{"id":7080090,"date":"2026-10-08T12:51:27","date_gmt":"2026-10-08T12:51:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=7080090"},"modified":"2026-10-08T12:51:27","modified_gmt":"2026-10-08T12:51:27","slug":"a-reflection-on-drinking-habits-family-history-and-changing-times","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=7080090","title":{"rendered":"A reflection on drinking habits, family history, and changing times"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div id=\"post-body-7476678554627046145\" itemprop=\"description articleBody\">\n<div class=\"separator\" style=\"clear: both; text-align: center;\"><span style=\"mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/blogger.googleusercontent.com\/img\/b\/R29vZ2xl\/AVvXsEiJJykSish20Y2HooNXKX1WIOKAWQJXwGMxvKtWz_S3M9xHjPGx6FA6NOrzJZrhlCLvUr1TW3nlUdLAYJbYmvFp5qmxNu9c9BReZNCwDm_MnOmaQt2sUwCXtmtEMhcRQYmTNPO9yiHCCyYLgoQsx06KJTjKHmWxII0bJuqci3JvtqJi1lWGdpCgT41I2C8\/s4000\/IMG_20240517_184040.jpg\" imageanchor=\"1\" style=\"clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" border=\"0\" data-original-height=\"2250\" data-original-width=\"4000\" height=\"225\" src=\"https:\/\/blogger.googleusercontent.com\/img\/b\/R29vZ2xl\/AVvXsEiJJykSish20Y2HooNXKX1WIOKAWQJXwGMxvKtWz_S3M9xHjPGx6FA6NOrzJZrhlCLvUr1TW3nlUdLAYJbYmvFp5qmxNu9c9BReZNCwDm_MnOmaQt2sUwCXtmtEMhcRQYmTNPO9yiHCCyYLgoQsx06KJTjKHmWxII0bJuqci3JvtqJi1lWGdpCgT41I2C8\/w400-h225\/IMG_20240517_184040.jpg\" width=\"400\"\/><\/a><\/span><\/div>\n<p><span style=\"mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;\">I\u2019m not entirely<br \/>\nsure what to make of recent reports about declining alcohol consumption, and it\u2019s<br \/>\nhard to know what exactly is really driving the change. Are we witnessing a<br \/>\ngenuine cultural shift in attitudes and behaviour, as some commentators<br \/>\nsuggest? Or are more practical factors at play, such as the high price of a<br \/>\ndrink today compared with <b>40 or 50<\/b> years ago, when people of my generation<br \/>\nfirst started going to pubs?<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"separator\" style=\"clear: both; text-align: center;\"><span style=\"mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/blogger.googleusercontent.com\/img\/b\/R29vZ2xl\/AVvXsEjvVFMJjGI9nhLsTEwIV-iswFYvKpNDY9R2M90TyRIdFGCi4rJL7yM3gcVp8a7XZJz8FIs1LsJP7ZmhomXky4EKY-8gSUTCM72KmUccxg9YYdwRW__k8h7nYpR9MmSV21DHS0PN6aQTXHbt5p7ByxoAY71EoNvKlxmcFVtDrbGjpVO3h4UOaYMs8e800qs\/s4000\/IMG_20200203_115120.jpg\" imageanchor=\"1\" style=\"clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" border=\"0\" data-original-height=\"3000\" data-original-width=\"4000\" height=\"300\" src=\"https:\/\/blogger.googleusercontent.com\/img\/b\/R29vZ2xl\/AVvXsEjvVFMJjGI9nhLsTEwIV-iswFYvKpNDY9R2M90TyRIdFGCi4rJL7yM3gcVp8a7XZJz8FIs1LsJP7ZmhomXky4EKY-8gSUTCM72KmUccxg9YYdwRW__k8h7nYpR9MmSV21DHS0PN6aQTXHbt5p7ByxoAY71EoNvKlxmcFVtDrbGjpVO3h4UOaYMs8e800qs\/w400-h300\/IMG_20200203_115120.jpg\" width=\"400\"\/><\/a><\/span><\/div>\n<p><span style=\"mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;\">I didn\u2019t grow up in<br \/>\na household where alcohol was freely available. Neither of my parents drank. My<br \/>\nmaternal grandparents, however, both