Sang Thip

Mass produced Thai whisky, (thankfully) unavailable in virtually every other country in the world. Very few things can be compared to a serious binge on Sang Thip.

Impossible to drink with anything but Coke, when it is purchased in a bar in Thailand you buy it by the quarter bottle. Needless to say that it is rumoured to contain hallucinogenic chemicals. Certainly, once intoxicated the drinker can reasonably expect a long period of blackout that is directly proportional to the number of quarter bottles consumed. If the drinker is lucky, or perhaps unlucky, they may be told of their extraordinary exploits during this period by other, less inebriated individuals. Depending on the level of consumption, the recounting of such shameful tales may be accompanied by much laughter, a Thai tourist police incident form, or a night's free accommodation in a sparsely furnished room with a ditch down the middle.

Reported effects include: running around outside a hotel four stories up on a two foot wide ledge; sudden and inexplicable bar fights with Thai Lady-boys (renowned for their kickboxing abilities); and awakening from the blackout on board a premature flight home. Sang Thip is the bane of hard-working Thai hoteliers' lives, but the main staple of bar owners' revenues.

Mekhong

This brand is named after the river that flows through Cambodia and Vietnam. It has similar properties to Sang Thip, but with one notable difference: if you upend a bottle of Mekhong in a glass of water in such a way that the pressure of the water does not allow the whisky to escape the bottle, a clear liquid will be seen to dribble into the water. This is glycerine, used to artificially boost the alcohol content, which can cause blindness if consumed in large quantities.

Happy drinking...