As if Russia's vodka consumption was not high enough already, another brand
of the national tipple has hit the market. This time, it comes in a
pastel-coloured bottle and it is for ladies only.

ST. PETERSBURG, RUSSIA (RECENT) (REUTERS) - They look like over-sized perfume bottles, and they are indeed
intended for women but these elegant, violet-tinted flasks are not going to
make you smell nice.
    Shaped as a female figure, the bottles contain 'Damskaya Vodka', which
means 'Ladies' Vodka'. Produced in a large distillery in Russia's second
largest city of St Petersburg, Damskaya contains forty percent of alcohol and
is as strong as any other vodka on the shelves. The only difference, it
targets the neglected female market.
    "Women need their own drink. Why? Because, as I already said, we
have Gillette for women, French Camus makes Josephine, in Moscow we have a
pink taxi service for women, there are special cigarettes for women. So, when
we talked about harmful products such as cigarettes and alcohol, we wondered
why there was no vodka," said Igor Volodin, Director of Deyros Company,
who is proud to be the first Russian to produce the national drink specially
for women.
    But touted as a "glamour" produce for those finding a niche
in capitalist Russia, the drink is a headache for doctors expecting a wave of
female alcoholics befuddled by glitzy ads.
    According to specialists' estimates, Russia has 2.5 million of
registered alcoholics, but to learn the real figure this number must be
multiplied by 7.   
    Russia has a population of 142 million. Yuri Sorokin,  a psychologist
running a Moscow rehabilitation centre for alcoholics, says some 60 percent of
his patients are women.
    He said higher wages and growing consumption of expensive alcohol has
unfortunately not led to moderation.
    "This glamour product will just increase the problem of female
alcoholism,"  said Sorokin.
    He said the joblessness and despair of Russia's wild capitalism of the
1990s have now been replaced by the psychological vacuum of the newly rich --
and again, the centuries-old habit to drown sorrows in a glass is still there.

    "I can tell you honestly that each time there is such a targeted
advertisement campaign, and I can tell you as a professional, I follow it on
the TV and in the media, it means that in half a year time the flow of my
clients will increase," added Sorokin.
    Positioning itself as the drink for hearty hen parties, huge
advertisements in Moscow's busy underground system show the bottle covered in
a Marilyn Monroe-type skirt. "Between us, girls...," the slogan
runs.
    But Volodin, who targets what he calls successful, highly educated and
married women who can afford pricey shopping, sees no problem in his
aggressive PR campaign.
    "Here in Russia, more people suffer from diabetes than from
alcoholism but there is no ban on advertising sweets, and the same is in other
countries. Everything should be taken in moderation. Let's say if I take a
bucket of juice I will need to go to the hospital because I will feel bad, or
if a pregnant woman eats three kilos of this wonderful chocolate Hersey, she
will also need to go to the hospital," Volodin said.
    Volodin lauds his vodka for purity and a lack of by-products such as
fusel oils which result in a heavy hangover. He says because of its mellow
taste, it can be consumed with salads and other light meals even by those
regularly working out in gyms.
    Olga, a young woman, was buying a bottle of "For Ladies" in
an expensive supermarket in central Moscow.
    "I saw the advertisements on the metro and I decided to try it. I
am getting together with my girlfriends tomorrow. I just love the design and I
think it is not bad," Olga said.
    "I looked at the name and understand it is for women. I looked at
the ingredients and it seems light. I think it is perfect for women,"
said Yuri, who decided to buy the bottle for his wife.
    Launched in December, "For Ladies" retails at some 300 rubles
(USD12.58) in upmarket shops in big cities. March sales are forecast at
115,000 bottles, while the 2008 full-year figure is put at over 2 million.