As previously reported in this blog, Turkey has recently been dealing with a flood of bootleg booze that has mostly impacted the country's lower-end tourist trade and has, tragically, led to the death of four Russian tourists.
Turkish authorities have responded with a crackdown on bootleggers and have started taking a closer look at just what is being served to tourists. As Milliyet reports, what they're finding out is pretty worrying. In Antalya, out of 54 bottles of booze sampled in various touristic facilities, a whopping 22 turned up with elevated level of methyl alcohol -- a compound which is directly linked with alcohol poisoning. In response, says Milliyet, authorities have announced a ban on the import of bottles of several brands of booze that, based on their names, should probably have never been let into the country in the first place. Among the illustrious brands being banned: "Mister Bourdon" and "Brave Harvey" vodka and whiskey, "Nordix Gin Party" and "London Dry Gin Guard Hause" [sic] gin and "838" vodka. (If you follow this link, you can see a photo of a bottle of "Brave Harvey" whiskey, proudly bottled in the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus.)
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