# Drinking beer, then wine, then whisky...Why is it so bad? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [May 17, 2005, 11:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drinking-beer-then-wine-then-whisky-why-is-it-so-bad/304219 "2005-05-17T11:57:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Atroxe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f1d935/32.png) [@Atroxe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atroxe)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2005, 11:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drinking-beer-then-wine-then-whisky-why-is-it-so-bad/304219/1 "2005-05-17T11:57:00Z")
So my question is why mixing different kinds of alcoholic drinks gets you so sick and gives you such a nasty hangover the morning after? For example, I’ve had a bad experience some years ago. I had drunk about one liter of cider, then I drank 0.75 liter of beer. That’s not a lot of alcohol, but I never got so sick in my whole life. After all, it’s the ethanol that gets you drunk, and the beer’s ethanol is the same as the cider’s. So what’s the deal? ---
**Author:** ![mittu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ecd19e/32.png) [@mittu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mittu)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2005, 11:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drinking-beer-then-wine-then-whisky-why-is-it-so-bad/304219/2 "2005-05-17T11:58:46Z")
[The Master Speaks](http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a2_230.html) ---
**Author:** ![Quercus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/7ab992/32.png) [@Quercus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quercus)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2005, 1:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drinking-beer-then-wine-then-whisky-why-is-it-so-bad/304219/3 "2005-05-17T13:34:04Z")
Ethanol is ethanol, and there’s not enough other stuff in anything you’ll reasonably drink to make much of a difference in your hangover. There is some sense in the 'liquor then beer, never fear; beer then liquor, never sicker" saying, but only because of the differing concentrations of alcohol. The idea is after pounding a couple of beers, if you switch to whiskey and keep pounding at the same rate, you’re going to get a lot more alcohol than you were expecting. Wheras coversely, if you start off sipping whiskey, then when you switch to beer, you’re likely to still be in a little bit of a sipping mode, and won’t drink as much as quickly. The only other thing to say is that mixing a lot of kinds of alcohol probably means that a) there was a large quantity of alcohol available, and b) you were interested in drinking a lot of it, as well as c) clearly, if you’ve had 8 different kinds of alcohol, it means you’ve had at least 8 drinks, which is enough to be heading for a hangover whether or not they were all the same kind. In other words, you probably mix kinds of liquor on nights you drink a lot, and drinking a lot tends to produce hangovers, but it’s the quantiity of alcohol, not the mix of drinks that causes the bad morning. ---
**Author:** ![SmackFu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/53a042/32.png) [@SmackFu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SmackFu)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2005, 2:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drinking-beer-then-wine-then-whisky-why-is-it-so-bad/304219/4 "2005-05-17T14:35:08Z")
> [@mittu](#): > > [The Master Speaks](http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a2_230.html) …featuring the most paragraphs in any single Cecil column. ---
**Author:** ![Gary\_Robson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gary_robson/32/3448_2.png) [@Gary\_Robson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gary_Robson)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2005, 3:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drinking-beer-then-wine-then-whisky-why-is-it-so-bad/304219/5 "2005-05-17T15:23:53Z")
> [@Quercus](#): > > Ethanol is ethanol, and there’s not enough other stuff in anything you’ll reasonably drink to make much of a difference in your hangover. I think there is massive empirical evidence to refute this statement. I’m not a heavy drinker (although I did drink a fair amount in my younger days), so three drinks is usually where I stop. Three tequilas (on the rocks) leaves me with no headache or other hangover symptoms. Three glasses of champagne leaves me with a pounding headache. In my experience, the sweeter the drink, the more likely I’ll get a headache from it. Late-harvest wines and sweet desert wines seem to be the worst. Zinfandels and most mixed drinks are average. Guinness or straight tequila, no problem at all. Guinness _and_ straight tequila = ouch! ---
