NYT on Drinking Wine Alone...Now

Behind the paywall: Asimov: “But coronavirus has put us in a different situation now. The concern is not drowning sorrows at the hotel bar or the isolation felt even in the middle of a crowded party. The question is about drinking when literally alone, at home, when doing one’s best to comply with the new protocols of a public health crisis.”

This tough time is indeed a good time to appreciate a wine.

I apologize ahead of time if this has already been posted.

He couldn’t quite get away from implying you shouldn’t drink the whole bottle in one night, though. Can’t quite escape the finger wagging, even in an article about escaping the finger wagging.

Still, I applaud the basic message and the sentiment. I was single for most of my wine loving years, and grew to appreciate the joys of opening a bottle solo. After all - I almost always want wine. I don’t always want company!

The first rule of Berserkers is the no finger wag rule.

The second rule of Berserkers is the no finger wag rule.

I thought a bottle a night was normal, with people or alone.

I did a Zoom conference last night with some college friends with the idea being to meet for a drink and some chat. I was surprised at how wonderfully enjoyable the evening was. With the decline of phone calls and the rise of email I generally kept in touch with them via email and an annual get together. Talking “face to face” for an hour and a half (while sipping a lovely 1979 Laberdolive Armagnac) was great. It was just what I needed without realizing it beforehand.

I’ve done a few as well and it’s the best way to have a drink for happy hour champagne.gif

Is once moving abroad I’ve done a lot of Video chats 1-1 with family. I’d never really thought of doing them in more of a group setting. But this weekend we have a bunch of the set up with various groups of friends. Some to drink wine “together”, others just to catch up. Mostly to just forget the craziness for a couple hours.

I think there are certain things people profess frequently on WB because they think that’s what you’re supposed to think, or because they don’t want to appear to be someone with an alcohol problem or something.

Things like “I only drink wine with a meal,” “I only drink wine while sharing it with someone else,” “I never drink until I’m impaired,” “I always spit when I’m at large tastings.”

Especially on a real names board. I love that we’re a real names board, but one tradeoff is that people can get overly concerned about projecting the “right” image.

“When I drink alone I like to be by myself “

If you think drinking a whole bottle of wine regularly by one person is fine, maybe you have a problem.

In response to virtually no-one who has posted in this thread.

If you want to preserve your monocyte function, (white blood cells that fight infections) a bottle is really too much. Not judging, but conveying facts. Your desire to stay alive is a personal decision…

The writer often likes to warn about drinking to excess, but I think this article was more about that it is not only okay to open a bottle while cooped-up alone inside but it can be a a small joy among a worried atmosphere.

I was not alone, but the 1998 Beaucastel CNdP we shared last night was a nice distraction.

While not a stellar piece, this bit resonated strongly:

“I don’t personally seek out isolation. But I have had some wonderful meals, with several glasses of wine, by myself, whether traveling on business or at home when other members of my family made other plans. It may not be ideal, but solitude and a little wine can send the mind in unexpectedly delightful directions. I prize the memories of these little interior journeys.”

Then there’s stuff like this:
https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.3132/dvdr.2008.009

I think it depends on the wine, your physical state, your size, and your plans for the next morning. If my wife drank a whole bottle of SQN clocking in at over 16% ABV, that’s not such a good thing. In fact, she probably couldn’t do it. I’m literally twice her size and I’m male, so the effects are going to be considerably different. And then, we pretty much never drink wine like that.

Many is the time I’ve had a bottle alone, especially on business trips, and if there’s a nice snack to go along with it, it can be quite nice.

And Chris - some of us actually do always spit at big tastings! neener

I thought the author did a good job of emphasizing wine can be personally and individually enjoyed without others, despite certain social stereotypes and/or expectations to the contrary that may exist. That may actually seem strange or inadvisable to some, but I would imagine to many folks in these forums it’s just common sense. To put such a thought out into the broader world, outside of Berserkerdom, for more mainstream consideration, seems like a good thing to me. (Personally, I didn’t come away from the article with any impression of finger wagging, and wouldn’t have given it a second thought had I not read about it in this thread.)

Well there’s the NYT and then, once again, the NY Post goes one better.

You don’t have to be alone when you’re alone!

I would expect that, if we look back on the times in our lives when we’ve had too much to drink (however you want to define that), it’s overwhelmingly been times we were socializing with others, not times we were drinking alone.

Certainly, there can be and are people with serious drinking problems and who drink alone, but drinking alone per se is not inherently wrong, subject to the same issues about health and dependency that exist when you’re drinking in the company of others.

And, again, I think all or most of us actually know that, even if some are not comfortable admitting it in conversation, because of what it may make others think.

I found wine before I found love. It’s definitely better to drink with someone you love, or a lot of people you love, than alone. That said, I don’t think anyone should deprive themselves due to isolation.

Just did a happy hour with my work colleagues today and will be doing the offline with the Todd tonight! Never have to drink alone!!!