enjoyed a tipple: my grandfather favoured<br \/>\nbottled pale and brown ale, while my grandmother preferred gin. Her story is<br \/>\nparticularly interesting. Raised in the <b>Welsh Valleys<\/b> by strict, chapel\u2011going<br \/>\n<b>Methodist<\/b> parents, she never touched a drop until she moved to London to work<br \/>\nin service. She told me she was horrified to discover that my grandfather<br \/>\nenjoyed a few pints, and her first visit to a pub &#8211; somewhere in north-west <b>London, Hampstead <\/b>quite probably, was a shock. It was a proper spit\u2011and\u2011sawdust<br \/>\nplace, nothing like the genteel surroundings she\u2019d imagined. Despite that rocky<br \/>\nintroduction, both grandparents came to enjoy a drink and were no strangers to<br \/>\nthe pub.<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"separator\" style=\"clear: both; text-align: center;\"><span style=\"mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/blogger.googleusercontent.com\/img\/b\/R29vZ2xl\/AVvXsEgcEmpc5HzG4W7ghb8Xx6GN7pZ4r7GyycCphHfAiwlZAwLtEUZJIrcJLtc7ske1C-nZLtQM97ucrWASfbxCTcs9CnPgL9RvlLT3z5ti6zYWKyxyHxhgOZWeWE-HFls2yA3XwpybIT_A5cW3bEyRl1GaUVhiipJTOr1qOtuaoiPn441nlESqxG8SLPEETqY\/s2048\/2012-07-21%2014.01.33.jpg\" imageanchor=\"1\" style=\"clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" border=\"0\" data-original-height=\"1536\" data-original-width=\"2048\" height=\"300\" src=\"https:\/\/blogger.googleusercontent.com\/img\/b\/R29vZ2xl\/AVvXsEgcEmpc5HzG4W7ghb8Xx6GN7pZ4r7GyycCphHfAiwlZAwLtEUZJIrcJLtc7ske1C-nZLtQM97ucrWASfbxCTcs9CnPgL9RvlLT3z5ti6zYWKyxyHxhgOZWeWE-HFls2yA3XwpybIT_A5cW3bEyRl1GaUVhiipJTOr1qOtuaoiPn441nlESqxG8SLPEETqY\/w400-h300\/2012-07-21%2014.01.33.jpg\" width=\"400\"\/><\/a><\/span><\/div>\n<p><span style=\"mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;\">Things were very<br \/>\ndifferent on my father\u2019s side. Neither of his parents drank, though I\u2019m not<br \/>\nentirely sure why. My paternal grandfather originally came from <b>South Africa<\/b><br \/>\nand arrived in <b>Britain<\/b> during the <b>First World War <\/b>to fight for <b><i>&#8220;King and<br \/>\nCountry&#8221;.<\/i><\/b> He was injured somewhere on the <b>Western Front<\/b> and invalided out of the<br \/>\nservices. I never saw any sign of lasting injury, but it wasn\u2019t something one<br \/>\ntalked about at the time, and I never thought it appropriate to ask my father.<br \/>\nMy <b>Granny Bailey<\/b> was something of an enigma, and whilst, as a child, I was very fond of her,<br \/>\nI knew little about her background. She dressed in a distinctly old\u2011fashioned<br \/>\nway that\u2019s best described as late <b>Edwardian.<\/b> If you\u2019ve ever watched <b><i>Dad\u2019s<br \/>\nArmy<\/i>,<\/b> my grandmother resembled those elderly ladies who pestered <b>Jack Jones<\/b><br \/>\nthe <b>Walmington-on-Sea <\/b>butcher, although she also bore a resemblance to <b>Godfrey\u2019s<\/b> sisters,<b> Sissy<\/b><br \/>\nand<b> Dolly. <\/b><\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"separator\" style=\"clear: both; text-align: center;\"><span