Outright ban. That was and usually remains the unquestioned official position of all mainstream Muslim clergy be them Sunni (of all schools except Zahiris who can hardly can be described as "mainstream"), Twelver Shi'a, Zaydi Shi'a or Ibadi. Some Isma'ilis differ, as did some Sufi traditions and other minor sects. There are nuances (many Classical scholars held wine is permitted for medical reasons) but in general, the general religious consensus is that public consumption of any inebriating beverage containing alcohol is generally forbidden to Muslims, period. Private consumption is near-unanimously regarded as sinful as well, but rarely repressed before modern times.
This is, of course, the general official stance of the clergy. Social practice was often very very different and varied a lot by time and places. In some cases (Ottoman elites in many provinces included) the theoretical ban was simply not enforced and alcohol drinking was widely tolerated even in the open. Notably, the practice is boastfully celebrated in many literary texts across all the periods, principal centres and main languages of the Islamic world (alongside other equally religiously forbbiden things, such as extramarital and homoerotic love, leading a famed Orientalist, Ignaz Goldziher IIRC, to note that traditional Islamicate literatures are essentially a revolt against socio-religious norms). Historically, it is probably one of the least strictly practiced Islamic norms, but one that is still very rarely questioned in principle. Other times and places enforced the prohibition a lot more strictly (some modern countries can get very harsh on it).
To my knowledge, no Muslim Ottoman religious scholar ever seriously suggested that alcohol can be in any way permitted under Shari'a. If floated, such an idea would have been considered borderline insane by most other scholars, as in, more likely to be ignored as nonsense than deserving refutation. There was simply no signifcant debate on the topic at large by Ottoman times (though I am aware of heated discussions on secondary relevant issues, such as the mentioned permissibility of wine for medical purposes).
I presume that the Ottoman clergy themselves often drink as well but pretend they never did?
 
The word used is khamr . It is usually considered to refer to date wine, and grape wine by extension. While there is some disagreement on the actual extent of the term, and therefore there is wiggle room (also, the wording of the relevant Qur'anic verses is not so clear in stating blanket prohibition, though it is generally interpreted that way), the overwhelming consensus of religious scholars has always leaned to regard all alcoholic beverages as khamr, and therefore (more or less) strictly prohibited on the basis of their intoxicating effect. While a lot of "laymen" argued that "beverage X is not khamr so God has not forbidden to drink it even if I get drunk on it" there is usually very little patience for these stances in the vast majority of juridical or religious works, particularly in the central areas of the Islamic world.

Well I am not a practicing Muslim. Nor was I raised in a house where anybody was. I know my Grandmother and Aunt to be practicing believers and I live in a clearly majority Muslim State but I cannot claim to have much information on the nitty gritty of Theological rules.
 
Well I am not a practicing Muslim. Nor was I raised in a house where anybody was. I know my Grandmother and Aunt to be practicing believers and I live in a clearly majority Muslim State but I cannot claim to have much information on the nitty gritty of Theological rules.
Turkey I assume? In my experience, current social norms about alcohol in Turkey are very relaxed by Muslim-majority usual standards. And this has quite a deep tradition. (The Ottoman Empire also had A LOT of local mixing whereby mainstream Muslims lived alongside Jews, Christian or marginal Muslim groups who considered alcohol tolerated/permissible).
 
To my knowledge, no Muslim Ottoman religious scholar ever seriously suggested that alcohol can be in any way permitted under Shari'a. If floated, such an idea would have been considered borderline insane by most other scholars, as in, more likely to be ignored as nonsense than deserving refutation. There was simply no signifcant debate on the topic at large by Ottoman times (though I am aware of heated discussions on secondary relevant issues, such as the mentioned permissibility of wine for medical purposes).
I presume that the Ottoman clergy themselves often drink as well but pretend they never did?

Vani Mehmed Efendi, one of the chief preachers in Constantinople in the 1660s, drank wine while also being the key condemner of the city's taverns (he spearheaded the abolition of the wine tax and tried to shut down every tavern in the City of the World's Desire). When questioned about his hypocrisy, the Efendi answered that the ban "applied only to the irresponsible masses, not to those like himself who knew how to drink without falling into excesses."

Ahmed Bey, a military officer stationed in Belgrade in 1717, also drank wine with the wife of the English ambassador, claiming that "the prohibition of wine was a very wise maxim, and meant for the common people, being the source of all disorders amongst them: but the prophet never designed to confine those that knew how to use it with moderation; nevertheless, he said that scandal ought to be avoided, and that he never drank it in publick [sic]."

