Different alcohol, different effect - why?

[zcacogp]

Chaps,

A serious question (and hence it being placed in here and not in P&P) ... why do different alcohols affect you differently? (Or, more accurately, different alcoholic drinks, with the same alcohol.)

Last night I had a good sup of some Suffolk Cyder. Nice stuff it was too, but after a mere pint and a half I struggled to walk in a straight line. In fact, I struggled to walk. This was 4.4% ABV, so fairly strong stuff but no stronger than a strong beer. And I will fairly happily drink several pints of strong beer in an evening and be merry, but nothing more than that ...

I was talking about this very topic with a friend the other day. She said that she can happily drink gin by the gallon and it has precious little effect on her. But she struggles with a mere measure of whisky, becoming either giggly or sleepy or just plain uncoordinated, as the case may be.

So, why? Why does an equivalent quantity of ethanol not have an equivalent effect? Why does the drink that it is in make so much difference? Assumedly it must be down to the non-alcohol part of the drink, in which case what is the difference? Or is it all psychological (which I very much doubt)?


Oli.

[Vixpy1]

Was it Aspall Suffolk Cider?

Damn stuff is lethal, despite it being around the samne strength as other ciders, i can barely manage more than a couple of pints before i fall over

[zcacogp]

As a matter of fact it was. (Cyder, to be precise.)

It is indeed known for its' effects, and yet - as you say - doesn't have that high an ABV.

So what is it that causes the (small amount of) alcohol to have such a big effect?


Oli.

[Simpo Two]

Fusel oils

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fusel_alcohol

[zcacogp]

Interesting, thanks Simpo2, but how does that explain the apparently greater potency of some drinks over others?


Oli.

[Stevenj214]

I would hazard a guess that psychology plays a fair part.

[militantmandy]

Vixpy1 said:

Was it Aspall Suffolk Cider?

Damn stuff is lethal, despite it being around the samne strength as other ciders, i can barely manage more than a couple of pints before i fall over

The Aspall I drink is nearly 8%. Pansies!

ETA - it does get me rattled though. Westons also gives me astonishing hangovers like nothing else.

[fergywales]

militantmandy said:

The Aspall I drink is nearly 8%. Pansies!

ETA - it does get me rattled though. Westons also gives me astonishing hangovers like nothing else.

HaHa, Westons Organic, full of loverly none organic chemicals! Definitely ouch in the morning!

You want Thatchers Draught (none of that fizzy shyte!); looks like piss, unless cold smells like it too, but my god its good in large quantities, and you can get up in the morning with nothing more than a need for a good tooth brush.

[militantmandy]

fergywales said:

HaHa, Westons Organic, full of loverly none organic chemicals! Definitely ouch in the morning!

You want Thatchers Draught (none of that fizzy shyte!); looks like piss, unless cold smells like it too, but my god its good in large quantities, and you can get up in the morning with nothing more than a need for a good tooth brush.

I've tried many different types of cider over the years and I just can't seem to get on with the still stuff. I'm a heathen I know!

[Lost soul]

Some people say gin makes them sad , vodka makes them want to fight i could never understand that as it all just makes me fall over

[militantmandy]

Lost soul said:

Some people say gin makes them sad , vodka makes them want to fight i could never understand that as it all just makes me fall over

Had a friend who we had to ban from drinking Stella as he inevitably ended up hurting himself or someone else over the course of the night.

[Google [bot]]

I 'watched' this thread as I'm really interested to hear a decent explanation. Of course, of the many factors to bear in mind there's how much you've eaten, how much sleep you've had, and of course the toxicity/speed of drinking. I read once that the body is capable of processing ideally 12-15% alcohol drinks better, hence your wine or your spirits with mixers would have the greatest effect, but it really doesn't explain the differences in the effects of different drinks. I know many folk that won't drink dark spirits on account of it making them agro, I recall at uni a local used to sell Carlsberg Export and Stella, same-ish strength. If we fancied a chilled night it was Carlsberg, if we fancied a mad one, it was Stella. And it would always unfold like that.

I await an expert's post.

[Lost soul]

Google [bot] said:

I I know many folk that won't drink dark spirits on account of it making them agro,

I dont drink dark spirits or beers (apart from Guiness) because i find they give me a stinker of a hangover

[Balmoral Green]

tis strange. I can drink huge quantities of Whisky, or a couple of bottles of red, and be more or less sober as far as compos mentis is concerned. But a few pints and I'm pissed. Or mixing new and interesting things. Never been as pissed as at one of the PH Dirty Dicks meets.

[Simpo Two]

zcacogp said:

Interesting, thanks Simpo2, but how does that explain the apparently greater potency of some drinks over others?

Because some drinks contain more and/or different fusel oils than others. These are what fk your head up. The 'proper' alcohol (ethanol) is only part of the story.

I see from my Wiki link 'Fusel alcohols are formed when fermentation occurs * at lower pH,'

And of course cider is acidic, ie low pH. Malic acid and all that - Malus - apple, geddit? So the yeast/s are either going to be different from those that produce other drinks, or have a different biochemistry so they produce not just ethanol but fusel oils too.

Edited by Simpo Two on Sunday 3rd April 17:28

[Cotty]

Balmoral Green said:

Never been as pissed as at one of the PH Dirty Dicks meets.

Yes but thats more to do with mixing your drinks, as I experienced last week as my 40th coincided with a Dirty Dicks meet. Lager, stawpeedos and shots do not weld well.

[Tango13]

I think part of the explanation is down to the company you keep when drinking, drink with miserable buggers and you will stay sober. Drink with party animals and you will be kit form after the 7th or 8th pint.

[Grey Ghost]

Vixpy1 said:

Was it Aspall Suffolk Cider?

Damn stuff is lethal, despite it being around the samne strength as other ciders, i can barely manage more than a couple of pints before i fall over

This. I bought a 6 pack from Sainsbury's last summer and have 3 left that I'm not sure I should go near again. Surprisingly refreshing, nice taste compared to other ciders and then WHAM the legs go to jelly, the body appears to have developed a new dance routine and the brain is disconnected from the mouth. Cue sleep disease onslaught and black looks from the wife for the day after.

[Balmoral Green]

So, there we have it, leave off the fusel oils

[zac510]

Don't forget other factors like drinking on an empty stomach, drinking when tired, drinking at a different rate depending on the company you are keeping or drinking at a different rate because you're unfamiliar with the drink's flavour!