style=\"mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/blogger.googleusercontent.com\/img\/b\/R29vZ2xl\/AVvXsEgrCAi30BX7dPg_6DP_ituBUvkFTVVtbsGusYYdBuFXsRUp_gaZZOoMH7cRKKUp8fMY8QrN7sr12gHgcTttFkSsSPwvu0cxMoT6VqOYBxrlva-AIGIPBNM5aR9ETuHZlvJyDwZU6_3u4Ed2fpEfMfeyGYTU31j-ZqSmYPE3Ns0rAxznOMwxzQAgAMGIdfg\/s4000\/IMG_20240112_131333.jpg\" imageanchor=\"1\" style=\"clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" border=\"0\" data-original-height=\"2250\" data-original-width=\"4000\" height=\"225\" src=\"https:\/\/blogger.googleusercontent.com\/img\/b\/R29vZ2xl\/AVvXsEgrCAi30BX7dPg_6DP_ituBUvkFTVVtbsGusYYdBuFXsRUp_gaZZOoMH7cRKKUp8fMY8QrN7sr12gHgcTttFkSsSPwvu0cxMoT6VqOYBxrlva-AIGIPBNM5aR9ETuHZlvJyDwZU6_3u4Ed2fpEfMfeyGYTU31j-ZqSmYPE3Ns0rAxznOMwxzQAgAMGIdfg\/w400-h225\/IMG_20240112_131333.jpg\" width=\"400\"\/><\/a><\/span><\/div>\n<p><span style=\"mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;\">Fast\u2011forward to my<br \/>\nlate teens, and I became the family member who broke the mould &#8211; the <b><i>\u201cblack<br \/>\nsheep\u201d,<\/i><\/b> if you like, when I discovered the pleasures of going to the pub and<br \/>\nenjoying a decent pint. This was much to my mother\u2019s horror and my father\u2019s<br \/>\nindifference.\u00a0During my student<br \/>\nyears and well into my twenties, pub\u2011going and beer drinking were regular<br \/>\nfixtures in my life. When I lived in <b>Maidstone<\/b>, I\u2019d wander down to the nearest<br \/>\npub, which was one just around the corner, and spend an hour or two knocking<br \/>\nback two, or sometimes three pints in an evening. I doubt I was unusual in<br \/>\nthat.<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"separator\" style=\"clear: both; text-align: center;\"><span style=\"mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/blogger.googleusercontent.com\/img\/b\/R29vZ2xl\/AVvXsEhTqcfCTYxw_kD1-w1F4pu76__OVGZ3SKvLjr02yA_GDUaRlWxDbovH3lynJf3GtjX3SM2ihFq_vXtQtcRtDDkXxBGaykkimdO0FF7XtE1jJtGBVfGanbdbSttdzzBiGvek5-99Blgw-z7HZhNa7DzBmLT85OhLGS2JPg6keuimw-yskClXfvryQ26fUGI\/s4128\/20181020_100018.jpg\" imageanchor=\"1\" style=\"clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" border=\"0\" data-original-height=\"3096\" data-original-width=\"4128\" height=\"300\" src=\"https:\/\/blogger.googleusercontent.com\/img\/b\/R29vZ2xl\/AVvXsEhTqcfCTYxw_kD1-w1F4pu76__OVGZ3SKvLjr02yA_GDUaRlWxDbovH3lynJf3GtjX3SM2ihFq_vXtQtcRtDDkXxBGaykkimdO0FF7XtE1jJtGBVfGanbdbSttdzzBiGvek5-99Blgw-z7HZhNa7DzBmLT85OhLGS2JPg6keuimw-yskClXfvryQ26fUGI\/w400-h300\/20181020_100018.jpg\" width=\"400\"\/><\/a><\/span><\/div>\n<p><span style=\"mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;\">Later, when life<br \/>\nchanged and I moved from wife No.1 to wife No. 2, my drinking habits shifted,<br \/>\nat the same time. <b>Eileen <\/b>has never been much of a pub\u2011goer, and whilst we\u2019re chalk and<br \/>\ncheese in that respect, we get along perfectly well in most other<br \/>\nrespects. My involvement with <b>CAMRA<\/b><i> <\/i>ensured I still got out for a few pints,<br \/>\nand on quieter evenings I\u2019d enjoy draught beer at home, initially from the<br \/>\nnearby <b>Priory Wines Cellars, <\/b>off\u2011licence in <b>Tonbridge,<\/b> and later, when I<br \/>\nchanged jobs and began commuting to and working in <b>Lewes,<\/b> direct from <b>Harvey\u2019s<br \/>\nBrewery. <\/b>I\u2019d regularly visit the <b>Harvey\u2019s shop <\/b>to fill my plastic, 4-pint<br \/>\ncontainer with freshly drawn <b>Best Bitter <\/b>or whatever seasonal beer they had on<br \/>\ntap, and this situation continued for a number of years.