I know you’re aware that mixing different drinks is asking for trouble. Vodka, tequila and beer are a terrible combination, speaking from experience.
Does one get more inebriated mixing different brands of the same type of alcohol?
In other words, if I start drinking Absolut, then end my night with cheap vodka, will I end up more trashed?
Seems to happen to me.
I don’t think mixing different drinks is “asking for trouble.” Alcohol is alcohol, chemically speaking. How could it possibly make a difference what brand you are drinking?
For what it’s worth, most experts doubt that mixing your liquor makes hangovers worse.
Don’t know how that applies to level of inebriation, but in my experience, I’m with Cecil (ETA: and, apparently, WoodenTaco): alcohol is alcohol.
Since I’m not a chemist, I’ll just quote one:
I’ve always heard that vodka leaves one with a milder hangover than say, bourbon. Something to do with cogeners, or else I’m full of shit.
If I mix beer and vodka, for instance, I seem to get more inebriated,
as opposed to drinking equal amounts of either. “Equal” meaning alcohol content, not volume.
In my experience in drinking (which includes this post), as long as you stay hydrated, you’ll be relatively ok. Meaning, if I’m drinking beer all night, I’m taking in a lot of alcohol, but I’m also NOT talking in anything else. This may have me feeling like shit tomorrow. When I drink vodka, it’s usually with fruit juice or tonic. Some kind of mixer may at least give me some hydration and vitamins to help me out which may help my well-being tomorrow. BTW, gin martinis are probably the worst thing to drink if you want to avoid a hangover.
And if you’re interested, I started drinking Grolsch lager and switched to vodka/mango cocktail. If I post tomorrow about hangovers, we’ll at least have some evidence.
But that’s just it though. You seem to get more inebriated. It’s basically just the placebo effect, but with an actual drug…if that makes any sense. Basically, what I’m saying is that we’ve all heard many times the rumors that mixing types of alcohol (spirits vs beer vs wine) gets you more drunk, so to an extent we expect it, and therefore we experience it. Physiologically, all that matters is the amount of alcohol you take in in a given time frame, and that’s it. Your liver/brain/whatever doesn’t care (or even notice) where the alcohol came from, only that it IS alcohol.
Generally, I think the reason people say mixing is bad is because they tend to mix shots with drinks that are consumed slower, like beer or mixed drinks. So in that way, yes they get drunk faster, because a shot gives you all the alcohol in a few seconds, not over the course of several minutes.
A hangover, though…well, at least there we have a basis for why different types of alcohol can have an effect. A hangover is a result of several things, but at least part of it is dehydration. If all you did was shots of vodka, then you’ll be less dehydrated than someone who drank the same amount of ethanol, but had beer all night, since beer will dehydrate you more than a shot of vodka.
I agree - same with switching from beer to wine, or even ordinary beer to strong ale. If you set the pace with beer, then switch to something else with more alcohol in it, you’re likely, I think, to drink more alcohol in total.
Originally posted in the other duplicate thread:
Alcohol is alcohol apparently and the form in which you ingest it shouldn’t make any difference but I definitely notice different affects from different alcohols; vodka tends to make me more ‘awake’ drunk whereas red wine makes me drowsier. I would be interested to know if there is any scientific reason for this (maybe alcohol interacts with another ingredient in the drink?) as all scientists seem to stick to the rule of alcohol is alcohol however you ingest it, the only thing that changes is the amounts absorbed.
There are lots of other things in wines and beers, besides alcohols - tannins, sugars, acids, etc. I don’t think it’s unreasonable to say that some of these must have effects on your body that might affect the way you react to alchohol.
Also, are you drinking vodka in the same context as you would drink red wine? Half a bottle of red wine with a substantial dinner is going to affect you differently to the same amount of alcohol taken as vodka over the same period of time, but standing up at a party, on a comparatively empty stomach.
If I had to guess which contains the most water per unit of alcohol, beer or spirit + mixer, I’d probably say beer.
Especially if you have ice in your spirit drink (and don’t drink / crunch the ice).
As for vitamins, I get plenty in the slice of dried-out lime in the top of my Corona 
Update, I feel fine today. Mixed beer and vodka last night and caught a nice buzz. I agree, for the most part, it’s not what you drink, but how much alcohol you take in over time. The other basic ingredients will also play a part, such as red wine, red bull mixers, and other weirdness.
The rate at which the alcohol gets into your system is influenced by a variety of things, including the rate of gastric emptying. Gastric emptying is influenced by things such as the carbonation in your beverage, the volume of liquid consumed, and the carbohydrate content of those liquids. It stands to reason, then, that consuming vodka, a high ethanol low carbohydrate beverage, with beer, a carbonated beverage that may be high in carbohydrates, will give you a different *rate * of intoxication versus consuming the same amount of ethanol in either beer or vodka alone.
My theory has always been that the only problem with mixing drinks is you don’t realize how much you are drinking.
If you pounded 8 shots of tequilla, you might expect to be a little trashed.
But you could easily drink the same amount without realizing it by having a couple of glasses of wine with dinner, then a few beers and a shot or two.
Having a few of several things does not seem like as much as a lot of one.