I tried the strongest beer in the world – the fire hit me and I felt like I had eaten a wasp
The alcohol content is so high that there is a DANGER warning on the spout.
But this isn’t rum or absinthe – this is Beithir Fire, a £45 bottle of BEER.
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With a staggering 75 percent ABV, it’s no surprise that this beer holds the title of the world’s strongest beer. What’s more, it’s brewed in the UK.
“A few people who have tried it said it made their tongue go numb,” said Andrew Chapman, CEO of Edinburgh’s 88 Brewery, the maker of the drink.
“People say they can feel it all the way through their body – they can feel exactly where it is in them.”
The name Beithir is derived from a dragon in Scottish folklore, referring to its fiery nature.
On top of each bottle is a bright yellow label advising not to drink more than 35ml at a time, just under a double shot.
And this warning is no joke: one 330ml bottle of the brew contains 24.75 UNITS of alcohol.
For comparison, the NHS recommends adults drink no more than 14 units a week, and a bottle of 5% Heineken contains just 1.7 units.
The yellow label also states that the beer has a shelf life of 100 YEARS. This makes it the beer with the longest shelf life in the world.
Secret comes out
Andrew is confident that the drink will remain the strongest drink in the world for some time to come.
He said: “When we created it, we were looking at a higher ABV, and 75 percent seemed to be the maximum limit we could go without it being really, really painful.
“We also have a problem with shipping: 75 percent of it consists of dangerous goods.
“So as we go higher, shipping becomes more expensive.”
But how can a drink this strong still be considered a beer?
“We brew beer to the highest alcohol percentage we can achieve, which is about 20 percent,” Andrew said.
“It is then distilled, passing through a six-filter process three times to remove sugars and impurities.
“People might argue that it is a spirit and when it comes to paying UK import duty, that is how it is classified.”
Sales of the drink have increased by 89 percent in recent months, with more bottles of the brew shipped in the first eight months of 2024 than in 2023 and 2022 combined.
Andrew said: “Beithir Fire is made for a specific market.
“But like most products, the secret got out and people in the UK and America started talking about it.”
He also said that British drinkers generally heed the warning, but American gamblers see it as a challenge.
“I’ve seen videos of people in the US trying to drink a whole bottle and it didn’t always end well,” he said.
If you’re tempted to pair it with food, Andrew says, “It goes well with anything stronger — cheese, meat, like drinking a whiskey.”
Make sure you have a fire extinguisher on hand!
“It’s like swallowing a wasp”
SUN man Thomas survived a sip and gave his verdict…
FROM lagers to IPAs, I can honestly say I’m a fan of most beers and will never hesitate to try something new when it comes to my plate.
But I can say with certainty that this is the first beer I’ve ever had that had a bright yellow label around the neck of the bottle, warning not to drink more than a double shot.
I admit: I was nervous.
After tasting absinthe and other spirits, I knew that such strong drinks were not for the faint of heart.
It’s one thing to try it, but to enjoy it? There was only one way to find out.
When you pour out the amber liquid, you won’t immediately smell anything.
But then I held it up to my nose.
Immediately it felt like someone had stuck a match in my nostrils.
It was sharp, powerful, and didn’t exactly give me the reassuring feeling that the dragon theme was just for show.
Figuring this wasn’t a beer you’d drink in one go, I took a medium-sized sip and let the flames hit my pan.
Even nothing.
Then suddenly it hit me. I felt as if I had swallowed a wasp.
It stung, it burned, and it forced my face into all sorts of strange positions as I felt it going in.
But then that feeling disappeared and I could concentrate on the pleasant, hoppy, almost whiskey-like flavor it left behind.
My verdict? I’m a fan – and honestly, I think this is about the best tasting brew you can get at 75 percent ABV.
Drinking it isn’t exactly a pleasant experience, as colleagues who tasted it as a regular beer discovered.
But generally speaking, what you lose in pain, you gain back in pleasure.
Now it’s time for a few more sips…
FIVE more of the world’s strongest beers, and the people behind them
Snake Venom, 67.5%, Brewmeister beers in Aberdeen.
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Armageddon, 65%, Brewmeister (the weaker brother of Snake Venom).
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Start The Future, 60%, microbrewery Koelschip in the Netherlands.
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Strength In Numbers, 57.8%, by BrewDog and the Schorschbock brewery in Germany
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Schorschbock 57.57%, also from the Schorschbock brewery.
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