**Author:** ![Jake4](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/bc8723/32.png) [@Jake4](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jake4)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2005, 4:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drinking-beer-then-wine-then-whisky-why-is-it-so-bad/304219/6 "2005-05-17T16:19:07Z")
> [@InvisibleWombat](#): > > In my experience, the sweeter the drink, the more likely I’ll get a headache from it. Late-harvest wines and sweet desert wines seem to be the worst. Zinfandels and most mixed drinks are average. Guinness or straight tequila, no problem at all. Guinness _and_ straight tequila = ouch! mmmmmm…sweet desert…_slobber_ It’s ok, we know you meant dessert. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![CynicalGabe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/3e96dc/32.png) [@CynicalGabe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CynicalGabe)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2005, 7:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drinking-beer-then-wine-then-whisky-why-is-it-so-bad/304219/7 "2005-05-17T19:15:02Z")
> [@SmackFu](#): > > …featuring the most paragraphs in any single Cecil column. I’m strangely awed by your knowledge of SD trivia. ---
**Author:** ![CynicalGabe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/3e96dc/32.png) [@CynicalGabe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CynicalGabe)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2005, 7:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drinking-beer-then-wine-then-whisky-why-is-it-so-bad/304219/8 "2005-05-17T19:21:15Z")
> [@SmackFu](#): > > …featuring the most paragraphs in any single Cecil column. I’m strangely awed by your knowledge of SD trivia. ---
**Author:** ![Gary\_Robson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gary_robson/32/3448_2.png) [@Gary\_Robson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gary_Robson)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2005, 7:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drinking-beer-then-wine-then-whisky-why-is-it-so-bad/304219/9 "2005-05-17T19:57:05Z")
> [@Jake4](#): > > It’s ok, we know you meant dessert. 🙂 :smack: No. Wait a minute. Yes. I’ve got it. Those desert wines have less water, so the sugar concentration is higher. Yeah! That’s it. That’s the ticket. Whew. Thought you had me. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![vetbridge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/b5e925/32.png) [@vetbridge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/vetbridge)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2005, 9:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drinking-beer-then-wine-then-whisky-why-is-it-so-bad/304219/10 "2005-05-17T21:11:54Z")
I like the song **One Bourbon, One Scotch, One Beer** , both the Thorogood and Hooker renditions. Last year I asked a bartender how often someone would order that combination (in honor of the song). He told me never. So I ordered and drank one bourbon, one scotch, one beer. Two shots and a bottle of whatever. BLECH! Do not try this at home. Professional drinker at a test bar. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2005, 9:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drinking-beer-then-wine-then-whisky-why-is-it-so-bad/304219/11 "2005-05-17T21:22:00Z")
> [@vetbridge](#): > > I like the song **One Bourbon, One Scotch, One Beer** , both the Thorogood and Hooker renditions. Last year I asked a bartender how often someone would order that combination (in honor of the song). He told me never. So I ordered and drank one bourbon, one scotch, one beer. Two shots and a bottle of whatever. BLECH! > > Do not try this at home. Professional drinker at a test bar. It doesn’t sound to bad to me. I often get one bourbon/Scotch/Irish/rye and a beer. All you’re doing is adding an extra shot of whiskey to the table. ---
**Author:** ![vetbridge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/b5e925/32.png) [@vetbridge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/vetbridge)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2005, 9:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drinking-beer-then-wine-then-whisky-why-is-it-so-bad/304219/12 "2005-05-17T21:30:26Z")
Thing is, I _like_ Scotch. But a shot of Scotch right on the tail of a Bourbon totally transforms the taste. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2005, 11:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drinking-beer-then-wine-then-whisky-why-is-it-so-bad/304219/13 "2005-05-17T23:26:26Z")
> [@vetbridge](#): > > Thing is, I _like_ Scotch. But a shot of Scotch right on the tail of a Bourbon totally transforms the taste. Hmm…I’ve never mixed my whiskeys before. I’ll have to give it a shot and see what happens.