Very early in the Ottoman dynasty (before Constantinople was conquered), an Arab cleric was apparently banished from the Ottoman court for pointing out that alcohol was illicit. This is far from representative of Ottoman attitudes towards Islamic law in general though (around the same period, there's a story about how the people of Bursa chased away an Arab who criticized a local preacher stating that Jesus was as great a prophet as Muhammad. The Arab supposedly returned six times with juridical opinions (fatwas) from six different clerics, and was chased away each time. Finally the Arab was frustrated enough to kill the "heretical" preacher himself).
 
Well I am not a practicing Muslim. Nor was I raised in a house where anybody was. I know my Grandmother and Aunt to be practicing believers and I live in a clearly majority Muslim State but I cannot claim to have much information on the nitty gritty of Theological rules.
I am not a Muslim myself (in I do not live in a Muslim majority country or come from a familiar history of Muslim tradition). However, I teach Islamic Studies at a local college. I have several Muslim students (with varying levels of practicing) but of course they rarely happen to have a deep knowledge of theological detail that are, after all, fairly complex and relatively obscure (though I remember some fascinating classroon discussions precisely on alcohol).
 
Vani Mehmed Efendi, one of the chief preachers in Constantinople in the 1660s, drank wine while also being the key condemner of the city's taverns (he spearheaded the abolition of the wine tax and tried to shut down every tavern in the City of the World's Desire). When questioned about his hypocrisy, the Efendi answered that the ban "applied only to the irresponsible masses, not to those like himself who knew how to drink without falling into excesses."

Ahmed Bey, a military officer stationed in Belgrade in 1717, also drank wine with the wife of the English ambassador, claiming that "the prohibition of wine was a very wise maxim, and meant for the common people, being the source of all disorders amongst them: but the prophet never designed to confine those that knew how to use it with moderation; nevertheless, he said that scandal ought to be avoided, and that he never drank it in publick [sic]."

Very early in the Ottoman dynasty (before Constantinople was conquered), an Arab cleric was apparently banished from the Ottoman court for pointing out that alcohol was illicit. This is far from representative of Ottoman attitudes towards Islamic law in general though (around the same period, there's a story about how the people of Bursa chased away an Arab who criticized a local preacher stating that Jesus was as great a prophet as Muhammad. The Arab supposedly returned six times with juridical opinions (fatwas) from six different clerics, and was chased away each time. Finally the Arab was frustrated enough to kill the "heretical" preacher himself).
This is fucking awesome!
 
Turkey I assume? In my experience, current social norms about alcohol in Turkey are very relaxed by Muslim-majority usual standards. And this has quite a deep tradition. (The Ottoman Empire also had A LOT of local mixing whereby mainstream Muslims lived alongside Jews, Christian or marginal Muslim groups who considered alcohol tolerated/permissible).

That is a correct assumption. Turkey is quite relaxed about alcohol yes and is quite secular. There has been an increase in religioustity however. Buying alcohol after a certain hour or having alcohol near religious people is still problematic for example. (you do not want to be seen drinking near more religious people) But most people even if religious would allow a person to drink alcohol in the privacy of his home or in a bar I would say.
 
A long-term Ottoman Vienna is not inconceivable. If the Turks somehow got naval supremacy in the Adriatic, they could easily land troops at Trieste, a 2-week march away from Vienna, whenever the need arose.

(of course, this requires somehow taking out Venice, but still...)
 
That is a correct assumption. Turkey is quite relaxed about alcohol yes and is quite secular. There has been an increase in religioustity however. Buying alcohol after a certain hour or having alcohol near religious people is still problematic for example. (you do not want to be seen drinking near more religious people) But most people even if religious would allow a person to drink alcohol in the privacy of his home or in a bar I would say.
Yeah, there's also this public/private distinction I mentioned and the post by @Intransigent Southerner shows very clearly. Though for the likes of Vani Efendi it was probably more about a matter of elite/masses distinction (Khassa/'Amma in Arabic, 'Asker/Re'aya in Osmanli) that is a very prominent concept in traditional Islamic thought across the board, though interestingly not one that has a formal place whatsoever in Sunni jurisprudence.
 
A long-term Ottoman Vienna is not inconceivable. If the Turks somehow got naval supremacy in the Adriatic, they could easily land troops at Trieste, a 2-week march away from Vienna, whenever the need arose.

(of course, this requires somehow taking out Venice, but still...)

Venice is a dying state in the 18th century. Once they were known for threat on the sea, in the 1700s they weren't even a Naval Power anymore.

1683, 1700s, the power of Venice is declining.
 
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