Dry

Today

After much feasting and frolicking involving a fair number of champagne cocktails and bottles of wine, I'm taking a break. Might even have a couple of dry days to allow my internal organs a little respite.

There's still a full wine-rack, fridge dedicated to white wine & Prosecco, a drinks cupboard with three shelves of fortified wines and cocktail ingredients. Paul has his precious real ale shelf and Santa brought about 4 bottles of single-malt whisky for Paul to enjoy.

In My Day

When did we become able to have permanently stocked drinks cupboards? Is it just down to the much cheaper price and greater availability of alcohol or is it down to better finances? I can't say I know.

When we were first married we had very little alcohol at all. If we popped to the pub Paul might have a beer or two and I might drink cider or Martini. Wine by the glass was not often available in pubs. Even the cheapest wine (and it generally tasted cheap as well) was too expensive for everyday. I remember dreadful vinegary wines called "El Roberto" or "Hirondelle" - this latter approved by the vinously challenged suits at "Which" magazine; thus giving it the middle-class stamp of approval.

There was booze at parties, but even then, the ubiquitous six-pack or giant cans of lager were often the most prominent items. On ordinary nights, even social ones, we drank appalling instant coffee. This was almost certainly as damaging for our livers, but at least it was cheap.

Because we had so little, there was a tendency for any that we had to disappear fairly rapidly. I also developed "Christmas Anxiety" a situation where I was so worried that  wouldn't have any treats to offer guests that I placed a complete embargo on any treat consumption until last thing on Christmas Eve. Paul was generally pretty rebellious about this! One Christmas (maybe it was 1984, the year of the dropped turkey) I decided to plan in advance. Starting in September, I bought one bottle of something (whisky, Martini, sherry, Southern Comfort etc) each week at the Supermarket. When I got home I hid these bottles in the wardrobe so that we wouldn't be tempted to drink it all early. (I also bought a food item, such as Quality Street etc in the same way).

When Christmas came we found ourselves with a bulging drinks cabinet and food cupboard; more than we could possibly get through. I felt rather self-congratulatory and have tended to pre-buy ever since.

It's true that the quality of what we can afford these days is vastly higher than it used to be, but whether that means that, coupled with the greater quantity, we are better off in body and spirit, I couldn't say.