Pity the pub on its last kegs, but not the off-licence selling drink to kids

DURING the Rose of Tralee selection last Tuesday night, Dáithí O Sé mentioned “dry counties” to the Texas Rose. It was the first time I had heard the term being used for a long time, but I do remember the first time I heard of a “dry county”.

It was my first night at university in Texas. I asked how to get to the nearest pub. With some amusement, I was given directions to Oklahoma. They told me that Denton County was “dry”, which meant they had not repealed prohibition. The nearest pub was about 30 miles away, across the state line in Oklahoma.

Within Texas itself the nearest pubs were in Dallas, but you could buy a six-pack at a liquor store for the same price as a single beer in a bar, so most of the students bought six packs and drank them in somebody’s apartment. The same phenomenon is now developing in this country.