I was reading this morning — something about Europeans and alcohol. Turns out drink sales went up 2.9% last year across the big six grocery markets. Which sounds like good news, until you read the next sentence: people are actually buying less alcohol.
So what’s happening? They’re paying more — for sparkling water that tastes like regret, for low-alcohol gin that smells like lavender and disappointment, for cans that say 'mindful' and cost twice as much as a proper bottle of vodka. It’s not sobriety. It’s branding with a side of guilt.
I remember when a bottle of wine cost less than a metro ticket in Berlin. Now it costs more than two metro tickets and half a croissant. And people nod like it’s progress. Davai, mon ami — call it what you like. Just don’t call it cheaper.
