For a period of either side of 2010 the beer industry was shaken up by small breweries questing to brew the strongest beer in the world. Several European micro breweries put out different beers at ever increasing rates of strength, until Scottish Brewery Brewmeister took top spot with their Snake Venom Beer at 67.5% ABV. As is the case with many records, controversy surrounds the worthiness of the title – and the enjoyment factor for these types of booze offerings can best be described as questionable. There’s plenty of gray area surrounding the process of brewing high alcohol content craft beer, but it’s certainly an entertaining sub genre of the beer industry. Here are some of the world’s strong beer breweries that have laid claim to owning the biggest, baddest (and weirdest) ABV on the block.   Best Buy1. Brewmeister Snake Venom (67.5% ABV)

  Check Price   At 67.5% ABV, Snake Venom from the Scottish Brewery Brewmeister (the international arm of Keith’s in Speyside) is officially the strongest beer in the world. Snake Venom Beer is a fortified Barley wine that uses smoked peat malt and is brewed in the traditional Eisbock method. It passed stablemate Brewmeister Armageddon (65% ABV/330ml bottle) as the world’s strongest beer in 2013, and according to reports tastes a great deal better than the previous strong beer from the Scottish brewer. The high ABV smoked peat malt and champagne yeast used means the black Snake Venom beer has a heavy mouthfeel. The flavor is described as fruity and smooth with a heavy-duty fiery finish and bitter aftertaste. Online retailers sensibly warn customers that they must accept the risks in purchasing an extreme beer of such potency and cap bottle purchases, which are supplied with a letter of authenticity and explanation of the brew from the Scottish Brewer. There’s also a yellow warning label around the neck if all else fails. It’s also recommended that each beer enthusiast enjoy Brewmeister Snake Venom in a small, nip like dosage of around 35ml. For more information on Scottish Brewery Brewmeister, Snake Venom, and Armageddon click here.

  2. Koelschip Start the Future (60% ABV)

  Check Price   Another beer with a colossal ABV that once held claim to the strongest beer in the world title, now retired Dutch brewer Koelschip released Start the Future in 2010 as part of a micro-brewing potency war with fellow craft beer brewer BrewDog (we’ll get to them). Prior to that the company had a briefly popular 45% high alcohol beer called Obilix, which in comparison to Start the Future must have seemed like a regular beer. Brewed under the traditional Eisbock Method, the taste of the pale yellow Start the Future was described as sweet and tangy, carrying a thick, soapy mouthfeel and blast of alcohol taste. More unkind reviewers drew parallels with methylated spirits. The Koelschip brewery is gone now, being more of a one trick pony than some of the other makers on the list. If you’re interested, a koelschip is a flat and shallow vessel, historically made of copper that is used to produce lambic beer in Belgium.

  3. BrewDog & Schorschbrau Strength in Numbers Collaboration (57.8%)

  Check Price   Only 36 bottles of the German Brewer Schorschbrau’s Schorschbock 57 were ever made, although for a time you could also get 40ml Schnapps type bottles to taste. It cost around $285USD for a 330ml bottle. It was said it had an incredible alcohol burn which would stay on your tongue. Nice, I guess… The German brewer wanted a higher ABV than the SchorschBock 57%, which was not feasible because the beer would have violated the 500-year old Germanic beer purity law (which is an amazing law btw). Schorschbrau also had another SchorschBock at 43% that had much the same effect as it’s big sister beer.

  Recently the Schorschbrau brewery collaborated with one time competitor BrewDog to create another extreme beer called Strength in Numbers, at 57.8% ABV. The collaboration claims that it is the world’s strongest beer, and more of a “real” beer than the Snake Venom due to a greater adherence to the Eisbock Method, as it does not add more alcohol to the mix in the middle of the process… BrewDog wrote the following on its website at the time of the new beer’s release: “…we join forces with Schorschbrau for the ultimate collaboration. Strength in Numbers is a 57.8-percent beer that reaches its colossal ABV through the traditional Eisbock method, which means freezing the beer and removing chunks of ice (water) so that you are left with the concentrated high ABV liquid. The beer also features a blend of BrewDog’s own Death or Glory, an ice distilled Belgian golden ale that’s been sitting in whisky casks for 10 years. The result is unlike anything you’ve had before or are likely to have again.” The Strength in Numbers beer backed up its ballyhooed arrival by selling out almost immediately, although there’s unlikely to be more bottled.

