How often do you take Beer/Alcohol ? Do you feel this is essential/frugal ? Share anything related here.

Thanks.

Vijay 

 Not much, I'm still nursing a baby.  Maybe once a month dh and I split a bottle of wine, or I go out with girlfriends for a drink.  Our wine is cheap, $4-7 for a bottle, I buy a few clearance bottles a few times a year, or just cheap.  So, yes, frugal.

Neither Brian nor myself drink very often...usually just on our anniversary and birthdays, usually while out to dinner....we'll have a drink/beer before our dinner. A few years ago, I bought the stuff to make fuzzy navels (my fave) at home, and realized just how much reastaurants and bars mark up their prices!!! I still have about 1/3 of the bottle of peach schnapps!!

I cannot drink anymore due to health but do miss the occasional wine cooler or mixed drink at a restaurant. I used to drink quite a bit (not in frugal settings). Now I'm reduced to 'virgin' drinks for fun. 

 Our family does not drink. There are several reasons. We work with a lot of addicts and former addicts. They dont need to see us doing what they shouldnt. I do make beer bread occasionaly. DS use some alcohol in cooking....chilli, a few sauces, a raveoli sauce receipe. In that way, it is a bit frugal. One bottle can last a long time if you olny cool with it. Babs

Our preference would be to have a small glass of wine regularly. I have read studies on the health benefits of small amounts of wine and I can see this as some benefit. We occassionally like other drinks that have dessert qualities  but those are pricy so those are special occassion things. I don't really see a benefit to beer though my husband has a bottle from time to time.

We do drink, but not regularly.  We drink more in the summer because we sit outside in the backyard with the neighbors and have a few beers.  We have a lot of wine & liquor, but most of it is from guests. As far as beer is concerned, we're big Sam Adams drinkers. The grocery stores rotate having it on sale, we pay around $10.99 for a 12 pack case, and that will last us at least a month.

We drink both beer and wine, but not very much of either.  I drink about 1 bottle of beer a month and it's b/c it goes well with the food I've made -- hamburgers or nachos or the like.  DH probably drinks 2 bottles of beer a month; again, it's usually with food. 

On the nights when it's just DH and I (DD is at one of her grandmother's houses), we may open a bottle of wine (rarely more than $10) and watch a movie together.  I did invest in that "cork" system where a small pump (hand operated) takes the air out of the bottle; it was only $15 for the pump and 3 corks and has help us save money by not throwing away a bottle of wine that's half-full.  We save it instead and finish it up a week or two later.  We had a lot of wine leftover from our wedding which I was able to buy at cost; we gave a lot of it out as presents at Christmas or birthdays.  We still have at least 15 bottles, so other than a particular white German wine I crave once in a while, we've still got at least 18 months of table wine available to us.

I wouldn't say it's frugal or necessary, but it's enjoyed in moderation and done safely.  There's a verse in the Bible about drinking wine for your "stomach's sake" and I've been known drink a very small amount of wine when my stomach is upset and it has helped.  I think it's a digestion thing.

We drink infrequently as we have (1) family members who have alcohol problems/addiction so we don't drink at family events and (2) alcohol is a budget buster.

DH and I enjoy sharing a bottle of red wine but if we do have it, it was a gift or I buy a $5 to $8 bottle. We do have beer on hand in the basement fridge but a 12 pack will last a month or more. We aren't huge fans of hard alcohol but have a bottle of tequila given as a gift so I do like to make a margarita every now and then on a Friday night.

 It's crazy how big a mark-up on all drinks at restaurants! A glass of wine costs as much as a bottle so it really added up for both of us to have a drink. Plus, now when we go out to eat, it is usually a pizza place or Chinese and they don't have alcohol.

When I was younger (like 22-23), it wasn't a big deal to blow $25 on a Friday night on drinks at a bar. It makes me cringe to realize that I would spend $50 on a weekend just on alcohol. Young, single, working, different priorities.

mamasjob:

family members who have alcohol problems/addiction so we don't drink at family events

We have one side of our family who is completely dry at events... they have a son (a cousin) in prison for drunk driving, serving 5 years and 11 years probation.  He killed his sis's hubby to be and a groomsman barhopping in the country. Ironically, the other driver they hit was also intoxicated.

Definitely not frugal = lawyer's and cost of lives.