When in China, don't drink because the Chinese no longer do

This commentary responds to Jayne and Valentine's (2023) call to rethink the geographies of alcohol, drinking, and drunkenness. It introduces recent observations on the prevalence and absence of alcohol drinking within academic research and workspaces in China, and in doing so highlights how a relational approach to the geographies of alcohol is needed in overcoming existing impasses in alcohol studies.

Automated summary

This commentary responds to the call from Jayne and Valentine (2023) to rethink the geographies of alcohol, drinking, and drunkenness. It introduces recent observations on the prevalence and absence of alcohol drinking in academic research and workspaces in China, highlighting the need for a relational approach to overcome existing impasses in alcohol studies.