Why Do Different Alcohols Affect You Differently? And Do They Really?

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Beer, wine, malt liquor, and whiskey—some people prefer one over the others due to the perceived effects of certain types of alcohol. But is there scientific backing to this ingrained perception? And if so, how do different alcohols affect you differently?

In this article:

• Alcohol Expectancy Theory: Perceptions and Percentages
• Drinking Behaviors That Change Alcoholic Effects
• Material Factors That Influence Alcoholic Effects
• Do Different Alcohols Affect You Differently?

Alcohol Expectancy Theory: Perceptions and Percentages

You’ve likely heard someone vow that whiskey makes them mean, wine relaxes them, or beer gives them energy. Some may say liquor intoxicates them more than beer, or wine gives them a hangover. These people tend to associate a specific type of alcohol with changing emotions, moods, and behaviors.

The alcohol expectancy theory refers to the idea that people drink specific alcoholic beverages due to how they think it influences behaviors, positively or negatively. Positive effects, such as being more social and having a happier mood, lead to increased drinking. Adverse effects—feeling guilty or depressed—result in decreased drinking.¹

Discussions surrounding alcohol expectancy often produce questions like:

• “Do different alcohols affect you differently?”
• “Is tequila an upper?”
• “Why does wine make me sleepy?”

Many associate types of drinks with their perceived effects. However, these effects are not produced by different types of alcohol. There is only one real type of alcohol.

Ethanol: The Intoxicating Ingredient

Common among all alcoholic drinks is the ingredient ethanol or ethyl alcohol. This ingredient does not change whether in beer, wine, liquors, or hand sanitizer. Ethanol is a product derived by fermenting natural sugars; in its purest form, it is safe to consume.²

Drinking ethanol leads to intoxication by suppressing the central nervous system, where functions like walking, talking, and decision-making occur. Therefore, the first changes you may notice when drinking alcohol are slurred speech and impaired coordination.²

Because ethanol is pure in all forms of alcohol, it is not the reason some types of alcohol affect you differently. It is the amount of ethanol consumed that changes the effects.

How to Understand Proof and Percentage

Misunderstanding how much alcohol you consume can lead to a misconception of how various drinks affect you. Proof and percentage tell you how much of the liquid you drink is alcohol compared to other ingredients. The higher the proof, the more alcohol is present. In the United States, a drink’s proof is twice the amount of alcohol by volume (ABV) or percentage.³

For example, if a bottle of whiskey says it is 40% alcohol, it is 80 proof. You can calculate ABV and proof to determine the amount of alcohol, which is why types of alcohol can affect you differently.

What is a Standard Alcoholic Drink?

Whether you drink one standard drink or five, the amount of alcohol is the same, and the effects should be the same. However, not everyone understands the concept of standard drinks. Alcohol packaging and creative servings can confuse audiences about how much they imbibe. Some may think a standard drink of beer is a 12-ounce can or 16-ounce bottle. Others feel an 8-ounce mixed drink or a full glass of wine are standard drinks. These are misconceptions.

A standard drink is 6 fluid ounces or 14 grams of pure ethanol. This is typically much lower than the sum alcoholic content of beverages served in restaurants, bars, clubs, or home brews and mixers. Below are examples that equal one standard drink:⁴

• 12 fluid ounces of beer that has 5% alcohol
• 8-9 fluid ounces of malt liquor that is 7% alcohol
• 5 fluid ounces of wine that is 12% alcohol
• 3-4 fluid ounces of fortified wine such as sherry or port that is 17% alcohol
• 2-3 fluid ounces of cordial or liqueur that is 24% alcohol
• 5 fluid ounces of brandy or cognac that is 40% alcohol
• 5 fluid ounces of distilled spirits or whiskey that is 40% alcohol

How Much Are You Really Drinking?

