KOLKATA: Several leading brands of beer have been in short supply across Kolkata’s bars, restaurants and off-shops as its demand peaks with the onset of summer. Supply of some popular brands like Tuborg, Carlsberg and Kingfisher has come down to a trickle due to ‘logistical bottlenecks’ triggered by a shift back to private distributorship of liquor in the state, according to industry sources. This has coincided with a sudden spurt in demand, they said.
Some restaurants rued that beer sales have dropped to almost half due to the non-availability of the leading brands. A restaurant owner said the supply of three top selling brands had been slow over the past few weeks. “With their favourite brands missing, most have either been staying away from drinks or ordering hard liquor. But with the temperature shooting, beer has no real substitute for many. It is leading to a loss for us,” he said.
