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Alcoholic beverage

Tony Gurdian, at Imperial in Portland, Oregon, uses his homemade switchel to make a drink called The Haymaker's Revival.

A colonial-era drink called switchel is making a 21st century comeback

Food

You’ve probably never heard of switchel, and for good reason — it was a popular drink during early America’s agricultural days, kind of like cider or lemonade. But the concoction is making a comeback on supermarket shelves and in trendy bars.

A liquor store on Saadoun Street in downtown Baghdad. The biggest sellers are beer and "Chivas 18 and [Johnny Walker} Black."

Beer and Chivas fly off the shelves as Baghdad’s liquor stores reopen after Ramadan

Business
Bottles of Moutai baijiu on sale at a supermarket in Xuchang, China. Baijiu is a popular Chinese liquor distilled from fermented sorghum and rice.

Baijiu is coming to America, but will the popular Chinese liquor go down smooth?

Lifestyle & Belief
Bokha

Libyans risk poisoning for a sip of illegal hooch in their dry nation

Lifestyle & Belief
A Quebec City carnival-goer warms up with a cold one – Caribou on ice. Quebec consumes up to 5,000 cases of Caribou yearly, nearly all of it during the winter carnival, and most of that outdoors.

Quebec’s secret recipe for beating the cold? It’s Caribou.

Lifestyle & Belief

Want to pronounce Sochi like a native?

Global Scan

It turns out many of us are mispronouncing the name of the Winter Olympics’ host city, where the language, Russian, isn’t always easy for non-native speakers. We’ll help you with your Olympic vocabulary. Plus, a Spanish woman faces a stiff penalty for her tweets, and South Koreans lead the world in something they may not be proud of. All that and more, in today’s Global Scan.

Nif Vineyards

Is the new booze ad ban in Turkey good for health … or Islam?

Arts, Culture & Media

Turkey has a burgeoning wine industry, but it also has a burgeoning problem. A new law makes it illegal for those winemakers, and any alcohol makers, to promote their product.

Study: People Living Longer, But Not Necessarily Healthier

Arts, Culture & Media

People around the world are living longer than they did a few decades ago, but they aren’t necessarily healthier. Tobacco and alcohol-related problems are on the rise, as are diabetes, obesity and depression.

Russia Bans Alcohol Advertising in all Media

Conflict & Justice

A ban on alcohol advertising has gone into effect in Russia. It is part of Russian officials’ work to address the country’s drinking problem.

As Economic Sanctions Bite, Iranians Knock Back Another Drink

Global Politics

Iranians are increasingly turning to alcohol to cope with the myriad social problems brought on, in part, by economic sanctions.