Is this an alcoholic or just a heavy drinker?

[Orchidflower]

One of the neighbors came over last night and drank 12 Moosehead beers during the evening. Alcoholic?
Hard for me to judge as I can handle one beer or two on a very hot and humid day when you sweat it out fast. Lucky for me, I was born with such an allergy to alcohol that I pretty much stick to Shirley Temples...but hold that fruit!

 

[DangerMouse]

Not sure if he is an alcoholic or not, but that sure is a large amount of alcohol to consume in one sitting. I think it is safe to assume he won't be ERing because if he drinks that much at home every day he won't have the funds.

 

[Walt34]

Well, it was New Year's Eve. Eons ago it wasn't uncommon for me to drink that much on that evening. Didn't make a habit of it though, and it's been a long time since then. If he does that more than once every other month or so then maybe he's got a problem.

 

[W2R]

One of the neighbors came over last night and drank 12 Moosehead beers during the evening. Alcoholic?
Hard for me to judge as I can handle one beer or two on a very hot and humid day when you sweat it out fast. Lucky for me, I was born with such an allergy to alcohol that I pretty much stick to Shirley Temples...but hold that fruit!

My ex drank considerably more more beer than that EVERY day, plus Baileys, and Scotch on occasion. He still claimed he wasn't alcoholic. "It's just beer!" No comment except to say that I am so happy to be single again.

I think you can drink a whole lot in one evening, and if it is just on a few special occasions then you aren't an alcoholic.

 

[Pavo]

I'd say that there is a good possibility. The thing with being an alcoholic though, is that it's not defined by consumption or frequency - you can drink 6 beers in one month and still be an alcoholic. It's defined by your actions, behaviors, and consequences which ensue after drinking, and what you do while you're off the booze. It's really like a personality disorder.

 

[Orchidflower]

His behavior? The son of a gun talked and acted normally, and then fell asleep snoring in a LazyBoy! Me...I'd be hanging my head on the ole porcelain chair after 1-1/2 beers...and light ones at that!
It was his acting so normal that made me wonder if the guy is an alcoholic. But maybe men can consume this much?

 

[youbet]

That's an amazing amount of liquid to consume at one sitting, beer, water or whatever! But, one episode doesn't give enough information about ongoing behaviors to determine if he is alcoholic or not.

 

[Notmuchlonger]

If its once in awhile no big deal.

 

[kcowan]

The guy wanted to celebrate the New Year. By sticking to beer, his bladder limited his intake. I consumed a bottle of red wine and 2 glasses of champagne during a nice long dinner and some dancing over 5 hours. Drove home; sleeped soundly for 6 hours and am on my third coffee watching the Winter Classic.

But if I do that again in the next month or two, I would be worried.

 

[Zipper]

Good choice of beer!

 

[Meadbh]

The guy wanted to celebrate the New Year. By sticking to beer, his bladder limited his intake. I consumed a bottle of red wine and 2 glasses of champagne during a nice long dinner and some dancing over 5 hours. Drove home; sleeped soundly for 6 hours and am on my third coffee watching the Winter Classic.

But if I do that again in the next month or two, I would be worried.

You drove home??

I had dinner with friends and was not the DD. Between 7:30 pm and 2:30 am, I had four large glasses of Shiraz and one of champagne. There is no way I would have been fit to drive.

 

[Nords]

One of the neighbors came over last night and drank 12 Moosehead beers during the evening. Alcoholic?

Yes.

His behavior? The son of a gun talked and acted normally, and then fell asleep snoring in a LazyBoy! Me...I'd be hanging my head on the ole porcelain chair after 1-1/2 beers...and light ones at that!
It was his acting so normal that made me wonder if the guy is an alcoholic.

Double yes.

But maybe men can consume this much?

While it's hypothetically possible, just about everybody (but an alcoholic) would find that this much drinking interferes with their enjoyment of the event.

In the 1980s I worked with a senior petty officer whose spouse controlled his drinking in our homeport and who, when we were on the submarine, made himself too busy with work to go drinking. But one fateful day we pulled into Fort L[-]iquor[/-]auderdale for liberty and he reacted badly to this unfamiliar (woo-hoo!) leisure-filled environment. His unleashed binge cost him a rank and a couple months' pay as well as the diagnosis that he was physically dependent on alcohol. The fact that he (and his spouse) were able to control it 99.9% of the time was beside the point, and his behavior sounds a lot like your neighbor's.

 

[bssc]

I suspect that he has built up a tolerance for alcohol.

I remember hearing someone say that in Ireland, you are considered alcoholic only if you outdrink your doctor.

 

[Meadbh]

I remember hearing someone say that in Ireland, you are considered alcoholic only if you outdrink your doctor.

