Switching from Spirits to Wine
Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Jul 2018
Posts: 1
Switching from Spirits to Wine
Hi all,
I'm an active user of alcohol. I go through about 1/2 a bottle to a bottle of spirits a day and have been for the last year. Was just wondering is it better to switch over to wine. I found by doing a bottle of wine I felt it quelled my symptoms just a tad. Anyone else have experience with this?
I'm an active user of alcohol. I go through about 1/2 a bottle to a bottle of spirits a day and have been for the last year. Was just wondering is it better to switch over to wine. I found by doing a bottle of wine I felt it quelled my symptoms just a tad. Anyone else have experience with this?
Member
Join Date: Mar 2014
Posts: 25,373
It's best to just not drink at all.
I know I switched around from beer to wine to spirits and stayed in the same miserable loop of drinking.
It's a lot better on the no drinking at all side.
The first few days of quitting are uncomfortable, no two ways around it.
Are you wanting to quit? Have you talked to a doctor?
I know I switched around from beer to wine to spirits and stayed in the same miserable loop of drinking.
It's a lot better on the no drinking at all side.
The first few days of quitting are uncomfortable, no two ways around it.
Are you wanting to quit? Have you talked to a doctor?
Vietnam Vet
Join Date: Apr 2018
Location: Georgia
Posts: 421
alcohol is alcohol and if you want your body to heal properly you need to sustain from any source of the stuff. There is no good alcohol for those who can't drink normally and don't fool yourself by thinking you can get by drinking a less potent version. If you were drinking a couple drinks and stopping it would be different however drinking half a bottle per day of liquor and thinking you will stop at a little wine is not going to happen. See a doc and ask him the same question.
Guest
Join Date: Aug 2015
Location: Atlanta
Posts: 8,674
Lots of us go through allll kinds of bargaining:
I'll only drink wine.
I'll never drink in the morning.
I'll only drink at home.
I'll only drink when out.
Maybe moving to another city/apartment/neighborhood will help....
None of them work for an alcoholic.
I hope you will look into what alcoholism is, and isn't - and if you need to quit permanently, seek help to do it. We can't tell you if you are an alcoholic - but at the least you've told us about problem drinking.
Best to you.
I'll only drink wine.
I'll never drink in the morning.
I'll only drink at home.
I'll only drink when out.
Maybe moving to another city/apartment/neighborhood will help....
None of them work for an alcoholic.
I hope you will look into what alcoholism is, and isn't - and if you need to quit permanently, seek help to do it. We can't tell you if you are an alcoholic - but at the least you've told us about problem drinking.
Best to you.
Administrator
Join Date: Apr 2007
Location: Australia
Posts: 211,442
Hi Mr Spirit
I tried that - drank too much beer so I drank wine cos I hated wine ...ended up drinking too much wine so I went to spirits cos I hated spirits...drank too much of that too.
I also tried drinking low alcohol beer, waiting until a certain time to start drinking, alternating with water and only drinking at home, or only when in company.
All things I failed at, because alcohol, any alcohol, changes me and sooner or later I'll be drinking the spilt dregs out of an ashtray..
The only thing that worked for me was not drinking anymore, man.
D
I tried that - drank too much beer so I drank wine cos I hated wine ...ended up drinking too much wine so I went to spirits cos I hated spirits...drank too much of that too.
I also tried drinking low alcohol beer, waiting until a certain time to start drinking, alternating with water and only drinking at home, or only when in company.
All things I failed at, because alcohol, any alcohol, changes me and sooner or later I'll be drinking the spilt dregs out of an ashtray..
The only thing that worked for me was not drinking anymore, man.
D
Member
Join Date: Jun 2013
Location: Big City
Posts: 3,895
Quelled what symptoms? The reality of life sober?
There's no difference in what poison you choose - I think you may know this deep down. I knew it for many years, even as I lied to myself that switching drinks, skipping a day, only drinking on odd weekends, only having wine, might fix my addiction. Only one thing fixes it - starving the demon.
Wine, beer, spirits - shame, pain, regret, waste, loss, fear, anxiety, suffering, nausea - guaranteed results for us addicts.
There's no difference in what poison you choose - I think you may know this deep down. I knew it for many years, even as I lied to myself that switching drinks, skipping a day, only drinking on odd weekends, only having wine, might fix my addiction. Only one thing fixes it - starving the demon.
