Happy hour, sometime in the weekend: la la la, la la la la, hic, burp

Booze now cheaper than bottled water
October 15th, 2010, by Kate Newton, Dominion Post
Alcohol is now so cheap that it costs less per drink than bottled water and only slightly more than milk, new research shows.
Researchers from Otago University's Wellington campus are urging the Government to reconsider its decision not to raise tax on alcohol, as recommended by a major Law Commission report.
Justice Minister Simon Power said the study's results were concerning but the Government still believed its alcohol reform package "strikes the right balance".
Public Health Associate Professor Nick Wilson and fellow researcher Fiona Gunasekara found cask wine readily for sale at 62 cents per standard drink, beer at 64c and bottled wine at 65c.
That was cheaper than bottled water – at 67 cents per 250ml – and not much more than a 250ml glass of milk, at 43 cents.
Although the latest consumer price index results for wine, beer and spirits were higher than the researchers' results, the study showed consumers could easily buy alcohol at "way below" the average national price, they said.
"Our analysis suggests alcohol is now probably the cheapest recreational drug in New Zealand and has become increasingly affordable, at the same time as concern about binge-drinking culture has grown," Dr Wilson said.
Their research – published in today's New Zealand Medical Journal – also showed that although the average shelf price of alcohol had risen between 1999 and 2009, it had become more affordable compared with the average wage.
In 1999, it took 21 minutes for a worker on the average wage to pay for enough beer to reach the legal driving limit. In 2009, it took 17 minutes. It took just seven minutes of work to pay for enough cask wine to reach the same level.
Dr Wilson said the Government was too quick to discard the Law Commission's recommendation to raise alcohol excise to curb binge drinking.
"You had these months of deliberation by the Law Commission and the Government just dismissed it the day after. The Government is shooting itself in the foot."
Both the Law Commission and the Alcohol Advisory Council said the research backed up their own findings about the affordability of alcohol.
Alac strategy manager Andrew Hearn said it confirmed its belief that price rises were the best way to curb binge drinking. "There's a fairly solid body of research internationally to show that price does affect consumption. What you want to hit is the cheap alcohol that bingers drink."
Mr Power said he welcomed the research. "The fact that this study has found that alcohol is cheaper than bottled water is of concern."
Although the Government had ruled out an excise increase, it was investigating a minimum pricing regime.
"To assess the workability of a minimum price regime, the Government needs pricing data from producers and retailers and has given them a year to provide this data. If they aren't forthcoming we will look at regulatory options for obtaining this data."
The alcohol reform bill is due to be introduced to Parliament later this month. It includes a split alcohol-buying age of 18 at bars or other licensed premises and 20 at off-licences such as dairies and supermarkets, fines for those providing alcohol to under-18s without a guardian's consent and greater community involvement in liquor licensing decisions.

Dit leidt natuurlijk tot allerlei nieuwe grappen. Just stopped by the police the officer asks me 'sir, did you have any drinks tonight, I smell alcohol?' 'No sir, we just washed our car with a 2007 Martinborough estate sauvignon blanc'