Question about drinks(alcoholic)

[JPD]

If you had asked me two months ago how often I had gone to the bar, the answer would have been about 5-10 times since I turned 21 (I'm 28 now), in the past month I've been about once a week.

Now comes the issue; for some reason I seem to be very sensitive to the taste of alcohol, and many drinks end up tasting horrible to me; which makes it hard to order. So far the only drink I've found so far that I like has been a Malibu bay breeze. While delicious I'd also like to be able to find something else to drink when going out.

Smirnoff ice and Marks Hard Lemonade, and other drinks like that taste like what rubbing alcohol smells like to me.

Beer I just find to taste disgusting; same with hard ciders.

My family made jello shots recently using only 1/2 cup vodka and the rest water, and to me they tasted like pure vodka.

Is there any common drinks that I should try?

[Treasure]

Try ordering your drinks as a"single tall" - this will have 1 shot of liquor in a 16 oz glass of ice/mixer

I usually order a Cranberry-Vodka-Sprite, Single-Tall; so it has 1 shot of vodka over ice, with cranberry juice and sprite - this makes it sweeter (as well as fizzy) so you barely taste the vodka;
the other thing you can try is flavored alcohol - flavored rum and vodka;
My mom used to not be able to drink anything straight; I've gotten her to drink a cinnamon whiskey (fireball) w/ no mixer - b/c it tastes like cinnamon, not like whiskey

[lilo]

Why do you need to drink alcohol at all? No need to force yourself if you don't like it - just have virgin cocktails!

[sms001]

Why do you need want to drink alcohol at all?

Maybe JPD enjoys the effect.

I'll second the "single, tall" idea. Usually the heavier the juice, the better, as far as masking alcohol is concerned. (Pina Coladas, Bloody Marys, etc.) And although they make look at you oddly, requesting "VERY easy on the shot" or just half a shot of liquor is not unheard of. This IS kind of a tough one, as usually ciders and the Mike's drinks you mentioned go down pretty easy for most people sensitive to C2H6O.

(ETA) BTW, your Bay Breeze uses Malibu, which is a pretty lightweight 40(?) proof, so you might look for similar alcohol contents.

[Flying Grype]

A friend of mine who hates the taste/smell of alcohol but enjoys social drinking has only one thing that she drinks: amaretto sours.

Amaretto by itself is a very mild-smelling but very sweet apricot/almond flavoured stuff. Any drink called "sour" is typically mixed with lemon or lime juice and sugar syrup if needed. I make my amaretto sours with straight-up cranberry juice (not sweetened cocktail or juice blend).

[Greenday]

If you like energy drinks, go with red bull and vodka. The taste of red bull is strong enough to kill any flavor of vodka.

Other than that, I'm out of suggestions. I enjoy my beers these days. When I did go out as a youngin (four years ago), it'd be a lot of rum and cokes, surfer on acids, shots. Now when I go out, I just want a nice, tasty beer that I can nurse and enjoy. Lots of different beers with different tastes.

[CoffeeMonkey]

I don't have the same sensitivity, but I do like drinks that taste like candy.

Amaretto sours, as mentioned above. Most places just use amaretto and sour mix, which is fine with me. I ask them to shake it when I remember, so it's extra cold.
Rum and coke is good. I've never heard of this single tall thing, but it sounds like a grand idea. Ditto on vanilla vodka in dr pepper.
I like mudslides. Some places serve them like a milkshake, some places it's a regular cocktail. I like them both.
Do you like wine? I like sweet, mild whites like moscato or riesling. I also like ruby port, which is a super sweet, deep tasting dessert wine. It's stronger, though, so you might not like it. (for best effect, let it ever so slightly warm, and pair with something chocolate)
I also love really fresh, fruity things with just a touch of liquor. Mixing peach nectar, OJ, pineapple juice with peach schnapps and vanilla vodka, shake, and carefully add a little grenadine or juice from the maraschino cherry jar.
Arnold palmer with peach schnapps. FANTASTIC. And really easy to order, cuz I get an AP, and ask for the shot on the side. Pour in half of it, mix, enjoy, get a free refill (most places) and add the other half. Two big drinks, but only one shot of liquor!
Buttershots is good. I like that just over ice, sipped slow. Very sweet.
And finally, my specialty, mentioned in another thread. 1 ounce bailey's, half ounce vanilla vodka (or kahlua), 1 ounce cold coffee or espresso, teeny splash of creme de menthe, four ounces chocolate milk. Shake the hell out of it til it's nice and frothy, and enjoy.

