Production of Armenian cognac, a household alcoholic beverage in former Soviet states, shrank by almost 50 percent during the first 10 months of 2009 compared with figures for the same period during the previous year.

Armenian winemakers pinned the blame for the production drop on the global economic meltdown, the Internovosti news service reported on December 1.

Some 94 percent of Armenian brandy exports go to other ex-Soviet republics, first among them Russia, according to the Armenian National Statistics service. But the economic crisis has hamstrung the purchasing power of the Russian market, the main source of income for Armenian farmers.

Production for the first ten months of 2009 stood at 7 million liters. Brandy producers hope that a recent decrease in the price of grapes will help them cut production costs, reduce the price and attract thriftier customers, the Arminfo news agency reported.