Alarabiya News exposes Ismāʿīlis as the “leading wine-makers in Pakistan’s North”
Less than a year ago, Alarabiya News English exposed Ismāʿīlis as the chief wine-makers in Pakistan’s unregulated north. The paper reported that:
“The hems of his jeans rolled, Rehmat Ali climbs barefoot up a tree to pick the grapes dangling from climbing vines, defying hostile religious injunctions against alcohol to celebrate a wine-making tradition that is older than Islam in the mountains of Pakistan.
Every autumn in the remote village of Sher Qilla in the foothills of the Himalayas, Rehmat joins the many agile young people taking to the trees for the long-awaited harvest under the watchful eye of their gnarled and chiselled elders.
Drenched in sunlight, bunches of grapes crown the treetops, where they are safe from the opportunistic reach of greedy farm animals.
Rehmat, slim, and with an aquiline nose, begins to pick the forbidden fruit. Working with his bare hands, he places the green and crimson grapes in a wicker basket that is lowered to the ground along a rope.”
To go with ‘Pakistan-Agriculture-Wine’ Feature by Guillaume LAVALLÉE In this photograph taken on September 27, 2015, local resident Rehmat Ali, a Ismaili, picks grapes from a tree for brewing wine in his garden in the remote village of Sher Qilla in Punyal valley in northern Pakistan. Every autumn in the remote village of Sher Qilla in the foothills of the Himalayas, many agile young people take to the trees for the long-awaited harvest under the watchful eye of their gnarled and chiselled elders. AFP PHOTO / Aamir QURESHI
Alarabiya reported that:
“one of the different currents of Islam that flow through the alpine region is Isma’ilism, a branch of Shiism led by the influential Aga Khan, the hereditary chief.”
The complete news article can be found at the below link:
http://english.alarabiya.net/en/life-style/art-and-culture/2015/10/19/Meet-the-illicit-wine-makers-of-Pakistan-s-north.html
To go with ‘Pakistan-Agriculture-Wine’ Feature by Guillaume LAVALLÉE In this photograph taken on September 27, 2015, local resident Rehmat Ali (R) and his cousin, both Ismailis, toast each other as they prepare to drink home brewed wine in the remote village of Sher Qilla in Punyal valley in northern Pakistan. Every autumn in the remote village of Sher Qilla in the foothills of the Himalayas, many agile young people take to the trees for the long-awaited harvest under the watchful eye of their gnarled and chiselled elders. AFP PHOTO / Aamir QURESHI
Ismāʿīlis, especially those who migrate to UK, USA and Canada from Africa, India and Pakistan openly engage in alcohol consumption in Western countries because they witness pictures of Karim Aga Khan and his family engaging in alcohol consumption. Serena Hotels owned by Aga Khan openly serve alcohol even though ʾIslām forbids selling, serving and transportation of alcohol together with consumption of it.
Zahra smoking Camels with some Whisky. This photograph was taken at Paddy Miles and Allegra Fitzgibbons’ Wedding in November 1996.
Read the complete details on Serena Hotels selling alcohol at the below link:
Hazar Imam’s Alcohol Business | Inside Ismailism
Also read reports in different media where Aga Khan admitted that he consumed ‘oceans of alcohol’:
Ismaili Imamat’s Guidance on Consuming “Oceans of Alcohol” | Inside Ismailism
Below is another article on Ismaili Imamat’s double-stance on alcohol consumption:
Wine into Water: Ismāʿīlī Imamat’s Guidance on Alcohol Consumption | Inside Ismailism
Zahra Aga Khan breaking a bottle of champagne on her boat’s rudd as a ritual of ‘baptizing’ her boat ahead of it’s debut.
Inside Ismailism 