I once had a player who decided to play a Minlinster brewer, so I put a little work into the various types of booze commonly found in Central Genertela, especially Sartarite beverages (for the Brew skill) and Pelorian drinks (need something to despise for that Despise Foreign Drinks skill).
Despise Foreign Drink (Personality Skill) Minlinster hates the Lunar drink djinn, which has no positive benefits and many evil side-effects. Lunar officers use djinn to make Martinets, their traditional drink. Lunar soldiers drink it straight or mix it with a bubbly magical potion intended to help fend off tropical diseases. Another military related import is wodaka, brought by Carmanian soldiers in the Lunar army. (Carmanians make their Martinets with wodaka.) In addition, rhum has started to appear in Sartar, imported by the Wolf Pirates from the southern continent of Pamaltela. All three (but especially djinn) are popular with the poor, hopeless, and destitute refugees from shattered clans who clutter the streets of Sartar’s cities. Touch not the Demon Rhum, the Villainous Wodaka or the Devil Djinn!
So what are the common alcoholic beverages in your game? Here are mine:
BEER/ALE - Brewed all over Glorantha, the main drink of the Sartarites. Made from grain, usually barley, and flavored with herbs, often hops. Varieties (which require Minlinster magic to make) include:
COLD BEER: Beer which is always magically chilled and refreshing, no matter how warm the environment. Cold Beer never has any negative side effects for the drinker and never causes a hangover. It produces a sense of refreshment and well-being when drunk.
GOOD ALE: A satisfying ale. Drinking Good Ale alleviates any feelings of fatigue and helps insure a good night’s sleep. If imbibed in excess, it will get the drinker drunk, though the hangover will be mild.
STOUT BEER: An especially hearty and filling dark beer (also known as Strong Beer, Winter Beer, Darkseason Beer or simply “the Dark”). A pint of the Dark leaves the drinker as full as if they’d had an entire meal. Several kegs of Strong Beer can mean the difference between survival and starvation in harsh winters. Strong Beer has virtually no side effects (aside from a bit of burping and mild flatulence) and never causes a hangover. Traditionally Heortlings only drink the Dark in the winter, but recently it has become popular to drink it all the time, mostly because the Lunars find the stuff disgusting.
MEAD - A mild alcohol made from honey. Favored by mountain or forest clans who have trouble growing grain. The Telmori make an excellent mead. There's one magical variation of mead:
MINLINSTER’S MEAD: An exceptional mead. Drinking Minlinster’s Mead aids in social discourse. Anyone drinking a bottle gets a bonus to Sing, Orate, Dance, and Play (Instrument) equal to the Brewer’s Brew Skill/5. Mead will get the user drunk. All other skills get a negative modifier equal to the Brewer’s Brew Skill/10. Hangovers are mild.
LIQUOR: Brandtwyn (when the base is grapes) or, more commonly, Uisce (when the base is malted barley) are the strong drinks of the Orlanthi. The Boldhome Thunderbolt is a traditional Sartarite drink made by dropping a shot of uisce into a pint of stout. Recently master-brewed uisces made from single malts have become extremely trendy in Glamour and other Lunar cities. Also recently the Lunars have placed a tax on uisce production, though brandtwyn, mostly made by the pro-Lunar Colymar, can still be produced tax free. The Lunars have been surprised at the vehemence of the opposition to this Uisce Tax. NOTE: Uisce and brandtwyn are both in high demand as exports and can be very expensive.
ENCHANTED UISCE or BRANDTWYN: Drinking these potent beverages gives mortals an insight into the divine. While under the influence of these magical liquors, all Mythology checks are boosted by the Brewer’s Brew Skill/5, but only if the liquor has been aged for a number of years equal to the bonus. This bonus carries over to the next day if the liquor is drunk in preparation for a religious ceremony. All other skills are decreased by the same number (regardless of the Uisce’s age). Hangovers are mild if liquor is used in moderation, but can be severe if too much liquor is consumed.
WINE: The Colymar Tribe grows grapes and makes a late-harvest wine wine, the famous Clearwine. When conditions are right, grapes are harvested after the first frost to make icewine. Wine may be further distilled into Brandtwyn.
SONTI: The rice wine of the Lunar Empire. Made where ever rice is grown. The Darjinni make excellent sonti.
LUNAR BEER: Terrible stuff, if you ask the Sartarites. Pelorian beer frequently contains rice or corn mash in addition to barley and wheat. Even most Lunars don't drink their own beers. Instead, they prefer...
LUNAR WINE: Lunars love wine. They make countless varieties, using all sorts of grapes. The best Lunar wines are prized worldwide. Lunar soldiers receive a daily wine ration. When marching, they carry skins of wine vinegar called Posca, which they mix with the local water. Posca is blessed by their priests and mixing it into local water prevents the local river gods from cursing them with the Brown Water Flux.
MOONSHINE: A Pelorian strong alcohol made from corn mash. Popular in Tarsh.
RHUM: The demon rhum. Originally from Pamaltela but also brewed in Pithdaros. Rhum is a strong alcohol made from beet sugar or cane sugar. Since the opening, rhum is increasingly common in Genertela, especially in Maniria. Rhum can be brewed much stronger than traditional Sartarite drinks and locals who drink it can become drunker than they might expect with much worse hangovers.
DJINN: The hard alcohol of Peloria, a clear spirit made from wheat or potato mash, then flavored with juniper berries. Like rhum, it's strong enough to catch Sartarites off-guard. The Martinet, favored drink of the Lunar officer corps, is made with djinn, a dash of sweet wine, and olives. Lunar officers also favor djinn mixed with "The Tonic," a potion made to help soldiers fight off disease. Many of the poor Sartarite refugees crowding Boldhome, Alda-chur and Nochet are addicted to djinn.
WODAKA: A clear Carmania spirit made from potatoes. Carmanian Martinets are made with Wodaka.