Tough(er) Times In Antarctic: Australian Researchers See Alcohol Rations Slashed

In a move that’s sure to anger more than a couple folks stationed at Earth’s southern most facilities, researchers at the Australian Antarctic Division learned this week their drinking habits would be changed.

A decade’s long tradition in the Antarctic – homebrewing beer – is now also struck from the menu. Researchers stationed at various Antarctic bases were notified of a change in policy: halving the allowed weekly intake and banning homebrewing entirely. Notably, other nations have not chosen to levy such a regulation, so the neighboring groups of researchers are expected to continue brewing and imbibing as usual.

It sounds as if there was a potential incident, or perhaps a trend in biometric wellness was to blame. The Australian representative stated that the group’s inability to “safely manage consumption, hygiene standards and alcohol content” was the motivation to update the policy.

The new limits currently allow for 7 cans of beer, 1.5 bottles of wine, or half a bottle of spirits.

One notable factor here is that the volume of the requirements is set, but not any detail regarding the proof/ABV of said spirits. Since many spirits can range from 40% ABV – all the way up to a blistering 70+% ABV, this could make quite a difference. Perhaps we’ll see a notably shift from Basil Hayden’s to Booker’s Barrel Proof Bourbon among the Aussie’s down south.

Here at Whiskey Raiders, we do more than write about current events in Whiskey. We are the only media property reviewing whiskeys and aggregating the scores and reviews of other great voices in the whiskey world in one place. Check out our Review Archive for reviews and thoughts from our in-house critic. If you’re interested in getting a shot of whiskey in your morning email, sign up for our Daily Dram Gram!