But seriously though, as an Irish doctor.....tolerance for alcohol abuse is high (too high) in Ireland.

But even I think there is a significant risk your neighbour has a problem with alcohol. After all, it takes a lot of practice to drink 12 beers!

 

[kcowan]

You drove home??

I had dinner with friends and was not the DD. Between 7:30 pm and 2:30 am, I had four large glasses of Shiraz and one of champagne. There is no way I would have been fit to drive.

I'll bet I have a 100 pounds on you. Plus I have a high metabolic rate so all that fluid gets out through the pores (in through the pours and out through the pores) especially with the dancing following midnight. Never felt the slightest bit tipsy. Never used the washroom.

(PS I would have had more trouble with 12 beer. 6 or 7 would have been no problem.)

 

[saluki9]

Not enough info.

Plenty of guys can go through 12 beers in a night. Heck, if it's a long night I could easily drink 12 beers.

You can't judge him on new years eve.

 

[mickeyd]

drank 12 Moosehead beers during the evening

Not sure why this basic Q has not been posed: Did he drink 12 of your beers or was it BYOB?

 

[kumquat]

Plenty of guys can go through 12 beers in a night. Heck, if it's a long night I could easily drink 12 beers.

Yabbut Moosehead? Try it and you'll know something's wrong with him.

 

[Meadbh]

I found a blood alcohol level calculator on a defence lawyer's site.

BAC Calculator

For what it's worth, I modelled kcowan's alcohol intake last night and mine, based on 300 lbs and 200 lbs respectively. To my surprise, both of "us" came under the legal limit. But IMHO I would not have been safe in the driver's seat. I wouldn't have wandered all over the road, but I would have been slower to spot hazards and to react, for sure.

 

[Maurice]

I'll tell you what, Orchidflower, post his picture and I'll tell you if I see him at the meetings.

 

[clifp]

The internet shows Moosehead as 5% alcohol which is above average. Twelve beers is quite a bit although I must say I know lot of guys that play poker and drink that much.
About 1/2 of them are alcoholic or problem drinkers the other half just are big guys that can consume lots of beers. If this guy drinks a lot everytime you see him than he is probably an alcoholic.

 

[brewer12345]

Once/very occasionally, I'd call him a bon vivant and get on with life. Every weekend, I'd suggest he seek help.

Personally, I am pretty fagged out after a 6 pack or equivalent, so unless he's a lot bigger than me that is a lot of booze in one night.

 

[kcowan]

I found a blood alcohol level calculator on a defence lawyer's site.

BAC Calculator

For what it's worth, I modelled kcowan's alcohol intake last night and mine, based on 300 lbs and 200 lbs respectively. To my surprise, both of "us" came under the legal limit. But IMHO I would not have been safe in the driver's seat. I wouldn't have wandered all over the road, but I would have been slower to spot hazards and to react, for sure.

Hey Audrey! Who are you calling 300 lbs? Try it for 220 and 120! Plus it does not handle differences in metabolization rates. I have to drive my Chinese friends home after just 2 drinks.

Plus it was just 4 blocks of side streets. But I could have driven across town and and through a spot check (and have done so and passed). My estimate is that I would have blown no more than 0.02 when I went home.

I do wonder about anyone drinking 12 Moosehead while his host watches in amazement. Not the kind of party I would enjoy!

 

[Meadbh]

Hey Audrey! Who are you calling 300 lbs? Try it for 220 and 120! Plus it does not handle differences in metabolization rates. I have to drive my Chinese friends home after just 2 drinks.

Plus it was just 4 blocks of side streets. But I could have driven across town and and through a spot check (and have done so and passed). My estimate is that I would have blown no more than 0.02 when I went home.

I do wonder about anyone drinking 12 Moosehead while his host watches in amazement. Not the kind of party I would enjoy!

Based on 220 lbs and the time frame you stated, the calculator estimates your blood alcohol concentration as of 1 am as 149 mg/100 mls. I assumed you had one glass of wine per hour from 7 pm and that it was 5 oz and 12.5% alcohol.

Based on 120 lbs, I would also have been over the legal limit. In real life, I'm no Audrey!

 

[kcowan]

Based on 220 lbs and the time frame you stated, the calculator estimates your blood alcohol concentration as of 1 am as 149 mg/100 mls. I assumed you had one glass of wine per hour from 7 pm and that it was 5 oz and 12.5% alcohol.

Based on 120 lbs, I would also have been over the legal limit. In real life, I'm no Audrey!

Thanks Meadbh.
Now set my metabolization rate to 20.

(Maybe we can get together for some wine sometime and I will drive us home!)