Because, you know, 31? Anyway, recently every so often (not all the time, not even often, but most often when I’ve had a few to drink) I’ve had a perfectly normal burp urge… only it turns out to be more of a “vurp”, only it’s almost entirely an acid awfulness in the back of my throat.
Is that what your 30’s feels like?
I have thought the same thing, but not until I was 40.
Sounds like you have some form of GERD, which is controllable. I have had the symptoms since early adulthood (I am now 72) and used to eat Rolaids by the bottle full. It was only about 15 years, or so ago, that I was finally diagnosed correctly and given a prescription medication.
I’d suggest that you get your doctor to check it out but it is not something, necessarily something caused by getting older.
Good Luck, Bob
There are medicines to control it. As others have said, see a doctor. My understanding is that if it occurs on a regular basis it can cause long term damage to your throat.
GERD is possible, but, if it only happens right after you eat or drink, you could just be not swallowing as well as you used to. Be sure to wash down anything with plenty of water.
And alcohol is a muscle relaxant, so it may be making it harder to swallow.
What Bob said.
Long-term reflux can scar the lower end of your esophagus and cause all sorts of nasty issues.
See doctor plskthx.
I barf up acid like that often enough (once every 5-6 weeks). It’s usually accompanied by heartburn, but not necessarily. You feel that sting in the back of your throat, and go, “Ohhh! Shouldn’t have had that Jabanero and lemon juice smoothie, after all!”
And I’m not quite 25. So yeah, not old age. 
I’ve had the same since I was a child, but I have digestive problems which got a lot worse with age (I’m 26 now, things started to go to pieces when I was 22 or so), and I’m now on a fairly strict diet to manage that.
It’s a sign that things aren’t working quite right, and can potentially be serious. So keep an eye on it, have some food with your booze to buffer the effects of a stomach full of alcoholic beverages, and maybe ask your doctor at the next check-up.
It can get real serious. It leads to esophageal cancer. My uncle died from it 5 years ago and my mom died from it 3 weeks ago. Stomach acid is about the only symptom you’ll get too. By the time you think there’s something else wrong and finally go to a doctor to see what it is, they tell you that you have about a month left. They then stretch that out to two miserable years.
See your doctor and ask for a gastroenterologist recommendation. Daily medication should fit the bill.
Always check on generics and OTC stuff; Prilosec and many other drugs are now over the counter and cheap, though sometimes it’s still cheaper to get it filled at the pharmacy. Make sure you price compare, since it’ll be $5-20 bucks a month going forward.
If it were me, I’d look into lifestyle changes to manage the problem first. THen again, I usually try to minimize the amount of meds I take - I’ll already have to take seizure management meds for the rest of my life. I’d rather avoid having to take anything else if I can.
Anyway, if you’re overweight, that can contribute to acid reflux. Also, see if you have certain trigger foods that you can avoid. It sounds like alcohol is the problem - maybe if you cut back on your intake, you could still enjoy the taste, but not the nasty side effects. Fried food can do a number of me. So can soda and alcohol.
And, as mentioned below, if you’re consuming the booze or anything else pretty fast, try to slow it down. Eating a bit less, chewing everything well (something I often forget to do when I’m trying to bolt down some food while on my way to work) and exercising more pretty much eliminate it as an issue for me.
Mention to the doctor - but if it’s only an intermittent thing you might be able to control it with regular antacids (Tums etc.).
If it becomes more of a routine, then look into the proton pump inhibitors such as Prilosec, or the acid reducers such as Zantac.
As others have said, it sounds GERDish and if it becomes chronic, is something you need to manage because it does put you at increased risk of esophageal issues up to and including cancer.
For what it’s worth, I had reflux issues pretty much all my life - burping up not just acidy yuck, but full on repeats of what I’d eaten (sometimes hours beforehand). Lovely. I assumed it was normal!
In my late 20s, I started having actual heartburn. For the longest time I managed it with chowing down on antacids (and Tums contain calcium so there was that benefit too!). I use Prilosec now - and as the gastro who did the endoscopy last year said, it’s working - no Barrett’s / precancerous stuff (Typo Knig, on the other hand, DOES have Barrett’s… :().
You do need to discuss with the doctor so it’s on the record, however. PPIs are wonderfully safe drugs but as with anything, there can be side effects (one effect of the PPI is that there seems to be a link to osteoporosis because you don’t absorb calcium as well).
I had to read this twice - I was wondering about your time-travelling food. 
This started happening to me in my 40s, and it did cause polyps to form in my throat. I could feel them and thought I might have throat cancer! But a doctor diagnosed me with GERD and gave me Prevacid to take. After a while, the polyps went away. I pretty much have to take Prevacid full-time now, though.
I could have it fixed for good surgically. The problem is a valve is not shutting properly anymore. Replacing the valve would do it. I’ve been told it’s just an overnight stay in the hospital. Maybe one of these days I’ll take the time.
Are you sure it’s an actual valve replacement?
There’s fundoplication - which involves wrapping a bit of the stomach to snug down the esophagus - but I hadn’t heard of any other surgical option. Would love to see a link if you have info.
I don’t have a link. That’s just what the doctor told me. Perhaps that’s just my particular case, dunno. I haven’t checked into it further. When I was first diagnosed, I took two or three four-week courses of Prevacid (30mg), and then I could go a few months without it acting up again. That between time kept whittling down to now I can only go a few days, if that, without starting to take it again, so I’ve been thinking about asking the doctor again.
I had something similar during my early 30’s and it turned out to be stress related. Dealt with the stress and the stomach sorted itself.
Get thee to a doctor and find out for sure.
31, eh? You’re getting old! I’m a spry young 30-year-old, here!
I started getting the same thing in my late 20s. It seems I’m acid sensitive. Marinara sauce is the worst offender.
But yeah, I get acid + heartburn if I eat poorly or drink too much. OTC acid regulators (I use generic OTC famotidine) solves the bad acute cases. Watching what I eat and drink prevents it.
31 !!! You’re still a babe.
Didn’t get my heartburn until my mid 40’s…Thank God !!! I don’t really think it is age, cuz young people can even contract this. It has lots to do with tomato-based products, onions, caffeinated drinks, fruit juices…alcohol for sure and lots more…all of the foods and drinks we really love to consume.
Keep smilin…things can get better!!!
Better get to a doctor and have your throat scoped.
I started with the burping acid. Before long, I would wake up at 3AM, sweating and bloated. I’d finally puke up acid and feel 100% better. I used to keep a large plastic jar/lid by the bed that I could grab in seconds. There wasn’t time to run to the bathroom
Thankfully I got to a doc that scoped both ends. Found major irritation in my throat where it joins with the stomach. Prilosec changed my life. There’s still a few foods I can’t eat. Bell Pepper is the worst. Any spicy Mexican food. I can only eat very mild Mexican. Otherwise, I wake up puking in the early morning. Bell Pepper just kills me. I can burp that filthy stuff for hours and hours. Even after a shot of Mylanta.
I’m due for another scope test early next year to see if some of the irritation has healed. I’ve been on Prilosec three years.