Wine, beer, spirits - shame, pain, regret, waste, loss, fear, anxiety, suffering, nausea - guaranteed results for us addicts.
Member
Join Date: Apr 2012
Location: northern michigan. not the U.P.
Posts: 15,281
Originally Posted by MrSpirit 
Hi all,
Anyone else have experience with this?
Anyone else have experience with this?
the symptoms of alcoholism got worse
Member
Join Date: Dec 2014
Posts: 2,966
I'm watching one of my business partners do this currently. It was vodka..then expensive whiskey and now he's "fine" because he only drinks red wine. Well...that'd be 'ok' if he was only drinking a glass or two..he's not,but tries to justify it as "only wine". Same crap, different flavor/bottle.
Member
Join Date: Feb 2017
Location: Right here, right now
Posts: 3,974
Tried all of it. Failed at all of it......
Just as many others have said here. Alcoholism is a denial disease. It’s easy to justify (irrationally) to ourselves that one poison is better, or not as bad as another. But this is false. As long as you continue to drink, alcoholism will progress and worsen. If you’ve been drinking half bottle of spirits daily for a year, it’s time to quit altogether.
Member
Join Date: Mar 2012
Location: California
Posts: 13,044
Hi Mr. Spirits,
It's great to see you on SR. I can tell you that wine was the exact thing that brought me to this forum. It is easy to romanticize a glass of wine sitting by a fireplace, or at a fancy party, however the reality, at least for me, was a bottle, or more and then feeling awful the next day.
I tried moderation on countless occasions, and found myself creeping right back to 1-2 bottles of wine a day. I am now 2.5 years sober, and feel better physically and emotionally than I can remember in my adult life.
The first few weeks are tough, but sobriety is worth it.
It's great to see you on SR. I can tell you that wine was the exact thing that brought me to this forum. It is easy to romanticize a glass of wine sitting by a fireplace, or at a fancy party, however the reality, at least for me, was a bottle, or more and then feeling awful the next day.
I tried moderation on countless occasions, and found myself creeping right back to 1-2 bottles of wine a day. I am now 2.5 years sober, and feel better physically and emotionally than I can remember in my adult life.
The first few weeks are tough, but sobriety is worth it.
Member
Join Date: Jul 2015
Posts: 666
Mr Spirit, welcome. We are so glad you are here.
It's great that you posted. It seems you realize you are on the wrong track with your drinking and that something needs to change. This is a great group of people who have been where you have. That's why there was such a quick flood of responses to your question! It's remarkable how similar the pattern is of getting into trouble with alcohol and then what we try to do to keep drinking but not have the problems and damage that goes along with it .. unfortunately, as you heard from the replies, it just doesn't work.
I was a wine drinker. I tried cutting back. Measuring. I hated beer, so sometimes that would be all we had in the house, but I'd end up drinking that. At some point I started thinking even about the old crusty bottle of Kahlua in the top of a cupboard. Alcohol is alcohol.
Read around.. keep posting and asking questions. Life can be so much better for you if you are able to reach the point of accepting that drinking isn't working for you anymore, it's making your life small.. you can make the change. Just start today.
Pour out what you have.
Don't buy any more.
Don't order it when you are out.
Don't put it to your lips, don't swallow it.
Do this for one day, then another. Life can be so much better. You can rediscover the old you, and find a NEW healthy you beyond the life circling around drinking.
We are here for you!
It's great that you posted. It seems you realize you are on the wrong track with your drinking and that something needs to change. This is a great group of people who have been where you have. That's why there was such a quick flood of responses to your question! It's remarkable how similar the pattern is of getting into trouble with alcohol and then what we try to do to keep drinking but not have the problems and damage that goes along with it .. unfortunately, as you heard from the replies, it just doesn't work.
I was a wine drinker. I tried cutting back. Measuring. I hated beer, so sometimes that would be all we had in the house, but I'd end up drinking that. At some point I started thinking even about the old crusty bottle of Kahlua in the top of a cupboard. Alcohol is alcohol.
Read around.. keep posting and asking questions. Life can be so much better for you if you are able to reach the point of accepting that drinking isn't working for you anymore, it's making your life small.. you can make the change. Just start today.
Pour out what you have.
Don't buy any more.
Don't order it when you are out.
