I know writing about my spirituous escapades may not be the wisest of ideas to start a blog with. But I’m actually addressing the plight of a large number of me brothers for whom Teacher’s is still off limits and the Green, Blue, Black Labels are still stuff that dreams are made of. Yes, we are ardent fans of the Mc Dowell’s No.1’s, the Raffles, the Blue Moons, the Royal Stags and, occasionally, the Blender’s Pride. But, mind you, price is not the only factor that keeps us loyal to these brands. There are plenty of other reasons why cheap liquor always scores over some other exorbitantly priced, so called high-end, good for nothing brews that, nevertheless, give you a false high. Here’s a lowdown on why I prefer cheap liquor over its pricier sisters…
1- Cash… yes Money, is the most vital difference between the two. You’d rather pay a modest 300 bucks for a whole bottle of Shark Tooth than shell out the same amount for a quarter of Black Dog.
2- You may become friends with a complete stranger while sharing a bottle of Mc Dowell’s but more often than not, this is something highly unlikely if you are drinking something like a Johnnie Walker. This may be primarily because I personally believe that “The more expensive is your drink, the more sophisticated (read cold) you are expected to behave.
3- Yet another reason behind the success of cheap liquor might be the fact that it is, without a doubt, a big hit with students and the middle and lower middle class, a sect which forms the majority of the Indian population.
4- As per the tax and duty norms, the taxes and duties levied on foreign labels are way higher than their Indian counterparts, hence the price difference.
5- Last but, in no way, the least, you can easily get cheap liquor in the black market even on dry days (There are hell of a lot, by the way! ) which is not the case with the other insanely pricey premium labels.
So, the Royal Stags win over the Black Labels and the Mc Dowells score over the Johnnie Walkers, no questions asked…! The next time you go out and buy booze for yourself, think of all the stuff you could actually get to compliment the same at the same or even lesser amount. Think Tandoori Chicken, think premium cigars, think all other titter-chitters to munch along, you know the works!!! Once you analyse all the above factors with the intellect of an investor, you will, without fail, realise the true worth of CHEAP LIQUOR… I have…!
Contributed by Sushant Sharma
Labels: Black Label, booze, cheap liquor, liquor, party, Royal Stag
