Character having association with drink (5)
I believe the answer is:
fagin
'character' is the definition.
Both the definition and answer are singular nouns.
Perhaps they are linked in a way I don't understand?
'association with drink' is the wordplay.
'association with' becomes 'fa' (I am not sure about this - if you are sure you should give a lot more credence to this answer).
'drink' becomes 'gin' (gin is a kind of drink).
'fa'+'gin'='FAGIN'
'having' is the link.
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for fagin that I've seen before include "Dickens villain" , "Thief" , "Organiser of dips" , "Oliver Twist villain" , "Dickensian villain" .)