In this paper we report on the alcohol consumption patterns of 106 teenagers (15 year olds) living on the East coast of Scotland. We examine the social context of respondents' drinking behaviours and the meanings which they attached to their actions. Our sample consumed alcohol in multiple social contexts including on street corners, in local parks, pubs and clubs, and in friends' and their own homes. Respondents discussed four main reasons for drinking alcohol—peer influence/pressure, social facilitation, mood alteration, and to cope with personal difficulties and/or to relieve stress. We argue that as alcohol is widely used and accepted within adult society it is one of the tasks of adolescence to learn to use it appropriately. For the majority of teenagers this is a relatively unproblematic process, although it sometimes involves mistakes and episodes of drunkenness; for others, alcohol appears to have become a ‘drug of solace’. In conclusion, we argue that for health promotion to be effective it must take account of both where and why young people drink, and support those who are experiencing or are likely to have difficulties.