Originally Posted by
Fareastdriver
There was a ceremony before the evening meal for the lower ranks, the majority being National Service, in the 1970s. The Officer of the Day and the duty NCO would arrive at the mess to mix the wine.
In full regalia they would pitch a large bag of dark red powder and a bottle of alcohol into a barrel of water and then stir it vigorously.
That what was the plebs got.
I suppose this was because by this date, the French had lost Algeria and all that cheap wine.