Hi JK4 and welcome. Sorry for what brings you here, of course but glad you found us.
I hope you take honeypig up on her suggestion and read around the forum. There is a lot to learn about alcoholism and you will find the answers here.
Your Husband is in a relationship with alcohol which explains his lack of interest in anything or anyone else. It's what he thinks about and when he isn't drinking he's wondering where his next drink is.
Correct me the me if I’m wrong but a beer does not smell the same as vodka or whiskey right? What am I missing?
You're right, they don't smell the same but if someone just drank a beer I doubt you would be able to smell anything else.
Your instinct that he is drinking before he gets home is no doubt absolutely correct.
Alcohol is not unlike any mood altering substance in that tolerance is built and it takes more and more to achieve the same "buzz", so he hasn't gone from drinking a lot to suddenly being almost fall down drunk from several lite beers.
There is help and there is hope. Post here as often as you like and as honeypig mentioned, there is also Al-Anon, have you looked in to that at all?
https://al-anon.org/al-anon-meetings/
"In Al-Anon and Alateen, members share their own experience, strength, and hope with each other. You will meet others who share your feelings and frustrations, if not your exact situation. We come together to learn a better way of life, to find happiness whether the alcoholic is still drinking or not".