The National Assembly Purchased Cognacs Worth 14 Million Drams

It turns out that there are lovers of expensive cognac in the National Assembly of Armenia. According to Lurer.com, the parliament purchased cognacs worth 14.5 million drams last year. Notably, the largest batch of cognacs, worth 13.4 million drams, was bought by the National Assembly staff just a few days before the holidays in December 2019.

Since the post-revolutionary government came to power, the National Assembly has purchased 1,030 bottles of cognac under one of the contracts. The acquired cognacs are quite expensive, with some aged up to 30 years.

The list reveals that the most expensive cognac costs 82,500 drams and is aged for thirty years. The Assembly has acquired four bottles of this type. This means that the parliament paid an amount equivalent to 1.5 times the minimum wage for just one bottle of cognac. The second most expensive cognac, costing 50,000 drams, has been purchased at 15 bottles, totaling 750,000 drams. An additional 15 bottles have been purchased at 39,000 drams each.

The cognac selection of the National Assembly also includes bottles worth 16,000, 13,000, and 11,000 drams, among others. A relatively large quantity has been acquired from each of these categories, averaging 150 bottles per type. In 2019, another contract led to cognacs being purchased for 1.1 million drams.

Last year, the State Revenue Committee didn’t spare millions for cognacs either. According to the procurement website, the SRC paid a total of 5.4 million drams for cognacs last year. The police also purchased cognacs worth one million drams last year. For the Police Day reception, the organization bought 32 bottles of cognac priced at 36,000, 27,000, and 18,000 drams.