British Drinking Etiquette Question

I used to work with a bunch of people who regularly went out every Friday, straight after work, to a pub and after that they went clubbing until the small hours. One of them was a rather demure married woman. Apparently once she had had a few drinks she got flirtatious with guys. I mean very flirtatious. She would grope men's privates, and on one occasion asked one of the colleagues, who was my friend, if he would like to go into the restroom for a, er, certain act to take place. When he said "No thanks", she got all huffy and said "Why not? What's wrong with me?" He diplomatically replied that she was very charming and of course under other circumstances he'd love to let her do this thing, but he was a married man and was quite keen to keep it that way. (He wasn't just being diplomatic: her cousin worked with his wife's sister). They kept saying "Why don't you come out with us on a Friday? We have such a lot of fun!" and couldn't understand why I wouldn't. (Mrs Demure-when-sober is now divorced).

See, to me this would make me think that this woman had some deep issues going on and not that it had anything to do with the drinking culture.  But that's just how my mind works.

Well, all of DH's mates in their 30's and 40's just go out drinking (men and women). But, there is only one restaurant in town (brand new), which is a romantic sort of place and then 14 pubs, none of which serve food. So, I guess our village isn't really made for a group dinner and drinks kind of thing. I really envy you, though. I wish I could get together with some of the girls around here to do something besides get completely pissed, but it never seems to be an option. I have a feeling if I tried to get a group together to see a movie or something they would look at me like I was an alien. (Which I am, I guess... lol.) I imagine it would be different if I lived in the city and there were more local options for things to do besides just hitting the pub. Unfortunately, out here, there isn't really anything else to do, so everyone just goes out on the drink (even my MIL and FIL go on a pub crawl every Sat night and they are in their seventies! )

That would really depress me.

I always knew you were a crabby lot!!!  

Hmmm.  The last time I had more than 4 drinks in one session I was with chary, genau!, and AnneR.  And I got very drunk.  Maybe they crabbed me without me realizing it.

That would really depress me.

Yeah. It is pretty depressing, now that I'm thinking about it.  Fortunately there are some lovely ladies in Newcastle that I can go out with, so now that I have my licence, it should be easier to meet up with them and do something besides get hammered. 

Hmmm.  The last time I had more than 4 drinks in one session I was with chary, genau!, and AnneR.  And I got very drunk.  Maybe they crabbed me without me realizing it.

That wasn't the day of many margaritas, was it? Because, if I recall correctly, you well and truly crabbed yourself that day! 

That wasn't the day of many margaritas, was it? Because, if I recall correctly, you well and truly crabbed yourself that day! 

LOL

I was thinking of the day we met in London and genau drank us all under the table.  But I concede that the many margarita day was self induced.

Hmmm.  The last time I had more than 4 drinks in one session I was with chary, genau!, and AnneR.  And I got very drunk.  Maybe they crabbed me without me realizing it.

Damn, now you'll be watching for it next time! 

See, to me this would make me think that this woman had some deep issues going on and not that it had anything to do with the drinking culture.  But that's just how my mind works.

I agree.

BTW, problem sorted (I think.)

Regarding binge drinking, when they say 4 or 5 drinks in a session, by "session" I don't think they mean a meal. I think they mean going to the pub and drinking one drink after another without food.

Also, what  is the definition of a drink.  Does it mean half a pint of 4% lager or a whiskey shot?


Regarding the  UK vs. US uni issue, could it be that in the US, in many states  where the drinking age is 21,  many more students would be underage and the unis don’t want to be accused of breaking the law.

Also, what  is the definition of a drink.

It's defined by units of alcohol. http://www.drinkaware.co.uk/tips-and-tools/drink-diary/

It's defined by units of alcohol. http://www.drinkaware.co.uk/tips-and-tools/drink-diary/

That's interesting.  According to that one pint of cider is pretty much my limit. 

Regarding the  UK vs. US uni issue, could it be that in the US, in many states  where the drinking age is 21,  many more students would be underage and the unis don’t want to be accused of breaking the law.

Yeah, that's most likely it - they were really strict at the uni I was at because it was a completely dry campus. If campus security found so much as one bottle of beer in your dorm room, they would send you to 'Substance Abuse Counseling'... even if you were over 21. This happened to one of my British friends who was living in an on-campus apartment... they found some alcohol in his room and he had to go to counselling - he was 24 at the time!

That's interesting.  According to that one pint of cider is pretty much my limit. 

Yeah, it seems pretty general.  I mean everyone is different--according to his / her size and other factors especially how used to alcohol one is.  I'd say a half a pint would be my limit!  Even after three sips of wine or beer I start to feel all tingly in my arms and giggly.

I agree.

BTW, problem sorted (I think.)

Regarding binge drinking, when they say 4 or 5 drinks in a session, by "session" I don't think they mean a meal. I think they mean going to the pub and drinking one drink after another without food.

Also, what  is the definition of a drink.  Does it mean half a pint of 4% lager or a whiskey shot?


Regarding the  UK vs. US uni issue, could it be that in the US, in many states  where the drinking age is 21,  many more students would be underage and the unis don’t want to be accused of breaking the law.

It's actually surprisingly small. That drink definition is about 17ml of pure alcohol - 1.7 units. So really, you only need 3-4 cans of beer to have it count as a binge...

5+ is a binge if you go by the "half your recommended units in a week" rule.

I was thinking of the day we met in London and genau drank us all under the table. 

I got crabbed that day too. 

Regarding binge drinking, when they say 4 or 5 drinks in a session, by "session" I don't think they mean a meal. I think they mean going to the pub and drinking one drink after another without food.

The definition of 'session' seems really open to interpretation. Is there an official definition?

Oh, and as to the unit limts, they sound very low to me. Using the lovely French red we were drinking on Christmas day as an example, one glass was 3.5 units (!!), and I'm allegedly only allowed 2-3 units. Given that I probably drank 2 or 3 glasses (which I don't deem excessive), according to that table I had about 10 units, or five times what I'm supposed to have in a day. That's absurd.

It's actually surprisingly small. That drink definition is about 17ml of pure alcohol - 1.7 units. So really, you only need 3-4 cans of beer to have it count as a binge...

5+ is a binge if you go by the "half your recommended units in a week" rule.

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I questioned because the first post that mentioned this said "drinks" not "units" which are not the same thing.

I agree that the limits seem low.