A lesson for those who want to clamp down on binge drinking

Comes from the LA Times which reports that drinks makers are avoiding paying a new tax

Beverage makers admit they aren't paying the new taxes. They say they don't have to because they have reformulated the drinks -- more than 6,000 varieties -- to transform them into simple beers by limiting the amount of distilled spirits they contain.
They won't explain how. The formulas, they say, are trade secrets. And beverage-industry officials and federal regulators say there are no tests to determine how much distilled spirits the drinks contain.

The new taxes were

intended to raise the price of a typical six-pack by $1.74 -- or 20%. Advocates were hoping that would deter teenagers from buying the brews.