I was a straight edge kid and then at 23 it hit me that I was legal and I could get into shows and clubs! Yeaaaah!
When I had a life I would go out regularly (at least every weekend) and get L-I-T. It was good clean fun, sometimes hella fun (hahah, that's my Cali speak) and I recommend it to anyone who has such inclinations, especially if you want to get all the wild and crazies out of your system before you hit a 'respectable age'. And learn to handle your liquor. Alcohol can be a GREAT enhancer of nightlife.
Otherwise, I hate the taste of alcohol, makes me want to gag. I'm also slightly allergic to it. I'm not the kind of sophisticate who drinks wine regularly with meals or even does wine tastings. Nor do I drink beer regularly.
However, Ichiban beer goes AWESOME with sushi and edamame and really good pasta makes me want to pair it with red wine. And of course, you can't have good greasy fried bar food without something on tap.
So in other words, drinking is mostly social for me. And involves a lot of mixed drinks.
Now that I'm a social monastic with other priorities, I haven't had alcohol in about a year. When I start going out again with friends (I don't drink by myself, because I is smart) I'll start drinking again, though not as much as I used to.
Have you ever had brunch the next day and the food sloshes the dormant undigested alcohol up in your stomach and you start getting red-faced and buzzed right there at the table? I have.
Will not miss that.
Luckily, I listen to my body a lot better and I know my limits.