It would be nice if all alcoholic drinks met the basic standard guidelines, but this is not a requirement of manufacturers or distributors. Many containers hold more than the standard amount, so common drink sizes have various ratios compared with the standard drink.⁵

Beer that is 5% alcohol:

• 16 fluid ounces equals 1¹/₃ standard drinks
• 22 fluid ounces equals 2 standard drinks
• 40-ounce can is equal to 3.5 standard drinks

Malt liquor that is 7% alcohol:

• 16 ounces equals 2 standard drinks
• 22 ounces equals 2.5 standard drinks
• 40 ounces equals 4.5 standard drinks

Table wine is 12% alcohol:

• ½ bottle of 375 ml equals 2.5 standard drinks
• 1 full bottle of 750 ml equals 5 standard drinks

Distilled spirits that are 40% alcohol:

• ½ pint equals 4.5 standard drinks
• Pint or half bottle equals 8.5 standard drinks
• A fifth equals 17 standard drinks

Thus, the question “Do different alcohols affect you differently?” misses the nuances of the answer. Why does wine make me sleepy? Perhaps quiet, contemplative atmospheres in restaurants induce that effect, but wine tends to be savored slower and with less alcoholic content than hard liquor. Is tequila an upper? If you drink many highly concentrated shots quickly while in an ecstatic state, it can appear to be.

Drinking Behaviors That Change Alcoholic Effects

Many factors alter the effects alcohol has on your mood and behavior. You may not even realize some of these factors exist. Or perhaps, understandably, you do not consider them very closely while imbibing.

Environmental Influences

For example, the environment in which you consume alcohol influences how you respond to it. Consider the pensive, calming setting of a fine dining restaurant mentioned before. Environmental influences can include parents, peers, overall attitudes of crowds at clubs, as well as positive or adverse life events. Other environmental influences include:⁶

• Experiencing past trauma
• Living in a disadvantaged neighborhood
• Life stressors such as financial problems, divorce, death of a loved one, and domestic violence
• Religious involvement and beliefs
• Co-occurrence of any of the above

A stressful environment can create ripe situations for misuse, as alcohol can be seen as means for escape; a bottle of wine might carry different connotations when drunk alone rather than with a date or friends. Even life-affirming scenarios—big, riotous celebrations with friends or family—can change the alcoholic effects of tequila from one slowly sipped margarita into several shots done in quick succession.

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Consumption Time

How quickly you consume alcoholic standard drinks changes how that alcohol affects you. Sipping on a drink is best because it gives the body time to process the alcohol. Drinking a large amount of alcohol in a short period raises the blood alcohol concentration.

Binge drinking is a profound problem in the U.S. This habit involves consuming enough alcohol in two hours that your blood alcohol concentration level reaches 0.08 or above. For men, this is five standard drinks; for women, it is four.⁷

Binge drinking is very dangerous. One standard drink metabolizes and processes out of the body in about an hour. If you drink too much in a short time, alcohol can overwhelm your brain and central nervous system, preventing them from functioning properly. You may even experience an alcohol overdose that can be fatal or greatly harmful.⁸

Material Factors That Influence Alcoholic Effects

Besides behavioral influences found in certain settings and timeframes, there are material and biological elements that make different alcohols affect you differently.

Mixing Alcohol with Other Substances

Many people who misuse alcohol also misuse other substances. Alcohol, when consumed on its own, can lead to dire consequences. When mixed with other substances, alcohol affects you much differently, increasing the chances of negative consequences. Examples of substances often mixed with alcohol include:⁹

• Energy drinks
• Caffeine
• Depressants
• Stimulants
• Prescription opioids

Each substance can be hazardous when combined, leading to unforeseen overdoses that can impair coordination and cause blackouts or comas.⁹

It is common to add sugars like glucose and fructose to cocktails and flavored beers. Doing so can make you want to increase the amount you consume. This may be particularly dangerous for adolescents whose brains are not developed fully, and neurological and biological mechanisms can be influenced by both sugar and alcohol.¹⁰

Alcohol Intolerance

Alcohol intolerance is another reason why some types of alcohol affect you differently. Intolerance results from a genetic abnormality that interferes with your body’s ability to metabolize alcohol. A reaction to alcohol also may be caused by a genetic allergy to any ingredients or components used to make alcohol. For example, wine-making includes:¹²

• Grape proteins
• Yeast
• Molds
• Clearing agents
• Acetaldehyde
• Flavonoids
• Sulfites

Reactions may be flushing, stuffy nose, anaphylaxis, rashes, itchy throat or face, wheezing, lip swelling, and more.¹³ Allergic reactions can range from mild to severe. Some have symptoms that last for an hour or two and go away independently. Others need to receive treatment at a local emergency room.

