Staunton, November 15 – Russian drinkers looking for a second or a third to share a bottle of vodka have long been a feature of public life in their country. Now, the Internet is helping them to find one another more quickly: on the web, what Russians are calling a “Facebook for alcoholics” helps them find one another more quickly and privately.
The new page, Russian news services are reporting, not only has special subpages so that those who want to drink beer or wine or vodka or anything else can find one another but also was created by an American, something that Moscow commentators are certain to focus on in the coming days.
The real reason that Russian drinkers have traditionally sought out a second or third to drink with is not social but rather the fact that until relatively recently, Russian firms did not produce bottles that could be resealed. Thus, once a bottle was opened, it generally had to be finished, something beyond the capacity of most, but not all, single drinkers.