What do you call an alcoholic beverage?

I call it a cocktail if it’s a mixed drink made by a bartender, or a complicated mixed drink made at home. I also use the term drink, as in “I need a drink” but then I might have a cocktail. If I’m making something simple like a gin and tonic I would be more likely to call it by its name.

ETA I wouldn’t call all alcohol a cocktail. Wine is wine, shots are shots, a mixed drink is a cocktail.

I call them cocktails for anything that's not beer or wine. Rarely do I call it a drink.

Cocktails are specific things. A gin and tonic or a beer or a vodka and coke are drinks…a Passionfruit martini, a Manhattan or a Slow Comfortable Screw are cocktails.

I use the word quite a lot because my Dd and SIL own a cocktail bar 😁

I use cocktail only in reference to my time as a "cocktail wench". Beer is beer, wine is wine and all other alcoholic drinks are beverages. Non-alcoholic drinks are called what they are, water, milk, juice.

I say drink. Rarely I might distinguish a “mixed drink” like a lemon drop or margarita vs a hard cider, wine…

*makes mental note to remember gar's second paragraph*

😁 Just let me know when you’re heading my way 😊

Usually a drink. I use cocktail ironically, I guess, when I want to sound artificially fancy. 😂

I mostly only drink beer with an occasional margarita, pina colada or daquiri. My DH drinks bourbon and coke usually. Sometimes Tito's and soda.

When referring to adult beverages, we use drink and cocktail equally and interchangeably.

In my neck of the woods we mostly say drink(s), as in, “ Hey! Wanna go to the cocktail lounge for drinks?” 🤣 (i’ve never been to a cocktail lounge or cocktail bar)

Generally we say beer, wine, shots, or drinks, but I might on occasion also say mixed drinks so that people would then know for sure it was alcoholic drinks. The only time we ever use the term cocktail is if a few of us are getting together to try some new drink recipes we might fancy things up by saying cocktail lol

"Drinks" to me includes beer, wine, shots and mixed drinks.

I rarely, if ever, use the term "cocktails." I usually say "mixed drinks."

This discussion reminds me of a funny exchange I once had w/ a clerk at a gift shop. They sold custom wooden serving boards. You could have your family name, school name, etc. engraved on the boards. I was looking through the catalog, which had examples of different boards with family names and other things engraved on them. There was one serving board w/ an anchor and the word "docktails" engraved on it. I said "Oh, I'd like to order one just like it for our lake house." The lady called me the next day to tell me she had ordered the cutting board w/ the anchor. She said she asked them to engrave our last name on the serving board in place of "docktails."

I said "It's for our lake house, so I want it to say "docktails" instead of our name. We like to sit on our dock and have a drink or two after boating."

The lady called me back a few minutes later and said "Okay I changed your order, but the person I talked to at the serving board company agreed w/ me that it was strange you wanted your platter to have the Docktails' family name on it instead of your own.

I don’t drink alcohol anymore, so I don’t need to call it anything.

With that said, I have noticed that when we go to area restaurants and/or pubs, they usually hand us a separate menu that has headings for beer, wine, cocktails and spirits. I think if I wanted to order some type of an alcoholic beverage, I would ask for just that - the alcoholic beverage menu.

I don't think I often use a generic term and drink(s) to me includes non-alcoholic options as well.

I'm more likely to use a specific term - beer, white wine, cider, or the name of a specific cocktail or mixed drink(such as Long Island Iced Tea or mudslide) than a generic term.

we're not teetotalers but we're not much into alcohol either - maybe a drink or two/month at most and some months, none at all. Maybe a little more in the winter if you count a splash of Baileys in the hot cocoa.

Adult Beverage! LOL