  4. BrewDog End Of History (55% ABV) Credit: freemind-production / Shutterstock.com   Check Price   Scottish Brewer BrewDog have always been in and around the quest for the world’s strongest beer (although as a craft brewery they’re a top drawer worldwide brewing operation). They mix amazing names for their brews, a variety of weird advertising gimmicks, and other off the wall behavior with a top-quality commitment to making quality regular beer and the odd niche beer with high alcohol content. They once dropped stuffed cats from out of a helicopter over London. When it was released in 2009 the Tactical Nuclear Penguin held top spot as the strongest beer in the world at 32% alcohol content. Soon after that they released the End of History beer in a short-lived but entertaining micro-brew battle with Koelschip (who are now no longer around). You may have heard of End of History. It was the highest ABV beer (for about a weel) that cost a tick under $800USD per bottle and came packaged inside taxidermy roadkill animals, such as squirrels. They only made 12 bottles!

However, it’s the company’s high alcohol beer Sink the Bismarck! IPA that’s most worth taking note of. Sink the Bismarck! was billed as “a quadruple IPA that contains four times the hops, four times the bitterness and frozen four times to create at a staggering 41% ABV.” It was well liked by the IPA beer lover who wanted a real tasting brew with a point of difference worth talking about, which seems to be exactly what putting out a limited release extreme beer was all about for BrewDog.

For a period of either side of 2010 the beer industry was shaken up by small breweries questing to brew the strongest beer in the world. Several European micro breweries put out different beers at ever increasing rates of strength, until Scottish Brewery Brewmeister took top spot with their Snake Venom Beer at 67.5% ABV. As is the case with many records, controversy surrounds the worthiness of the title – and the enjoyment factor for these types of booze offerings can best be described as questionable. There’s plenty of gray area surrounding the process of brewing high alcohol content craft beer, but it’s certainly an entertaining sub genre of the beer industry. Here are some of the world’s strong beer breweries that have laid claim to owning the biggest, baddest (and weirdest) ABV on the block.   Best Buy1. Brewmeister Snake Venom (67.5% ABV)

  Check Price   At 67.5% ABV, Snake Venom from the Scottish Brewery Brewmeister (the international arm of Keith’s in Speyside) is officially the strongest beer in the world. Snake Venom Beer is a fortified Barley wine that uses smoked peat malt and is brewed in the traditional Eisbock method. It passed stablemate Brewmeister Armageddon (65% ABV/330ml bottle) as the world’s strongest beer in 2013, and according to reports tastes a great deal better than the previous strong beer from the Scottish brewer. The high ABV smoked peat malt and champagne yeast used means the black Snake Venom beer has a heavy mouthfeel. The flavor is described as fruity and smooth with a heavy-duty fiery finish and bitter aftertaste. Online retailers sensibly warn customers that they must accept the risks in purchasing an extreme beer of such potency and cap bottle purchases, which are supplied with a letter of authenticity and explanation of the brew from the Scottish Brewer. There’s also a yellow warning label around the neck if all else fails. It’s also recommended that each beer enthusiast enjoy Brewmeister Snake Venom in a small, nip like dosage of around 35ml. For more information on Scottish Brewery Brewmeister, Snake Venom, and Armageddon click here.

  2. Koelschip Start the Future (60% ABV)

  Check Price   Another beer with a colossal ABV that once held claim to the strongest beer in the world title, now retired Dutch brewer Koelschip released Start the Future in 2010 as part of a micro-brewing potency war with fellow craft beer brewer BrewDog (we’ll get to them). Prior to that the company had a briefly popular 45% high alcohol beer called Obilix, which in comparison to Start the Future must have seemed like a regular beer. Brewed under the traditional Eisbock Method, the taste of the pale yellow Start the Future was described as sweet and tangy, carrying a thick, soapy mouthfeel and blast of alcohol taste. More unkind reviewers drew parallels with methylated spirits. The Koelschip brewery is gone now, being more of a one trick pony than some of the other makers on the list. If you’re interested, a koelschip is a flat and shallow vessel, historically made of copper that is used to produce lambic beer in Belgium.

  3. BrewDog & Schorschbrau Strength in Numbers Collaboration (57.8%)

  Check Price   Only 36 bottles of the German Brewer Schorschbrau’s Schorschbock 57 were ever made, although for a time you could also get 40ml Schnapps type bottles to taste. It cost around $285USD for a 330ml bottle. It was said it had an incredible alcohol burn which would stay on your tongue. Nice, I guess… The German brewer wanted a higher ABV than the SchorschBock 57%, which was not feasible because the beer would have violated the 500-year old Germanic beer purity law (which is an amazing law btw). Schorschbrau also had another SchorschBock at 43% that had much the same effect as it’s big sister beer.

