potentially critical eyes in the room when deciding whether or not to tip a few.

 

[Bad_azz]

Drinking gives me the shits. Wasn't always that way, but alcohol has never been a big part of my modus operandi, anyway.

These days, there are other ways to do drugs legally -- more so than when I was coming of age.

I should probably note that I am in the USA for the time being. Consequently, none of the thread starting points apply well in this setting. Come to think of it, they did not apply well when I was living in Jakarta. Some of my Indonesian family drink, some don't. Most all of them are pretty blase' about social drinking. The drinkers are not particularly overt, meaning they do consider the setting and number of potentially critical eyes in the room when deciding whether or not to tip a few.

Oh do tell, I am out of touch with drug culture.

 

[godmachine12]

I drink just about daily. I have the luxury of access to reasonably priced beer and duty-free booze. It's good and it's bad I guess. I used to drink very little when I was younger, but for whatever reason it picked up as I aged. I'm not as fit as before and I know the booze has played a part. Pros and cons to everything I suppose.

 

[waarmstrong]

Oh do tell, I am out of touch with drug culture.

It is not telling that alcohol in most people's minds is not in the same category as other recreational drugs.

I was making a veiled reference to the rapidly expanding legalization of marijuana in the USA. But since I weaned myself off of tobacco 20 years ago, smoking anything has little appeal to me now.

 

[Bad_azz]

It is not telling that alcohol in most people's minds is not in the same category as other recreational drugs.

I was making a veiled reference to the rapidly expanding legalization of marijuana in the USA. But since I weaned myself off of tobacco 20 years ago, smoking anything has little appeal to me now.

Ahhh... maybe you could make some space cakes?

 

[waarmstrong]

When they are for sale in the local supermarket, I could be enticed, but just by the novelty, mind you.

 

[Puspawarna]

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5) People suffer from the Asian Flush Syndrome

How could I forget that one? I know several people who have that, all of Japanese heritage.