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Sam Adams' Collectible $150 Utopias Beer Expanding Distribution

Filed under: Spirits

Samuel Adams Utopias, an extra strong beer brewed with a blend of malts and maple syrup and aged in cognac, bourbon and port casks, is expected to sell for $115 a bottle when it arrives in Canadian stores this month.

Utopias has been on sale in the U.S. since 2002 and the Canadian introduction gives us a chance to share our tasting experience. It also may give some an idea for a first-class holiday gift for the beer lover.

The beer, priced in the U.S. at about $150, is banned in 12 U.S. states because its high alcohol content (27 per cent by volume) puts it past their legal threshold for "beer." Older vintages of Utopias, like from 2002, sell for hundreds of dollars on the auction market.

Utopias is made from a blend of several different strong beers that have been aged in cognac, bourbon and port barrels.The oldest of the strong beers blended to create Utopias is 15 years, Sam Adams co-founder Jim Koch says. Figuring out how much of each beer to put in the final blend is a the magic that makes each release different. Ten thousand of the bottles were produced and can still be purchased at select retailers.

Taste: The high alcohol hits you right away. The oak is very over-the-top. It would be criticized if we were tasting cognac or wine. In beer, it is novel. Taste of figs and caramel come from the barrels. The finish is short, which is a bit disappointing. But once you understand that this is a different product than whiskey when it comes to finishes, it's okay. You have to accept, or not, the character of aged, barreled beer. Worth the money? I would buy it for a serious beer drinker, aficionado.

Utopias isn't the most expensive beer in the world by a long-shot, but it is what probably ignited the interest in high-alcohol aged beers. End of History, a 55-per-cent alcohol beer from Scotland's brewdog, sold for 500 pounds ($811). Vintage #3, a barley wine made by Carlsberg, sold for 2,010 Danish kroner ($382).

Tags: beer, Brewdog, Carlsberg, End of History, most expensive, Sam Adams, Sam Adams Utopia

Brewdog Creates New "World's Strongest Beer"

by David Kiley (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Spirits

Scottish microbrewery BrewDog has created what it's claiming is the most alcoholic, most expensive beer in the world. It's called "The End of History", and has an alcohol content of 55 percent ABV. Cost: £500 for a bottle. (Their previous world's strongest beer offering, unveiled last year, was called Tactical Nuclear Penguin.)

The name comes from a quote by philosopher Francis Fukuyama, who claimed, "What we may be witnessing is not just the end of the Cold War, or the passing of a particular period of post-war history, but the end of history as such."

The beer, which comes infused with juniper berries and highland nettles, is being produced in a limited run of just 12 bottles. Brewdog achieves the high ABV by freezing the beer down to -70 celsius repeatedly. The water freezes before the alcohol does, and the ice crystals are extracted, concentrating the flavor and the alcohol content.

Tags: beer, Brewdog, The End of History, worlds strongest beer

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Scottish Brewery Creates World's Strongest Beer

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Spirits

The name, Tactical Nuclear Penguin, might be a bit silly, but this is a beer to take seriously. BrewDog, a Scottish brewery says the Penguin is the world's strongest beer and has a 32 percent alcohol content. Like other strong beers such as some of the Sam Adams offerings, this is a beer to be enjoyed in small servings. It is a double cask matured uber-imperial stout. A limited supply of Tactical Nuclear Penguin sells for £30 a bottle or £250 per bottle which includes a share in BrewDog PLC (value £230).

[via BBC News]

Source

Tags: beer, brewdog, tactical nuclear penguin, TacticalNuclearPenguin, worlds strongest beer, WorldsStrongestBeer

BrewDog Atlantic IPA, 1st Sea-Aged Beer in 200 Years

by Jared Paul Stern (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Spirits

Maverick Scottish beer brand BrewDog, known for their outlandish-sounding ales, is releasing a limited edition Atlantic IPA (right), the first commercially available, genuine sea-aged India Pale Ale in over two centuries.

Only 960 bottles will be available in the U.S. at $25.99 per 330 ml, making it one of the most precious brews on the planet. The artfully-designed label declares it to be something extraordinary.

Made according to an 1856 recipe, the Atlantic IPA spent two months aging aboard BrewDog co-founder James Watt's fishing boat in the North Atlantic.

The incredible journey involved a "tense barrel-rescue-mission, beatings from force ten storms, 60 foot waves and encounters with killer whales." You can view the Atlantic IPA voyage online here.

The Atlantic IPA is bursting with malt character: "biscuit, toast, caramel, pirate ship oak, salt and tobacco," in addition to notes of honey, pine and vanilla.

The generous use of English hops adds a substantial kick to the forefront of the nose and mouth with a smooth slick spicy, earthy herbal quality and a lingering woody bitterness in the finish.

Tags: Atlantic ocean, AtlanticOcean, beer, BrewDog, Scotland