  Recently the Schorschbrau brewery collaborated with one time competitor BrewDog to create another extreme beer called Strength in Numbers, at 57.8% ABV. The collaboration claims that it is the world’s strongest beer, and more of a “real” beer than the Snake Venom due to a greater adherence to the Eisbock Method, as it does not add more alcohol to the mix in the middle of the process… BrewDog wrote the following on its website at the time of the new beer’s release: “…we join forces with Schorschbrau for the ultimate collaboration. Strength in Numbers is a 57.8-percent beer that reaches its colossal ABV through the traditional Eisbock method, which means freezing the beer and removing chunks of ice (water) so that you are left with the concentrated high ABV liquid. The beer also features a blend of BrewDog’s own Death or Glory, an ice distilled Belgian golden ale that’s been sitting in whisky casks for 10 years. The result is unlike anything you’ve had before or are likely to have again.” The Strength in Numbers beer backed up its ballyhooed arrival by selling out almost immediately, although there’s unlikely to be more bottled.

  4. BrewDog End Of History (55% ABV) Credit: freemind-production / Shutterstock.com   Check Price   Scottish Brewer BrewDog have always been in and around the quest for the world’s strongest beer (although as a craft brewery they’re a top drawer worldwide brewing operation). They mix amazing names for their brews, a variety of weird advertising gimmicks, and other off the wall behavior with a top-quality commitment to making quality regular beer and the odd niche beer with high alcohol content. They once dropped stuffed cats from out of a helicopter over London. When it was released in 2009 the Tactical Nuclear Penguin held top spot as the strongest beer in the world at 32% alcohol content. Soon after that they released the End of History beer in a short-lived but entertaining micro-brew battle with Koelschip (who are now no longer around). You may have heard of End of History. It was the highest ABV beer (for about a weel) that cost a tick under $800USD per bottle and came packaged inside taxidermy roadkill animals, such as squirrels. They only made 12 bottles!

However, it’s the company’s high alcohol beer Sink the Bismarck! IPA that’s most worth taking note of. Sink the Bismarck! was billed as “a quadruple IPA that contains four times the hops, four times the bitterness and frozen four times to create at a staggering 41% ABV.” It was well liked by the IPA beer lover who wanted a real tasting brew with a point of difference worth talking about, which seems to be exactly what putting out a limited release extreme beer was all about for BrewDog.

For a period of either side of 2010 the beer industry was shaken up by small breweries questing to brew the strongest beer in the world. Several European micro breweries put out different beers at ever increasing rates of strength, until Scottish Brewery Brewmeister took top spot with their Snake Venom Beer at 67.5% ABV.

As is the case with many records, controversy surrounds the worthiness of the title – and the enjoyment factor for these types of booze offerings can best be described as questionable. There’s plenty of gray area surrounding the process of brewing high alcohol content craft beer, but it’s certainly an entertaining sub genre of the beer industry.

Here are some of the world’s strong beer breweries that have laid claim to owning the biggest, baddest (and weirdest) ABV on the block.

 

Best Buy1. Brewmeister Snake Venom (67.5% ABV)

  Check Price   At 67.5% ABV, Snake Venom from the Scottish Brewery Brewmeister (the international arm of Keith’s in Speyside) is officially the strongest beer in the world. Snake Venom Beer is a fortified Barley wine that uses smoked peat malt and is brewed in the traditional Eisbock method. It passed stablemate Brewmeister Armageddon (65% ABV/330ml bottle) as the world’s strongest beer in 2013, and according to reports tastes a great deal better than the previous strong beer from the Scottish brewer. The high ABV smoked peat malt and champagne yeast used means the black Snake Venom beer has a heavy mouthfeel. The flavor is described as fruity and smooth with a heavy-duty fiery finish and bitter aftertaste. Online retailers sensibly warn customers that they must accept the risks in purchasing an extreme beer of such potency and cap bottle purchases, which are supplied with a letter of authenticity and explanation of the brew from the Scottish Brewer. There’s also a yellow warning label around the neck if all else fails. It’s also recommended that each beer enthusiast enjoy Brewmeister Snake Venom in a small, nip like dosage of around 35ml. For more information on Scottish Brewery Brewmeister, Snake Venom, and Armageddon click here.

