Beer Blotter

Picture courtesy of brewdog.com.

BrewDog Brewing Co. based in the United Kingdom never ceases to amaze me with their antics in the craft beer world. Not only do they produce tasty beers, they keep us all entertained.

First it was Sink the Bismark- a “quadruple IPA that contains four times the hops, four times the bitterness and frozen four times to create at a staggering 41% ABV.”  They caught some slack from various organization about the very high ABV of both this brew and Tokyo which clocks in at 18%. So then it was a beer with a 1.1% ABV- Nanny State.

Nanny State is a 1.1% ale. We have gone from making Britain’s strongest beer to a brew so low in alcohol it is below the legal classification of beer and not strong enough to be subject to beer duty.

Take that people- whoever you are!

Moving right along- beer sold in dead animals. Taking branding to a whole new level. Twelve bottles of The End Of History ale were made and placed inside seven dead stoats, four squirrels and one hare. Animal rights groups were not into this idea.

Now, in honor of the royal wedding that has capitvated the American news…BrewDog brings you….

Royal Virtuality Performance- a beer brewed with Viagra. Below is what BrewDog says about their limited release:

We are going to release a limited-edition beer containing Viagra to mark the forthcoming royal wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton on April 29th. Brewed using various well known aphrodisiacs, the limited edition artisanal beer will only be available to buy from the BrewDog.com website and will be dispatched on the day before the wedding.

According to the specially commissioned label, the Royal Virility Performance contains Viagra, chocolate, Horny Goat Weed and ‘a healthy dose of sarcasm’. The beer is a 7.5% ABV India Pale Ale and has been brewed at BrewDog’s brewery in Fraserburgh.

With this beer we want to take the wheels off the royal wedding bandwagon being jumped on by dozens of breweries; The Royal Virility Performance is the perfect antidote to all the hype. A beer should be brewed with a purpose, not just because some toffs are getting married, so we created something at our brewery that will undermine those special edition beers and other assorted seaside tat, whilst at the same time actually give the happy couple something extra on their big day.

We want to make other people as passionate about great craft beer as we are and products marketed according to an event rather than their flavour is an example of what’s wrong with the industry. There is more to brewing and tasting beer than putting a royal wedding label on it, so we’re showing everyone just how ludicrous it is.

This craft ale will cost £10 per bottle, with 20% of all proceeds going to the charity Centrepoint, which Prince William supports. Just 1,000 bottles of the beer will be sold via BrewDog.com and the brewery has sent a complimentary bottle to Prince William himself.

I have always been facinated by BrewDog because of the quality of beers, the innovation and their strong determination to send a message by ways of craft beer. Cheers to that!

The End of History allows you to make out with a chipmunk. Nice Work, BrewDog

Ever wanted to drink your beer directly from a taxidermied animal? I know I have. There’s nothing better than popping the cap off a nice squirrel and going lip to lip with it (ok, thats gross).

Well, that’s all a possibility now, thanks to BrewDog. BrewDog is the Scottish brewer who brought us Tactical Nuclear Penguin (ABV 32%) and Sink the Bismarck (ABV 41%), two of the strongest beers in the world.

BrewDog has been the recipients of massive applause – and silent disdain – from beer drinkers of the world. Some applaud their relentless experimentation and combative spirit. Others are simply sick of  the battle between BrewDog and German brewer Schorschbraeu.

Regardless of what you think about the battle, the crazy high ABV booze, or their creative approach to labeling and marketing – you have to be intrigued with the latest installment: The End of History.

The End of History is 55% alcohol. 55%. I had to say it again. But what is even more incredibly ridiculous is that the beer is bottled and then implemented within a limited edition of taxidermied animals, ranging from squirrels, chipmunks, and perhaps other rodent-like mammals. The bottle is also considered to be the most expensive beer in the world. A 12oz sauce will hit your check book a cool $765.00 (but hey – collectors item right?).

Really? You might ask that question. But, I have come to expect this from BrewDog. They are constantly testing the boundaries of beer consumerism, marketing laws, and human decency. The new grog has to be celebrated if not for the fact that they decided to invest a lot of money into making something that is so far out of the box that it can only be premised on insane passion.

Check out the bottles over at Geekology. Also, be sure to check out the video that they released on Vimeo, capturing the creation process behind The End of History (well, at least their rendition).

We have had the great pleasure of trying out Tactical Nuclear Penguin and Sink the Bismarck. Both of them were, well, interesting. We had a much better reaction to Bismark, which was masked well with extremely concentrated hop extract.

If you get the chance to try any of these beers – you cannot pass it up. It won’t be long before the TTB and other regulators put a stop to classifying these types of brews as “beer.” It also appears that this will be the last time they do the high-ABV beer thing. Read below for more information.

From the BrewDog press release:

The beer is the last high abv beer we are going to brew, the end point of our research into how far the can push the boundaries of extreme brewing, the end of beer.

This blond Belgian ale is infused with nettles from the Scottish Highlands and Fresh juniper berries. Only 12 bottles have been made and each comes with its own certificate and is presented in a stuffed stoat or grey squirrel. The striking packaging was created by a very talented taxidermist and all the animals used were road kill. This release is a limited run of 11 bottles, 7 stoats and 4 grey squirrels. Each ones comes with its own certificate of authenticity.