Don't put it to your lips, don't swallow it.
Do this for one day, then another. Life can be so much better. You can rediscover the old you, and find a NEW healthy you beyond the life circling around drinking.
We are here for you!
Member
Join Date: Mar 2016
Location: US
Posts: 16,905
Welcome, Mr. Spirit 
I tried the same thing....drank wine for many years, don't remember much, now I'm overweight and trying to snap out of it. Only on day 7 but I'm having to accept what the others say about cutting alcohol out altogether. Best of luck to ya!
I tried the same thing....drank wine for many years, don't remember much, now I'm overweight and trying to snap out of it. Only on day 7 but I'm having to accept what the others say about cutting alcohol out altogether. Best of luck to ya!
Member
Join Date: May 2017
Location: Los Angeles, CA
Posts: 96
What is the goal here? Going from a half bottle of spirits to wine?
I switched from spirits to wine, wine to beer.. None of it made any difference. At the end of the day, I needed alcohol.
Second thought - going from a liter of vodka to 4 bottles of wine in a night had some differences:
Wine cost a lot more money
Wine contained a lot more calories
Wine stained my teeth and anything else I spilled it on
Bottles were a lot harder to hide (Maybe I should have bought boxes instead)
But hey, I was only drinking wine... No more hard stuff.
Needless to say, it wasn't long before I was back to old faithful.
So, you're wondering if it would better if you switched over to wine? Well, the truth is, it doesn't matter what form of alcohol you consume.
I also tried the same type of thinking with cigarettes. Maybe I should smoke "lights" instead.. I ended up smoking 30% more cigarettes to get the same amount of nicotine delivered. Finally realized that quitting smoking was the only sane option.
I switched from spirits to wine, wine to beer.. None of it made any difference. At the end of the day, I needed alcohol.
Second thought - going from a liter of vodka to 4 bottles of wine in a night had some differences:
Wine cost a lot more money
Wine contained a lot more calories
Wine stained my teeth and anything else I spilled it on
Bottles were a lot harder to hide (Maybe I should have bought boxes instead)
But hey, I was only drinking wine... No more hard stuff.
Needless to say, it wasn't long before I was back to old faithful.
So, you're wondering if it would better if you switched over to wine? Well, the truth is, it doesn't matter what form of alcohol you consume.
I also tried the same type of thinking with cigarettes. Maybe I should smoke "lights" instead.. I ended up smoking 30% more cigarettes to get the same amount of nicotine delivered. Finally realized that quitting smoking was the only sane option.
No Dogma Please
Join Date: Jul 2017
Location: SoCal
Posts: 2,562
When I stopped completely, I said something in a meeting that resonated with a lot of people.
"I'm done negotiating with alcohol."
It's as described above. I won't have more than 3 drinks on a weeknight (which means at least 3) for example. "I won't drink hard liquor" is a common one.
My drinking was definitely bifurcated. There was my drinking wine and beer for enjoyment. Matching with food, exploring pairings, getting a somm certificate, making beer. That was at least partially controlled. When I really wanted to get drunk it was hard liquor, starting with shots to get things rolling, and continuing until I passed out.
However, my final binge was drinking my way through my very expensive wine collection, bottles at a time, around the clock, because it got so bad that I couldn't leave the house and that's what I had...cases of wine with an average price of at least $30 a bottle. I was drinking at least 5 a day, around the clock.
So "just drinking wine" is just more negotiation that just puts off the inevitable.
I obviously don't drink wine anymore. Or anything else.
"I'm done negotiating with alcohol."
It's as described above. I won't have more than 3 drinks on a weeknight (which means at least 3) for example. "I won't drink hard liquor" is a common one.
My drinking was definitely bifurcated. There was my drinking wine and beer for enjoyment. Matching with food, exploring pairings, getting a somm certificate, making beer. That was at least partially controlled. When I really wanted to get drunk it was hard liquor, starting with shots to get things rolling, and continuing until I passed out.
However, my final binge was drinking my way through my very expensive wine collection, bottles at a time, around the clock, because it got so bad that I couldn't leave the house and that's what I had...cases of wine with an average price of at least $30 a bottle. I was drinking at least 5 a day, around the clock.
So "just drinking wine" is just more negotiation that just puts off the inevitable.
I obviously don't drink wine anymore. Or anything else.
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