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My first impressions of the USSR, which I almost did not see, are inextricably linked with the masterpieces of animation and cinema.
In good Soviet films, the topic of alcohol often had a negative connotation – funny things often happened to people who overdid alcohol, and abusers were always brawlers and parasites.
However, the respectable builders of communism, not having access to elite foreign alcoholic beverages, could see on the screens what the bourgeoisie used. Let me remind you of several films and cartoons, where foreign weak and strong alcohol is openly demonstrated.
Alcohol from “The Adventures of Captain Vrungel”
The beloved saga about the difficult fate and life of the brave captain Vrungel, his assistant Loma and the traitor Fuchs was a success not only among children, but also among their parents. The quite adult story of the adventures of the sea vessel “Trouble” did not bypass the topic of alcohol.
Naturally, rogue bandits drink alcohol in the cartoon. The boss, the head of the mafia, has elite drinks on the table – the Spanish Brandy de Jerez (Sherry brandy), the port wine of the Portuguese production Fonseca (Fonseca) and the French premium cognac Hine (Hine).
And Captain Vrungel himself used champagne to give the boat propulsion, but not simple. The footage clearly shows that this is W. Churchill’s favorite sparkling drink – Pol Roger (Paul Roger).
Interesting! Today, you can freely taste these drinks, as their production did not stop.
The price of drinks shown in the cartoon today is as follows:
- “Sherry brandy” – from 900 to 5000 rubles.
- Port Fonseca – depending on the aging of the drink, a bottle can cost from 1800 to 10 rubles.
- Hein cognac is a drink that has the largest price range from 1000 to 150 rubles per bottle.
- Champagne “Paul Roger” – from 7300 for a standard volume to 90 rubles for a 000-liter bottle of sparkling wine.
Alcohol from “A Kitten Named Woof”, “Just you wait!” and Treasure Island
As I was able to find out, Soviet animators often used bottles with foreign spirits as decorations. Here are some examples:
- “Kitten named Woof” – in the attic where the kitten was hiding, among empty cans, you can see a dark glass bottle with Italian vermouth Cinzano (Cinzano).
- “Wait for it!” – the main character Wolf turned out to be a lover of the low-alcohol fruit drink “Cider”, which is known in many countries and costs from 80 rubles per half liter.
- “Treasure Island” – in the cartoon, pirates consume rum in large quantities (from 700 rubles per bottle and up to infinity, depending on the brand).
Interesting! Now rum is popular all over the world and even elite alcohol. And in ancient times, rum was considered the lot of the poor, as it was invented by a slave.
Alcohol from “Ivan Vasilyevich Changes Profession”
Everyone’s adored movie revealed the secret of what dentists drank in Soviet times. In Shpak’s secret bar, Georges Miloslavsky discovered a whole collection of premium and elite alcohol:
- Cinzano (Cinzano) – the famous vermouth from Italy. Shpak’s is white. Today, the cost of such a drink is from 750 rubles per 1 liter.
- Five-star cognac – in this particular case, Armenian, which does not belong to foreign alcohol, if we take the time of the existence of the USSR.
- Whiskey King George 4 (King George 4) is a noble Scottish strong drink, which today is estimated from 9000 to 200 rubles for a standard 000 liter.
- Mozart liqueur (Mozart) is an Austrian sweet alcoholic drink with a taste of chocolate. A half-liter bottle today costs from 1300 rubles.
- Whiskey Johnnie Walker Red Label (Johnnie Walker Red Label) is one of the most popular and best-selling Scottish brands, time-tested. The current price is from 2000 rubles. for 0,7 l.
- Whiskey Ballantine’s (Balantayz) – Scottish strong blended alcohol, which today can be bought in domestic stores from 1700 rubles per liter.
As you can see, Shpak preferred strong foreign liquor, but he also kept low-alcohol drinks for special occasions. Today, such bottles are also considered elite, and their prices are appropriate. Most likely, Cinzano and Mozart were intended for the fair sex.
Alcohol from “17 Moments of Spring”
“17 Moments of Spring” became the first full-scale Soviet series that captivated the hearts of almost all viewers. Since the action of the film took place in Nazi Germany, in the very heart of the Third Reich, one can trace what kind of alcohol the inhabitants of Western Europe used before the war.
The film epic shows a lot of different alcohol, but it is not always possible to recognize it. I distinctly identified only three drinks. These are the famous Cinzano vermouth (Cinzano), Riga Balsam in the old version of Sinken Heger and cognac, which may turn out to be a French legend called Courvoisier (Courvoisier). Today, depending on the exposure, it costs from 2500 to 250 rubles.
I already wrote about the cost of Cinzano above, but the price of Riga Black, Latvijas Balzams today starts at 850 rubles for a bottle of recognizable shapes. I also note that in the days of the USSR, “Riga Balsam” was its own, although not quite accessible to ordinary people, an alcoholic drink.
These are the movies and cartoons I remember. And what films from the times of the USSR, in which foreign alcohol was shown, do you remember?
*Alcohol abuse is bad for your health!