MonTemplar's Journal: +Just can't get enough of that great-tasting Al-Duff!

Bangladesh 'beer' tests alcohol ban
By Roland Buerk
BBC correspondent in Dhaka

It looks like beer, it tastes like beer, but in law at least it is a malt beverage.

A company in Bangladesh believes it has found a legal loophole to get around the Islamic country's ban on alcoholic drinks.

But their discovery has created a furore among Islamic parties and the threat of legal action from at least one leading international brewer.

[...]

The company is using the wording of Bangladesh's Drug Control Act 1990 to justify the sale.

The act outlaws beer, but defines it as a malt and hops-based drink produced by a brewing process and containing at least 5% - and not more than 8.5% - alcohol.

The drafting was intended to ensure medicines containing alcohol would be exempt from the law.

The drinks are being marketed as Crown and Hunter and the cans bear a striking resemblance to famous international beer brands.

But again Shameem Islam believes he is one step ahead.

"That was deliberate," he says, "we checked and found Foster's and Carlsberg never registered their brands in Bangladesh, so we took the opportunity to register first."

Cheeky! Check the pictures in the BBC news item for the proof.

I particularly like the lines

[Morosoph]

Mohammed Iqbal Hussain is drinking a can of Hunter with his lunch at a cafe.

"It is very tasty," he said, "just like beer."

Re:I particularly like the lines

[ncc74656]

Also from the article:

"We would never have thought of this without them. We make it in a similar way to beer, but it is definitely not beer because it contains less than 5% alcohol."

Budmilloors' light products (and probably their regular stuff too) contain less than 5% alcohol, and I don't think anybody reasonable would mistake those for beer either. :-P