The Liquor business is authorized by the State Governments of the country. So you will find different laws, brands and prices as you move across the borders, regarding selling and buying liquor.
Note that below given details concerns only to the Karnataka State Government laws. There are many types of liquor licenses, but they are mostly categorized into 2, and many of the stores you visit will mostly fall under these two categories.
WINE SHOPS:
Though the name Wine Shop, they sell everything form of Liquor which is Whiskey, Rum, Wine etc. They will sell you at the price (Maximum Retail Price) printed on the package. Opening the seal of the pack is strictly prohibited inside the premises. There is no additional Sales tax on the products sold here, so buying here is very cheap. The expenses here is also little since there is only one counter and a godown, and few laborers.
BAR & RESTAURANT:
There are tables and chairs inside and you can sit there and order drinks and food. Generally these stores will charge you more on the MRP, which is the Service Charge. It is mostly not shown in the Invoice. The State Government of Karnataka has recently imposed Sales Tax of 5.5% on MRP (Maximum Retail Price). Because of these two more additional charges, the bar owner has to charge the customer more, to cover his expenses to pay salary to waiters, electricity bills, maintenance charges etc.
The Bar Diary 