I frequently had recourse to champagne because I constantly felt depressed and bored, owing to the fact that I was living in the most bourgeois, mercenary milieu imaginable, where every sou was counted and grudged. Indeed, two weeks had not gone by before I realized Blanche had no real affection for me, even though she dressed me in elegant clothes, and tied my cravat herself every day. Quite simply, she utterly despised me. But that did not bother me at all. Bored and depressed I generally spent my evening at the Château des Fleurs where I would get drunk and dance the cancan (which in that establishment, was performed pretty indecently) with some distinction. At length, the time came when Blanche had drained my purse dry.
Fyodor Dostoevsky, “The Gambler”, 1866
A Bird's Eye View of Fashion, Food, Travel, Culture, Beverage and Curiosity 