[Jester]

I agree that you should probably be ordering your drinks tall, I which basically means same amount of booze, bigger glass, more mixer. This will dilute the taste of whatever alcohol you are using.

Normally I would suggest basic vodkas and rums, but it sounds like you are especially sensitive to the taste of alcohol, so that might not work for you. Spiced rum might be good for you, with your choice of soda (tall, of course), though even that might not work. Clearly you're gonna have to try a few things.

Frozen drinks should work beautifully, as most frozen drinks mask the taste of alcohol considerably. Mudslides, daiquiris, piña coladas, etc. I would, however, steer clear of margaritas and rum runners, as even the frozen varieties might be too strong in alcoholic taste for you.

Juice drinks are good, as you've already discovered with your Malibu bay breezes. Sours can be your friend, though I would not recommend whiskey sours, but amaretto sours or even Midori sours. (If you're unfamiliar with it, Midori is a melon-flavored liqueur.)

You say you hate beer, but there are beers out there that don't taste all that much like the beer you normally think of. Fruit beers and lambics (a Belgian style of fruit beer) come to mind, as do ciders. Just like anything else, some are better than others, so you'll have to find what works for you.

And that last part is the key. Ultimately only you can figure out what works for you, so experiment. Taste your friends' drinks, if they'll let you. Ask your bartender for recommendations. I've gotten to the point in my life where I know what I like, but I didn't start out that way...in college I tried lots of things, which ultimately led me to where I am now: beer, rum, and wine are awesome, gin is disgusting, and vodka is only good when surrounded by a Bloody Mary. But it tools me years of experimentation to figure it out.

So drink up...and good luck!

[JPD]

Thanks you, everyone here is awesome and so helpful.

[DeltaSierra]

I'm not a big drinker either - can't stand the taste of beer and most coolers are too sweet. I usually get dark rum & coke with lime (Cuba Libre if you wanna be fancy shmancy) though I also enjoy amaretto and whiskey sours, and tequila sunrises.

Have you tried wine?

[JPD]

Have you tried wine?

I have tried a handful of wines, and if I'm at a store when there having a tasting, I'll stop and try a sip. I have yet to find a wine that doesn't taste to strong for me.

[lilnizzie]

I've had a peach bellini that I really liked. Hardly any taste of alcohol at all, UNLESS you let it sit, and the alcohol sinks to the bottom (or whatever scientific-y thing alcohol does) I just keep stirring my drink, and i'm good.

[Seshat]

And there's also the 'no alcohol' option. Get your drinks 'virgin'.

If anyone tries to get in your face about it <strikethrough>they're being horribly rude</strikethrough> claim to be on a medication which doesn't mix with alcohol.

[Sonoma]

I don't care for the taste of alcohol either, but my sister got me started on Smith & Kearns years ago. It's iced, so very yummy in the summer, plus the ice dilutes the alcohol.

Ingredients:
•2 oz coffee liqueur
•2 oz cream
•Club soda to fill

Preparation:

1.Pour the coffee liqueur and cream into a cocktail shaker filled with ice.

[protege]

And finally, my specialty, mentioned in another thread. 1 ounce bailey's, half ounce vanilla vodka (or kahlua), 1 ounce cold coffee or espresso, teeny splash of creme de menthe, four ounces chocolate milk. Shake the hell out of it til it's nice and frothy, and enjoy.

Baileys is good stuff. I don't have it very often, since I usually go for Crown Royal & Coke. But, since Baileys tastes a bit like chocolate milk. With this, I have to be careful--the alcohol taste is masked. Too much, and I'll be on the floor