Drinking is definitely a no-no but even more important than the impairment is the fact that alcohol thins the blood, so while the tat artist is pushing ink into the skin, the thinned blood is trying to push it out. The result is lines, color and shading may need to be redone, and after it heals going over the same spot can be more painful because of the scar tissue that is unseen but there none the less. And besides that the pain of the tat that you are trying to lessen with alcohol is a very important part of this age old ritual and transformation!