Latest News

"It's not a spirit," he declared matter-of-factly, standing in the Leningradsky railroad station in Moscow. "It's a drink that quenches the thirst."

"With spirits, fine, I agree, put some sanctions on it," Viktor continued. "There's beer that they make, which isn't really beer at all, it's actually a spirit. But normal beer, good beer, it should not be banned. It's not right."

Few subjects prompt keener interest or deeper philosophical rumination in Russia than alcohol, and those that do are invariably discussed over drinks. In Russia, which has one of the world's highest rates of alcoholism and alcohol-related illness, vodka remains the top choice. But beer is not far behind. The average Russian drinks more than four gallons of alcohol a year.

The new law, which took effect on Jan. 1, aims to reduce those numbers. It bans beer sales from kiosks entirely, and in other stores between 11 p.m. and 8 a.m. And as with increased taxes on alcohol in recent years, it aims to curb public drinking, particularly the casual drinking in city parks and snow-covered promenades that can begin before breakfast and end after midnight.

Though technically illegal, drinking in such public spaces is usually tolerated.

As with other weighty subjects that generate fierce debate here — the quality of Moscow theaters; the level of national security; the relative greatness of writers and poets — there are conflicting views on the new law. Even some people whose businesses will suffer said they supported the government's goals.

"It's better; maybe people will drink less," said Natalya Novikova, who works at a kiosk on Tsvetnoy Bulvar in central Moscow, located on a plaza near a subway station. "People in the square relaxed, drank beer, round the clock."

She added, "After work, they grabbed a beer, and now, well, the government needs people not to drink."

Industry statistics show that the kiosks, which line streets and typically cluster around subway stations, account for about 30 percent of beer sales. At the kiosk on Tsvetnoy Bulvar, Ms. Novikova said beer was the single most popular item, accounting for nearly $700 in sales a day.

The law is also expected to put at least a small dent in sales for beer manufacturers. Ben Morton, a spokesman for Carlsberg, which is the largest beer-maker in Russia and controls about 40 percent of the market, including the brand Baltika, said that similar restrictions existed in other countries and that the company was well prepared.

"We anticipate some potential short-term disruption," Mr. Morton said, "but no significant long-term implications."

Some kiosk owners and managers said it would be difficult to stay in business without beer sales; others said that they would survive but that if similar restrictions were put in place on cigarettes, it would effectively spell the end of such kiosks.

"For business it's bad, and there are large layoffs for staff," said Gigla Mebonia, the manager of the Tsvetnoy Bulvar kiosk. "For places like this it is bad, but on the other hand the law is justified for the people to drink less."

Vitally Kordyukov, 37, who works as a private-car driver and was walking by, said he agreed with the restrictions, even if the effect might be limited. "It's not very appropriate to drink beer on a bench," Mr. Kordyukov said. "Of course, people will continue to drink."

But at the Leningradsky station, where passengers are accustomed to buying a few beers before boarding an overnight train, Yulia Semyonova, 24, and her boyfriend, Kirill Vasko, 26, said the new restrictions were pointless and inconvenient. While kiosks are barred from selling beer, cafes continue to do so, but at higher prices and farther from the train platforms.