Hit the sauce (4)
I believe the answer is:
tope
'hit the sauce' is the definition.
(I've seen this in another clue)
This is all the clue.
(Other definitions for tope that I've seen before include "Drink too much like poet" , "Drink excessively like poet" , "Drink a lot like poet" , "Small grey requiem shark" , "What habitual drinkers do" .)