Drink less. Savour more.

What the science says, plainly

• There is no risk-free level of drinking. In 2023 the World Health Organization’s European office said that, where health is concerned, no amount of alcohol is safe, and that the risk starts with the first drink. WHO’s global fact sheet says the same: no form of alcohol consumption is free of risk.
• Alcohol causes cancer. The International Agency for Research on Cancer puts alcohol in Group 1, its highest category, alongside tobacco and asbestos. It causes at least seven types of cancer, including bowel and female breast cancer. The cause is ethanol itself, so price, quality and type of drink make no difference: a fine wine carries the same risk as anything else.
• Moderate drinking is not exempt. WHO/Europe reports that around half of alcohol-attributable cancers in the European Region occur in people who are not heavy drinkers.
• Europe’s cancer advice has changed. The 5th European Code Against Cancer (IARC / European Commission) no longer says „limit alcohol”. Its advice is now: avoid alcoholic drinks.
• The global toll. WHO estimates that alcohol caused about 2.6 million deaths worldwide in 2019, including 401,000 cancer deaths and 298,000 road-traffic deaths. In 156,000 of those road deaths, the person who had been drinking was someone other than the victim.

Romania in numbers

Our country drinks a lot, and the numbers have been going up:

• 12.3 litres of pure alcohol per adult per year (2023), the highest of all OECD countries (OECD average: 8.5 litres). (OECD Reviews of Health Systems: Romania 2025)
• Consumption rose by about 30% between 2013 and 2023.
• 11% of Romanians reported heavy episodic („binge”) drinking at least once a week (2019), also the highest share in the OECD: about 20% of men and 3% of women.
• Alcohol accounted for about 5% of all deaths in Romania in 2021 (OECD average 3%).

We would like our wine to help push these numbers down, not up: fewer, better glasses.

Who should not drink at all

• Anyone under 18. Selling or offering alcohol to minors is illegal in Romania. We do not sell to minors and we ask for proof of age. Alcohol also harms the developing brain.
• Anyone who is pregnant or trying to conceive. Alcohol in pregnancy can cause fetal alcohol spectrum disorders and increases the risk of miscarriage, stillbirth and premature birth. No amount has been shown to be safe.
• Anyone who is going to drive. In Romania:
  driving with any alcohol detected (from 0.01 mg/l in exhaled air up to the criminal threshold) is an offence under the Road Code (OUG 195/2002), punished with a fine and suspension of the driving licence for 90 days;
  driving with a blood alcohol level above 0.80 g/l is a crime under art. 336 of the Criminal Code, punishable by 1 to 5 years in prison or a criminal fine (2 to 7 years for professional passenger or dangerous-goods drivers, driving instructors and learner drivers in an exam).
  In practice that means zero. If you are driving, don’t drink. If you have been drinking, don’t drive, and don’t get into a car with a driver who has been drinking.
• Anyone operating machinery, working at height, swimming or boating.
• Anyone taking medication that interacts with alcohol, such as sedatives, painkillers, antidepressants or some antibiotics. Ask your doctor or pharmacist.
• Anyone with liver disease, a history of alcohol dependence, or a condition their doctor has told them alcohol worsens.
• Anyone who has decided not to drink. „No, thank you” is a full answer. Never pressure anyone to drink.

If you choose to drink: how to savour more and drink less

• Drink with food. Wine belongs at the table. Eating slows the absorption of alcohol.
• Water with every glass. Keep a glass of water next to your wine and refill both.
• Slow down. Smell it, taste it, talk about it. A glass of good wine can last half an hour.
• Smaller pours. A tasting pour (75 to 100 ml) shows you as much about a wine as a full glass does.
• Count your glasses. It is easy to lose track when someone keeps topping up your glass. Use a fresh glass, or say when to stop.
• Have several alcohol-free days every week and don’t save your drinks for the weekend. Binge drinking is the pattern Romania struggles with most.
• Don’t drink to cope. If you reach for a drink to deal with stress, sadness or sleep problems, take that as a signal.
• Open less and share more. A bottle of wine shared among four people over dinner is the reason we make it.
• Plan the way home before the first glass: a designated driver who stays at zero, a taxi, or a bed for the night.

Signs it may be time to talk to someone

• You need more to feel the same effect.
• You often drink more, or for longer, than you meant to.
• You feel unwell, anxious or shaky when you don’t drink.
• People close to you are worried, or you hide how much you drink.
• Drinking gets in the way of work, family or health.

None of this makes you a bad person. Help works, and asking for it early is the best thing you can do.

Where to get help in Romania

• Emergencies (alcohol poisoning, accidents, risk to life): call 112. Signs of alcohol poisoning include confusion, vomiting, slow or irregular breathing, cold or bluish skin, and not waking up. Don’t leave the person alone, and don’t let them „sleep it off” on their back.
• Your family doctor (medic de familie) is the first point of contact for confidential advice and for referral to addiction psychiatry or counselling services.
• Alcoolicii Anonimi România (Alcoholics Anonymous): free, anonymous peer-support groups in many Romanian cities.
  Website: https://www.alcooliciianonimi.ro (meeting list under „Întâlniri”) · Phone: +40 770 225 522 · E-mail: help@alcooliciianonimi.ro
• Telefonul Copilului (Child Helpline): 116 111. Free, for children and young people (including those worried about a parent’s drinking), Monday to Friday, 10:00 to 20:00. Run by Asociația Telefonul Copilului. https://www.telefonulcopilului.ro
• National Agency for Drug and Addiction Policies and Coordination (ANPCDDA), the national authority for addiction policy (it replaced the former National Anti-Drug Agency in 2025): https://adictii.gov.ro · office@adictii.gov.ro. The agency coordinates policy and does not run treatment itself; treatment services are provided through the Ministry of Health network and accredited NGOs.

If you are reading this outside Romania, contact your local emergency number or your national alcohol helpline.

Our commitments

• We sell only to adults (18+) and check age at pick-up and delivery.
• We will never suggest that wine makes you healthier, happier, more attractive or more successful.
• We will never link our wine to driving or sport, or make fun of people who choose not to drink.
• Our numbered edition is small on purpose. We would rather you open one bottle on a good evening than many on an ordinary one.

Drink less. Savour more.

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