<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"separator\" style=\"clear: both; text-align: center;\"><span style=\"mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/blogger.googleusercontent.com\/img\/b\/R29vZ2xl\/AVvXsEjpREvUd5Dp8gijqRTuyEsRrZjIV6H31t6X1zZHInPfoZkb5IkfgZ63OQ-tyUWmfMB4iNZLvmOP1HQbqfipb8XqjTcss6k1p15Z-nPC8oqwklVlNBROKqHBgZYhoa8DuIXbrPgoafd7w9DSZt7ijnSB29yn_Tqm15niWUsz6CsK14YG7uUOFoOVSW2kBhY\/s4000\/IMG_20240807_154243.jpg\" imageanchor=\"1\" style=\"clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" border=\"0\" data-original-height=\"2250\" data-original-width=\"4000\" height=\"225\" src=\"https:\/\/blogger.googleusercontent.com\/img\/b\/R29vZ2xl\/AVvXsEjpREvUd5Dp8gijqRTuyEsRrZjIV6H31t6X1zZHInPfoZkb5IkfgZ63OQ-tyUWmfMB4iNZLvmOP1HQbqfipb8XqjTcss6k1p15Z-nPC8oqwklVlNBROKqHBgZYhoa8DuIXbrPgoafd7w9DSZt7ijnSB29yn_Tqm15niWUsz6CsK14YG7uUOFoOVSW2kBhY\/w400-h225\/IMG_20240807_154243.jpg\" width=\"400\"\/><\/a><\/span><\/div>\n<p><span style=\"mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;\">Over the last few<br \/>\ndecades, my consumption has dropped considerably, especially since our son was<br \/>\nborn. It\u2019s now quite rare for me to go out in the evenings, and I also no<br \/>\nlonger have a <b><i>\u201clocal\u201d<\/i><\/b>.<span style=\"mso-spacerun: yes;\">\u00a0 <\/span>If I did, it<br \/>\nwould be the <b>Nelson Arms <\/b>in <b>Tonbridge,<\/b> even though it is a bit of a hike:<br \/>\nthirty minutes there, forty minutes back. This is probably just as well,<br \/>\nhealth-wise.<span style=\"mso-spacerun: yes;\">\u00a0 <\/span>Instead, I might have a<br \/>\nsmall can or bottle in the evening, but my alcohol consumption has definitely<br \/>\ndeclined. The health lobby would say that\u2019s a good thing, although brewers and publicans<br \/>\nmight disagree.<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"separator\" style=\"clear: both; text-align: center;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/blogger.googleusercontent.com\/img\/b\/R29vZ2xl\/AVvXsEjXTpWd9sTjvJSpXJ1IwM0TwyO3fHwf7uoDgx9AuOcO-_C2Ss04_fye-SB8gMPBwDdWhfr43iTQCGtSL8htSxljd1OJ0Iz7-QbrJ7zpdVEYiasZRQRY_oTHSWtfLTwW6ZLgAMcuBlYu_kmx5VLHjppyWnbmmw3OaaOx-nzCUzrqcsuvlaqVEGj8nhE50nc\/s650\/brewing-beers-like-those-you-buy.jpg\" imageanchor=\"1\" style=\"clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" border=\"0\" data-original-height=\"650\" data-original-width=\"500\" height=\"400\" src=\"https:\/\/blogger.googleusercontent.com\/img\/b\/R29vZ2xl\/AVvXsEjXTpWd9sTjvJSpXJ1IwM0TwyO3fHwf7uoDgx9AuOcO-_C2Ss04_fye-SB8gMPBwDdWhfr43iTQCGtSL8htSxljd1OJ0Iz7-QbrJ7zpdVEYiasZRQRY_oTHSWtfLTwW6ZLgAMcuBlYu_kmx5VLHjppyWnbmmw3OaaOx-nzCUzrqcsuvlaqVEGj8nhE50nc\/w308-h400\/brewing-beers-like-those-you-buy.jpg\" width=\"308\"\/><\/a><\/div>\n<p>What I haven&#8217;t included here are the years \u2013 the best part<br \/>\nof a decade, when I was a committed home brewer. I ended up as a pretty a good<br \/>\nwell, and accomplished brewer producing full mash (all-grain), and well-hopped<br \/>\nbeers on a plant that I&#8217;d cobbled together in our lean-to garage. Once every<br \/>\nfour to six weeks, I\u2019d churn out five gallons of eminently drinkable home brew,<br \/>\nin styles that ranged from pale ales and bitters to strong, winter ales, with<br \/>\npractically everything in between.