Production of hard liquor has collapsed in Russia — even as data shows that citizens are drinking more strong alcohol than ever before.

Russia’s Federal Service for Alcohol Market Regulation reported this week that manufacturing of spirits declined by more than 16 percent in the first half of 2025.

Official data shows that vodka production is down by 10.9 percent year on year, from 33.40 million decaliters in 2024 to 31.38 million decaliters in the corresponding period in 2025. The legendary Russian beverage was, for a time in the 1990s, used as a national currency and remains a celebrated part of the country’s culture to this day.

However, while production is down, consumption is up.

Russians drunk more in 2024 than at similar stages in the last eight years. And more and more people prefer rum, whiskey, brandy and tequila, a Russian financial auditing firm, Finexpertisa, reported in May. At the same time, Russian President Vladimir Putin said that Russians are starting to drink less, claiming more of them prefer sports. “Quit drinking and start skiing,” he joked.

The sales of those products grew by 10.2 percent to 3.2 liters a year per capita person, surpassing vodka consumption in some regions. But vodka is still the top drink of choice throughout the country, holding 60 percent of sales annually.

The decline in vodka production in Russia was triggered by rising alcohol prices and the ban on the export of alcoholic beverages to the EU, the U.S. and other countries, due to Western sanctions.

This ban has significantly reduced export revenue for Russian vodka producers, a state product quality control service in the Rostov region reported in June, citing data from the Strategy Partners consulting agency.