Not possible for me, took me a ton of start/stops and further sickness and abuse to realize it. Wasted two whole years but finally admitted that just like many others, I cannot interact with alcohol in a "normal" manner. Period. Game over. I am an alcoholic and always will be. Even if I am sober for a full year, I am still an alcoholic.
For the past two years I kept trying to convince myself that "someday I won't be an alcoholic anymore", but it recently dawned on me that this just won't be true. I might be able to become a recovered alcoholic someday, but that doesn't change the fact that we don't mix.
Seems sad to admit, but the realization made me determined to win right now and gave me strength.
Edit: when I say 2 years, that was after I admitted to myself I was alcoholic. It was 2 years of me trying exactly what you describe - drinking lightly. It always followed by a heavy need to binge. The fire was kindled, the memory of the 2 beers at dinner turned into a hunger as i go home, I went home and binged out of site.