I was in a bar recently and was asked if I'd like a drink, so I  replied "I'll have a Jamesons and coke please". I may as well have said "I'll have a chalice of freshly squeezed blood from the cutest fluffiest kitten you can find". What is so peculiar about a woman drinking whiskey?

Are some drinks still seen as gender specific? No-one raises an eyebrow at women drinking lager anymore, but do things like whiskey remain in the male domain? Do women really prefer sweet, fruity drinks, or do they drink them because that is what society has conditioned them to do? How much of it is about marketing and image rather than taste? Does image really matter? Whiskey and coke looks the same in a glass as any other, more female friendly, spirit with coke, or indeed just coke.

Quite bemused by this reaction, I thought I'd pose the question on Twitter. I asked "Is it weird for a woman to drink Jamesons and coke?", fully expecting the overwhelming response to be "No, it's fine". I was wrong. The overwhelming response was that it's weird and blokey, or that it was fine if said woman was an alcoholic. I am not an alcoholic, and despite being a massive sports fan, I don't think I'm blokey either.

I don't like most stereotypical 'girly' drinks like alcopops and white zinfandel. I mostly drink shiraz, Jamesons or continental beer. I've never been bothered about conforming to stereotypes before, and I'm not going to start now.

Mine's a whiskey.