I have talked about alcohol and alcoholism on this forum before. Your post has some familiar earmarks to it and it might prompt you to reconsider your social situation. I am not going to placate your post and give you a soft approach to the situation, it appears at first glance that there is a serious problem here. Also, this post is NOT an attempt to make a diagnosis one way or another of your situation, but I hope that maybe there can be some illumination of the subject at hand.
Before I begin, let me tell you that I have worked with and worked for several different agencies with regards to peer support and rehabilitation of dependant flight crew members, and also have worked in developing rehabilitation programs for those in the industry. In short, I have some background in the business.
You have said:
For the record like many thritysomethings I drink a few glasses of wine most nights of the week ie 1/2 to 2/3 of a bottle isn't uncommon and I manage a whole bottle at the weekends when dinner parties etc happen. I do stay dry a night or two a week.
It is unfair to categorize 'many thirtysomethings' as drinking a few glasses of wine most nights of the week. In fact, most non-dependant thirtysomethings, especially professionals within the airline industry, drink nothing all week and rarely drink a bottle at a dinner party. Non-dependant people can put the cork in the bottle and go for many days without having a drink. It's not if you can do without for a night or two a week, but can YOU put it away for months at a time and not have to think about the next drink at all?
You have said:
I never touch spirits and I hardly drink any beer
The fact of the matter is: No matter what you drink or what you prefer to drink, alcohol is all the same. It isn't the redness or clarity of the wine that you drink for the buzz, it isn't the amber of the scotch nor is it the bubbles in the beer that cause the problem. It is the alcohol and the alcohol alone that gives concern. It is also a myth that 'light beer', 'light wine', fortified or unfortified is better. It all boils down to the one main ingredient....alcohol, and alcohol causes problems.
I am not a medical doctor and will never front myself as being one. It is the medical doctor who gives diagnosis of alcoholism and it appears that your examiner has already given you a warning flag about your situation. That said however; as a counsellor and my knowledge of the disease of alcoholism, I would say that there are certain common characteristics to what you have alluded to here in your comments, that I have found in others with whom I have worked and work with.
Should you spend the money on further training? That is certainly up to you, however; let you be aware of certain things.
With the increased insurance premiums that air carriers (large and small) are having to face in light of world situations, pre-employment testing and screening has been increased. Blood and urine tests have become the baseline for most acceptance or denials of employment. Do you have to take these medicals? No, not unless you want the job. No one will force you to take any medical, but under the regulations, one must present themselves for a medical under the same conditions as one would be appearing for work. Pilots have had a medical with-held for having a head cold on the day of their medical.
After one has been accepted for employment, however; the rules do change. Regulatory and corporate rules come to play and are enforceable. Refusal of a breath test or markers in a urine test can give rise to a whole range of issues, the least being the loss of the best job in the world. Simply denying or trying to justify by other means, a disease or dependancy just won't stand up to the test. The issue here is, are you honest enough to see that there might be a problem and are you willing to seek help.
If you or any other fellow colleagues out there would like some further clarity, you can always send me a private message. I would only be too happy to help out.