Maybe it is can be part of a person's identity. But we don't call people who've quit smoking "smokers", and ex-smokers seem to give up the "smoker" identity even though it's ostensibly a lot cooler than "alcoholic"; "nicotine (or other drug) addict" would seem to be an active rather than prior addiction.

Without trying to make it sound judgemental I know literal dozens of people who stopped smoking and it hardly comes up in conversation anymore - I think I have like 2 friends left who smoke, out of... more than 50%? And several of them smoked for 10 years or more.

Maybe it's because most people don't just randomly are offered cigarettes or because it went from a "50% of the population" to "10% of the population in this age group".

I'm not saying that sober alcoholics are making a big deal out of it, it just feels different - maybe because it is seen as a lot more problematic than being a smoker? Or harder to quit. Or because it's rarer.

There is far less of a psychological component to tobacco than alcohol.

Like someone else said, alcohol is far more in your face each day than other drugs.

Good point - cigarettes are increasingly harder to find, and are banned in many places (restaurants) where alcohol is readily available, and associated with sociability. There even seem to be more marijuana shops vs. tobacco shops (or liquor stores for that matter) in some places, and the former are advertised while tobacco advertising is banned. On the other hand, while smoking may be in decline, I still see (and smell) vaping everywhere.