March 2, 2015. The import of strong drinks to Russia went down considerably in January, Interfax refers to the Center for National Alcohol Policy as stating.

For one, beer import dropped by a whopping 78%, down to 3.04m liters, while that of champagne and sparkling wines plunged by 48% (down to 1.18m liters) against January 2014. The import of still wines went down by 48% as well, down to 12.48m liters.

Additionally, the imports of vodka, liqueurs, and spirits decreased to 1.15m liters, which was 19.4% less than a year earlier; those of cognac, brandy, and grappa declined by 41.2%, down to 1.8m liters.

Whiskey imports dropped less noticeably, by 35%, down to 1.73m liters.

According to the Center, beer imports declined by 32.5%, down to 171.7 liters, in 2014 compared with the year 2013; those of vodka, liqueurs, and spirits dropped by 38.8%, down to 40.25m liters, those of cognac, brandy, and grappa dropped by 4%, down to 67.09m liters, and those of still wines sagged by 6.6%, down to 430.61m liters.

At the same time, whiskey imports rose by 21.8%, up to 48.24m liters, last year; that of champagne and sparkling wines went up by 0.7%, up to 38.13m liters.