What made Romulan Ale Romulan? That it was made from a Romulan recipe, or that it was made on Romulus? After the destruction of Romulus, was any new Romulan Ale produced?
-
1Praxis save us!– Molag BalCommented Jun 17, 2016 at 18:11
-
1I would guess the answer is that it was originally made on Romulus. Similarly to how we can have Bourbon not made in the Bourbon county of Kentucky. Technically it may not be Bourbon, but it is still commonly referred to that way.– Marshall TigerusCommented Jun 17, 2016 at 18:47
-
2memory-alpha.wikia.com/wiki/Romulan_ale - Lots of relevant info here if someone fancies copying and pasting to earn some easy rep.– ValorumCommented Jun 17, 2016 at 19:13
-
4This reminds me of Wednesday Addams' question about the Girl Scout cookies.– Cascabel_StandWithUkraine_Commented Jun 17, 2016 at 19:35
-
3What made Romulan Ale Romulan is that Romulans made Romulan Ale on Romulus, originally.– ChrisInEdmontonCommented Jun 17, 2016 at 23:07
|
Show 4 more comments
1 Answer
The official Star Trek web site maintains a brief, but very informative database entry on Romulan ale, known in the Romulan tongue as "kali-fal":
An infamous blue alchoholic beverage with a powerful kick, the drink has been banned in the United Federation of Planets since before 2285 and is still not a commonly-known commodity.
It was unavailable even for replication aboard the Enterprise-D in 2366, to defecting Romulan Admiral Jarok's dismay.
A shipment hijacked by Fallit Kot around 2362 landed him eight years in a Romulan labor camp after middleman Quark turned on him.
The article implies that true Romulan ale is scarce outside Romulan territories and is manufactured almost exclusively within the Romulan Empire, as an associate of Quark had to obtain it by hijacking a shipment from Romulan space.
Rules on DS9 are, of course, more lax than on purely Starfleet installations, and we know from "In the Pale Moonlight" that Romulan ale is available for replication on the station, at least for Senator Vreenak's visit if not earlier. However, the conversation between Vreenak and Sisko suggests that an aficionado of the drink would know the difference between the authentic Romulan-sourced product and replicated stuff:
VREENAK: A fair approximation. Somewhat lacking in aroma. Real kali-fal should forcibly open one's sinuses well before the first sip.
Finally, as for Romulan ale after the destruction of Romulus at the hands of the Hobus supernova, I'm afraid that recorded Star Trek history in the Prime Timeline ends after the Countdown comic book series, an accompaniment to the Star Trek (2009) reboot. The Countdown series, while dealing with the destruction of Romulus, fails to address the fate of production of the galaxy's favourite loosen-up-the-mood beverage.
-
5I'm still holding out a foolish hope that we'll get the prime timeline back someday. Commented Jun 17, 2016 at 21:12
-
Why has it been banned? For the same reason as Absinthe? Commented Jun 17, 2016 at 22:02
-
3@Gandalf I think it's more banned like Cuban cigars were banned.– CBredlowCommented Jun 17, 2016 at 22:08
-
2@CBredlow So Praxis can get ahold of Romulan ale, since he lives in Canada? Commented Jun 17, 2016 at 22:35
-
2@amaranth I thought the president recently rescinded the embargo? My travel agent keeps offering me cruises to Remus for low low prices.– CBredlowCommented Jun 17, 2016 at 22:36