The purpose of this study is to challenge the discourse that underage drinking is inevitably ‘deviant’. Rather than imposing an adultist lens, the article draws upon focus-group interviews with 14–15 year olds. The meaningful role of drinking is explored, along with the capability of peer cultures to manage some alcohol-related ‘risks’. The data suggest that the prioritisation of adultist constructs over teenage subject experiences appears somewhat misplaced since teenage norms are not complete subversions of the adult world. Apparent transgression is better understood as alternative socialisation, since teenage peer groups creatively reproduce the wider culture.