Other Factors that Change Alcohol’s Effects

There are many additional factors to consider when figuring out how alcohol affects you, including:¹⁴

• Food: Food consumed before drinking alcohol can slow the metabolism of alcohol.
• Older age: This is a factor due to having less body water and a slower metabolism.
• Liver enzyme activity: Women tend to have higher blood alcohol concentrations due to their liver enzymes being less active than those in men.
• Medical conditions: Liver disease can slow the metabolism of alcohol.
• Medications: Those taken for physical or psychological conditions may increase the effects of alcohol or cause an interaction.

Do Different Alcohols Affect You Differently?

In short, the answer is both yes and no. No, wine and tequila do not contain qualitatively different types of alcohol; thus, they do not change how one experiences alcohol by their own qualities.

However, factors related to consumption time, environment, alcoholic content, secondary ingredients, intolerances, allergies, and even one’s age and liver enzymes can change one’s experience with, and behavior toward, different kinds of alcoholic beverages.

To avoid any negative reactions from alcohol, it is best to drink moderately or avoid drinking alcohol altogether. If you need help reducing the amount of alcohol you consume, consider talking to a drug and alcohol therapist at a local treatment center. Even if you are not ready to stop drinking alcohol, there are ways you can participate that are safer at the time of drinking and over the long term.

If you are unsure which treatment facility to contact, we can help by connecting you to our treatment specialists. Call us at 800-948-8417 Who Answers? today.

Resources

1. Pedersen, E. R., Myers, U. S., Browne, K. C., & Norman, S. B. (2014). The Role of Alcohol Expectancies in Drinking Behavior Among Women with Alcohol Use Disorder and Comorbid Posttraumatic Stress Disorder. Journal of Psychoactive Drugs, 46(3), 178-187.
2. Mathew F, Goyal A. (2021). StatPearls [Internet]. Treasure Island (FL): StatPearls Publishing.
3. National Institute of Standards and Technology (2021). How Do You Measure the Percentage of Alcohol in Beer, Wine, and Other Beverages?
4. National Institute of Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism. Rethinking Drinking. What is a Standard Drink?
5. National Institute of Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism. Rethinking Drinking. How Many Drinks Are in Common Containers?
6. Chartier, K. G., Karriker-Jaffe, K. J., Cummings, C. R., & Kendler, K. S. (2017). Review: Environmental Influences on Alcohol Use: Informing Research on the Joint Effects of Genes and the Environment in Diverse U.S. Populations. The American Journal on Addictions, 26(5), 446-460.
7. Center for Disease Control and Prevention. (2019). Binge Drinking.
8. LaHood AJ, Kok SJ. (2021). Ethanol Toxicity. StatPearls [Internet]. Treasure Island (FL): StatPearls Publishing.
9. The University of Michigan. (2022). The Effects of Combining Drugs with Alcohol.
10. Wakabayashi, K. T., Greeman, E. A., Barrett, S. T., & Bevins, R. A. (2021). The Sugars in Alcohol Cocktails Matter. ACS Chemical Neuroscience, 12(18), 3284-3287.
11. S. National Library of Medicine. (2022). Alcohol.
12. Wüthrich B. (2018). Allergic and Intolerance Reactions to Wine. Allergologie Select, 2(1), 80-88.
13. Bansal, R. A., Tadros, S., & Bansal, A. S. (2017). Beer, Cider, and Wine Allergy. Case Reports in Immunology, 2017, 7958924.
14. Cederbaum A. I. (2012). Alcohol Metabolism. Clinics in Liver Disease, 16(4), 667-685.