No beer. I just don't get it how popular beer is. As far as I remember I drunk it only once and was not impressed at all. Some people say that it has good taste. But I'm convinced that more than 50% of beer drinkers drink it because they can drink it somewhere and with someone. Beer seems to stimulate the thirst or the liking of beer and at the end of the day it seems that it is self-contaning. You drink the beer not to stop thirst, but because of drinking beer.

Wine is better. I slightly prefer red wine to white one. Heavy and sweet ... Drinking wine reminds me of ancients Romans and Greeks. You know. The amphoras, the beverage of gods. It has the color of blood, the spark, the wonderfull taste. It brings some special kind of atmosfere. Unfortunatelly the good wine is seldom available in local shops and restaurants over here. Or perhaps that is already the matter of past,but for sure just a few years ago the whole choice in usual places was limited to: Red or white?. It is better now, but the prices are unrealistic and anyway I can't drink more than too much of it at once. A glass is fine. But to enjoy another one I'll have to give it an hour or so.

Once I was with a friend on a businnes trip in North Carolina, US. Apart of experience of dry county (where you can't get any alcohol in bar or restarant) I also remember another funny thing. We found a restaurant where they were willing to offer some wine. Actually the waiter told us that it is great Port wine. She pulled out the cork and held it, still on the cork-screw against my friend (he was ordering - on company expense ;-)) He said: What am I supposed to do? You are supposed to smell it, sir. was the answer. Yeah the drinking of wine has some rituals that make it something special. I just wish I could distinguish good wine from great wine.

Last thing that should be mentioned is hard alcohol. Brandy, whiskey, cognac and so on and so on. So called plum brandy and other high percentage destilates are very popular here. It was never appealing to me. Fortunately a college friend tought me how to drink it. You have to breathe in, throw the drink in and then breath the air out. If you breathe in, the vapours of strong alcohol will settle on inner sides of your nose, mouth and throat and the typical symptoms of tears in the eyes and heavy caughing are very difficult to avoid.

Cheers.