The only wicker covered carboys I ever saw were in the Philippines. Just before our lab had opened
there had been many cases of methyl alcohol poisoning from irresponisoble Philippino entrepreneurs
bottling and selling salvaged Japanese truck fuels, some of which were pure ethyl alcohol, and
some were pure methyl alcohol, some mixtures of both. So all alcoholic beverages had to be lab
tested. The largest distillery on Luzon, Tanduay, had been blacklisted by lab we replaced. Our
chemist found that the alleged methyl alcohol found in Tanduay's product was from a flavoring
agent imported from US, with a methyl ester giving a false test for methyl alcohol. Tanduay
was so grateful to us that they sent us a carboy of their best stuff every week. The first one
to arrive got dropped by one of our officers who was in and out of DT's, and had shakes so
bad he let carboy fall on cement pavement, where in spite of wicker covering it shattered.
I saw him lying right down on the pavement lapping up a puddle. That was the last time
I saw him.