The taste for fortified wine was also driven by import duties and the evasion of them. Duties were levied on the volume of alcoholic beverages, not their strength so it was relatively cheaper to import stronger drinks. Then again smuggling was rife and sneaking in more concentrated beverages was much more profitable. In fact the existence of many fortified or distilled drinks on the continent, such as Brandy/Cognac was largely driven by British import duties.