A drink comes before a story. Jonathan Swift, the Dean of St. Patrick's, wrote disparagingly of the drink. On the other hand, Gore Vidal commented on one the most common past times of storytellers.
Some writers take to drink, others take to audiences.
This week's proverb points out that the storyteller will usually find both at a pub, a fair, or a party. One could say that these are the best venues for story telling. Here the word ' is ' before an adjective of comparative degree marks the adverb as being in the superlative degree. Therefore, this week's proverb means the drink comes first, then the story.