ARMENIA: Armenia sees soaring vodka production

The volume of vodka produced in Armenia is increasing at a rapid pace and outstripping all other alcoholic drinks, reported the BBC monitoring service.Data from the National Statistical Service show a 110% increase since last year with 4,889,000 litres of vodka being produced in the republic in the first half of 2000. In the same period, 791,000 litres of brandy were produced, which is 120% higher than last year's indicator.But the Yerevan brandy distillery is still in the lead, producing 710,000 litres of brandy in seven months of the current year. The production of wine was 1,126,000 litres in the first six months, increasing by only 9.3% and the volume of beer produced hardly changed at all in the first half of the year and stood at 3,366,000 litres.