I had my first drink at my friend's house at 16. His parent's were away in Germany and they always had a stocked bar. I just remember thinking "Wow! This is the best feeling ever!!" I did not drink a whole lot for a while. Mostly a weekend or 2 a month sometimes it would be longer in between. But, I always drank to get drunk. Very, very drunk.
It was not till I was about 22 or 23 that I really started to pick up the pace and drink more often. It is so true that it is a progressive disease. What would have got me wasted then would barely get me buzzed now. Sad.