The Worst Hangovers Come From This Kind Of Liquor, According To Snoop Dogg

The rapper and multi-platform entertainer Snoop Dogg won many fans singing about "Gin and Juice" way back in 1993. These days, he's hosting the 2026 Milano-Cortina Winter Olympics, presenting at the Golden Globes, collaborating with designer brand Moschino — and giving advice on hangovers. According to Snoop Dogg, the kind of liquor most likely to give you a brutal hangover isn't the clear stuff like vodka or gin — it's brown-hued spirits. In a 2017 interview with Vice, he recalled his early experiences with alcohol: "I didn't do the brown, man ... 'cause I'm brown enough. Too much brown ain't good enough for you," he wisely acknowledged. "The worst hangovers are with the brown."

When Snoop talks about "the brown," he's referring to darker liquors like whiskey, bourbon, brandy, aged rum, and other barrel-aged spirits. These are all drinks that develop their color and much of their flavor from time spent in wood casks. That produces compounds called congeners, which are exactly what scientists blame when it comes to a hangover so severe not even ginger ale can potentially cure your nausea. Some studies, such as a 2010 paper published in Alcohol Clinical & Experimental Research, suggest that congeners may contribute to more intense hangovers, as they're harder for the body to metabolize. Congeners aren't all bad; by definition, they're simply organic byproducts that give darker liquors their unmistakable tastes, aromas, and color. Bourbon happens to have one of the highest amounts of congeners, while vodka and beer have the least.

Snoop Dogg's other comments about discovering alcohol in his youth further prove this theory. In an interview with LA Weekly, he credits his mom with introducing him to the classic combination of gin and juice: "Momma was a cold drinker in the '70s," he recalled, further describing get-togethers at their home. "They be drinking their Tanqueray and having a good time and partying." He also reflected that his experience with darker liquors was the kind that left him regretting it the next morning. "The ones that you be like, 'Oh my god, I'm never gonna drink again,'" he said. "You never got those with [the clear spirits]."

Of course, it's worth noting that individual responses to alcohol vary greatly. This can be influenced by genetics, hydration, how fast you drink, what you've eaten, and what mixers are involved, all of which can play big roles in how you feel the next morning. But give it up to Snoop to present a simple rule that many drinkers have observed anecdotally for years, and which the science backs up. 

If you're ready to make the switch from brown to clear, these are some of the best vodka brands ranked by experts. Just remember that how much you drink matters far more than what color it is. Slamming multiple vodka shots will still hurt you, regardless of the congener count. We'll let Snoop have the last word when it comes to his favorite spirit: "Gin is upper echelon. It's a step up" (via LA Weekly).