One third of Estonia's booze is bought in Latvia

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About a third of the alcohol consumed in Estonia is bought in Latvia, with a good deal of it coming from a handful of stores on the border between the two countries, our colleagues at ERR News in Estonia reported February 14.

Latvia's considerably lower duty on alcoholic beverages makes it profitable for Estonian producers to send booze wagons to alcohol superstores just yards into Latvian territory and consumers are quite happy to follow in their wake to buy their beer, wine and spirits at Latvian rather than Estonian prices.

According to estimates by the manufacturers themselves, roughly a third of Estonia's retail alcohol now makes the journey from south of the border.   

"Stores on the Latvian side of the border are reacting to the increasing demand and making more space available. The two main border crossing points in Ikla (Ainaži) and Valga (Valka) now each have two sizeable stores. According to the producers, by now they cover roughly a third of Estonia's total alcohol consumption," said ERR.

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