The reputation of Utah's ridiculously restrictive liquor laws took a hit in Australia this weekend, thanks to a report in the Sydney Morning Herald.

Travel writer Rachael Oakes-Ash was ready for an alcohol-free trip to Park City: "Rumour had it the bars in the ski resort town of Park City served water instead of vodka. Not even the state's reputation for metres and metres of the world's driest powder every winter was enough to lure me across the Pacific if there was no chance of gluhwein to warm my toes."

But Oakes-Ash learned differently. "As it turns out, Park City has more ways to get sozzled in the Mormon state than any other Utah destination. The illicit myth just makes it twice the fun."

Oakes-Ash then explains how to order a "sidecar," and how bartenders get around the alcohol-content limits by calling liqueurs - such as Cointreau or Kahlua - as "flavorings."

So, if you see a heavy concentration of inebriated Australians on Park City's Main Street this winter, now you know why.

Labels: alcohol laws