Docs Not Toasting Ladies' Vodka

Russian spirit targets rich women, prompts alcoholism fears
By Ambreen Ali,  Newser Staff
Posted Mar 20, 2008 4:56 PM CDT
Docs Not Toasting Ladies' Vodka
A political leader holds up a bottle of vodka in this file photo. Alcoholism once blamed on joblessness now fills the psychological vacuum of the newly-rich in Russia.   (AP Photo/Mikhail Metzel, File)

A made-for-women vodka touted as the perfect salad accompaniment has sobered Russian doctors, who fear high-end spirits like "Ladies" will only worsen already-high rates of alcoholism, Reuters reports. Estimates peg 10 percent of Russia's 142 million citizens as alcoholics, and the chief of one rehab center says 60% of his clients are women.

"Women need a drink of their own," the vodka's maker said. "In Moscow, there are pink taxis for ladies, there are light cigarettes. But there was no vodka, and we asked ourselves: 'Why?'" Ladies—Damskaya in Russian—launched in December and retails in upscale shops for about $12.50; it is also available in lime, vanilla, and almond flavors. (More alcoholism stories.)

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