\u00a0Once primary and secondary fermentation were finished the<br \/>\nbeer would be racked into polypins that were kept cool, out in the garage. The<br \/>\nwhole process was a real labour of love, and but it was something I enjoyed,<br \/>\nand found very satisfying. However, it was rather time consuming and invariably<br \/>\ninvolved an early start &#8211; to get the mash. That was then followed by running<br \/>\noff the sweet wort, into the second hand, stainless steel <b>Burco-boiler<\/b>, that I picked up in a junk-shop. <b>Sparging<\/b> (look in up!) then followed, before a<br \/>\nrolling, <b>90-minute boil,<\/b> which was when the hops were added. Cooling and<br \/>\nfermentation then followed, and in approximately three weeks\u2019 time, the beer<br \/>\nwas ready to drink.<span style=\"mso-spacerun: yes;\">\u00a0 <\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"separator\" style=\"clear: both; text-align: center;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/blogger.googleusercontent.com\/img\/b\/R29vZ2xl\/AVvXsEgBVSvgOfaDhFUeYChHNAiEij75lR-dI4y_z-A5WeAsEaWUe8fBRyLmsu0XRvth53R19HTsEV-jJQLQ8NDU3h4KJRKlrh1GckeVbBQMPiqHz5GSIx6mz0qVTo3yN0FcTmWmhAO4H0jg68cMKDPj3mZIe_AuToS9ENsWC5uiwrPP3D9uNOh44E0VDytT1S8\/s3264\/IMG_20210606_172807.jpg\" imageanchor=\"1\" style=\"clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" border=\"0\" data-original-height=\"1836\" data-original-width=\"3264\" height=\"225\" src=\"https:\/\/blogger.googleusercontent.com\/img\/b\/R29vZ2xl\/AVvXsEgBVSvgOfaDhFUeYChHNAiEij75lR-dI4y_z-A5WeAsEaWUe8fBRyLmsu0XRvth53R19HTsEV-jJQLQ8NDU3h4KJRKlrh1GckeVbBQMPiqHz5GSIx6mz0qVTo3yN0FcTmWmhAO4H0jg68cMKDPj3mZIe_AuToS9ENsWC5uiwrPP3D9uNOh44E0VDytT1S8\/w400-h225\/IMG_20210606_172807.jpg\" width=\"400\"\/><\/a><\/div>\n<p>Things changed when we had an extension built on the side of<br \/>\nthe house. The garage disappeared, to form a new kitchen and adjoining dining<br \/>\nroom, with a new bedroom and bathroom built up above. That was the end of my<br \/>\nhome brewing which, although a shame in some respects, did give me freedom to<br \/>\ndo other things. This was important, because from start to finish, the process<br \/>\nwas quite time consuming. I also hate to think how high our electricity bill<br \/>\nmust have been at the time, as boiling 5 gallons of wort, for a period of<br \/>\naround 90 minutes, must have consumed a lot of energy.