What alcohol does to your body, brain and health [video]
One thing I&#x27;ve not seen mentioned in this thread is the enjoyment you can get from the wide expanse of flavours &amp; mouthfeels of different alcoholic drinks.  Most of the comments seem to be focussed on people drinking either to help with social anxiety or just to blot the world out, or as one poster put it &quot;to dissociate with reality&quot;.<p>I really love exploring different drinks, mainly beers and spirits although I do still enjoy some wine.  There is such a wide array available, it&#x27;s a wonderful &#x27;hobby&#x27;.<p>With cask beers you get the initial mouthfeel of what I think is the live yeast coupled with some natural carbonation; it&#x27;s not at all like a gassy fizzy drink more like a gentle tingling over the mouth.  Some beers then deliver 10-30 seconds of different malt flavours with some being very biscuity or others more chocolaty.  There can then the several waves of hops coming over depending how it&#x27;s brewed.  With one mouthful you get to enjoy and savour all those flavours and textures for a good minute with a lingering taste lasting much longer, they ebb and flow like a roller-coaster.<p>Spirits and cocktails are the same, the depths of flavours can be absolutely wonderful.  A well balanced Negroni for example can be a very complex drink.<p>I&#x27;ve found some alcohol free drinks than can be built up to be a little interesting, but nothing comes close for the expanse and depth.  I presume that the alcohol is volatile and is a key part of driving the other flavours, perhaps in a similar way to salt is a flavour enhancer.