How common is it that family gatherings revolve around drinking?

I'm dating a German citizen, and whenever I spend time with his family members (father, uncles/aunts, grandfather) - there is ALWAYS alcohol. Sometimes it's not just sipping on beer; there's a lot of shots too (ouzo, schnapps) and the interesting thing is usually the alcohol isn't even accompanied by an activity; like it's literally sitting around and drinking, sometimes smoking.

I can't tell if this is a common thing in Germany that's totally normalized or does his family just have issues? Is it the region? When I met with his group of friends, it's the same thing. Lots of alcohol, sitting there drinking shot after shot.

I didn't grow up with alcohol at all, and my family gatherings always revolved around activities instead of sitting around drinking/chatting. If we do sit down to have drinks, it's always a juice or tea or smoothie; something nonalcoholic. I have an ethnic background if that makes any difference.