<\/p>\n<div class=\"separator\" style=\"clear: both; text-align: center;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/blogger.googleusercontent.com\/img\/b\/R29vZ2xl\/AVvXsEh5CLdfpp5uT_IE62IHqtOdqVi2Bh6DhREzc9rCKLPZ89H0xBYhWasUikTUtCFAMes8UGDrTPEX5p3u97CM-f8KE53a6nWidkWmCM7vxsliUbrqGf3lB5YnX4dDRtXmcOdp3vfCuITV8wOPbiemgHsrttmp1wyERy0FYRCblOgcB_E_uv9iNG5voZRI3DI\/s4000\/IMG_20230224_130205.jpg\" imageanchor=\"1\" style=\"clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" border=\"0\" data-original-height=\"2250\" data-original-width=\"4000\" height=\"225\" src=\"https:\/\/blogger.googleusercontent.com\/img\/b\/R29vZ2xl\/AVvXsEh5CLdfpp5uT_IE62IHqtOdqVi2Bh6DhREzc9rCKLPZ89H0xBYhWasUikTUtCFAMes8UGDrTPEX5p3u97CM-f8KE53a6nWidkWmCM7vxsliUbrqGf3lB5YnX4dDRtXmcOdp3vfCuITV8wOPbiemgHsrttmp1wyERy0FYRCblOgcB_E_uv9iNG5voZRI3DI\/w400-h225\/IMG_20230224_130205.jpg\" width=\"400\"\/><\/a><\/div>\n<p>Somewhere at home, I&#8217;ve got a brewing log detailing the<br \/>\nvarious beers I produced over the years, and I must try and find it sometime,<br \/>\nas there was a substantial amount. I started out using books edited by the late<b><br \/>\nDave Line, <\/b>who was one of pioneers of mashing at home \u2013 as opposed to brewing<br \/>\nusing malt extract. I later switched to the <b>CAMRA<\/b> sponsored, home brewing series,<br \/>\nwritten by <b>Graham Wheeler. <span style=\"mso-spacerun: yes;\">\u00a0<\/span><\/b>There&#8217;s plenty of opportunity here for some further articles<br \/>\nabout home &#8211; brewing which I might get round to writing, once I fully retire.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\">Finally, and quite by chance, I met a character on our most recent cruise, who<br \/>\nwas a dedicated full-mash, home brewer. We also met his wife who, came across<br \/>\nas not being quite so keen on her husband\u2019s <b><i>\u201chobby\u201d<\/i><\/b>! It was good chatting to<br \/>\nthis individual, as well as encouraging to learn that there are still home-brewers<br \/>\nout there, dedicated to keeping this ancient craft alive.<\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\">\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>I\u2019m not entirely sure what to make of recent reports about declining alcohol consumption, and it\u2019s hard to know what exactly is really driving the change. Are we witnessing a genuine cultural shift in attitudes and behaviour, as some commentators suggest? Or are more practical factors at play, such as the high price of a [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":7080091,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[137],"tags":[2852,7055,730,11564,3734,16824,4319],"dealstore":[],"offerexpiration":[],"class_list":["post-7080090","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-beer","tag-changing","tag-drinking","tag-family","tag-habits","tag-history","tag-reflection","tag-times"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v26.4 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>A reflection on drinking habits, family history, and changing times - Som2ny Network<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=7080090\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"A reflection on drinking habits, family history, and changing times - Som2ny Network\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"I\u2019m not entirely sure what to make of recent reports about declining alcohol consumption, and it\u2019s hard to know what exactly is really driving the change. Are we witnessing a genuine cultural shift in attitudes and behaviour, as some commentators suggest? 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