Check Price

At 67.5% ABV, Snake Venom from the Scottish Brewery Brewmeister (the international arm of Keith’s in Speyside) is officially the strongest beer in the world. Snake Venom Beer is a fortified Barley wine that uses smoked peat malt and is brewed in the traditional Eisbock method. It passed stablemate Brewmeister Armageddon (65% ABV/330ml bottle) as the world’s strongest beer in 2013, and according to reports tastes a great deal better than the previous strong beer from the Scottish brewer.

The high ABV smoked peat malt and champagne yeast used means the black Snake Venom beer has a heavy mouthfeel. The flavor is described as fruity and smooth with a heavy-duty fiery finish and bitter aftertaste.

Online retailers sensibly warn customers that they must accept the risks in purchasing an extreme beer of such potency and cap bottle purchases, which are supplied with a letter of authenticity and explanation of the brew from the Scottish Brewer. There’s also a yellow warning label around the neck if all else fails.

It’s also recommended that each beer enthusiast enjoy Brewmeister Snake Venom in a small, nip like dosage of around 35ml. For more information on Scottish Brewery Brewmeister, Snake Venom, and Armageddon click here.

  1. Koelschip Start the Future (60% ABV)

  Check Price   Another beer with a colossal ABV that once held claim to the strongest beer in the world title, now retired Dutch brewer Koelschip released Start the Future in 2010 as part of a micro-brewing potency war with fellow craft beer brewer BrewDog (we’ll get to them). Prior to that the company had a briefly popular 45% high alcohol beer called Obilix, which in comparison to Start the Future must have seemed like a regular beer. Brewed under the traditional Eisbock Method, the taste of the pale yellow Start the Future was described as sweet and tangy, carrying a thick, soapy mouthfeel and blast of alcohol taste. More unkind reviewers drew parallels with methylated spirits. The Koelschip brewery is gone now, being more of a one trick pony than some of the other makers on the list. If you’re interested, a koelschip is a flat and shallow vessel, historically made of copper that is used to produce lambic beer in Belgium.

Another beer with a colossal ABV that once held claim to the strongest beer in the world title, now retired Dutch brewer Koelschip released Start the Future in 2010 as part of a micro-brewing potency war with fellow craft beer brewer BrewDog (we’ll get to them). Prior to that the company had a briefly popular 45% high alcohol beer called Obilix, which in comparison to Start the Future must have seemed like a regular beer.

Brewed under the traditional Eisbock Method, the taste of the pale yellow Start the Future was described as sweet and tangy, carrying a thick, soapy mouthfeel and blast of alcohol taste. More unkind reviewers drew parallels with methylated spirits.

The Koelschip brewery is gone now, being more of a one trick pony than some of the other makers on the list. If you’re interested, a koelschip is a flat and shallow vessel, historically made of copper that is used to produce lambic beer in Belgium.

  1. BrewDog & Schorschbrau Strength in Numbers Collaboration (57.8%)

  Check Price   Only 36 bottles of the German Brewer Schorschbrau’s Schorschbock 57 were ever made, although for a time you could also get 40ml Schnapps type bottles to taste. It cost around $285USD for a 330ml bottle. It was said it had an incredible alcohol burn which would stay on your tongue. Nice, I guess… The German brewer wanted a higher ABV than the SchorschBock 57%, which was not feasible because the beer would have violated the 500-year old Germanic beer purity law (which is an amazing law btw). Schorschbrau also had another SchorschBock at 43% that had much the same effect as it’s big sister beer.

  Recently the Schorschbrau brewery collaborated with one time competitor BrewDog to create another extreme beer called Strength in Numbers, at 57.8% ABV. The collaboration claims that it is the world’s strongest beer, and more of a “real” beer than the Snake Venom due to a greater adherence to the Eisbock Method, as it does not add more alcohol to the mix in the middle of the process… BrewDog wrote the following on its website at the time of the new beer’s release: “…we join forces with Schorschbrau for the ultimate collaboration. Strength in Numbers is a 57.8-percent beer that reaches its colossal ABV through the traditional Eisbock method, which means freezing the beer and removing chunks of ice (water) so that you are left with the concentrated high ABV liquid. The beer also features a blend of BrewDog’s own Death or Glory, an ice distilled Belgian golden ale that’s been sitting in whisky casks for 10 years. The result is unlike anything you’ve had before or are likely to have again.” The Strength in Numbers beer backed up its ballyhooed arrival by selling out almost immediately, although there’s unlikely to be more bottled.

Only 36 bottles of the German Brewer Schorschbrau’s Schorschbock 57 were ever made, although for a time you could also get 40ml Schnapps type bottles to taste. It cost around $285USD for a 330ml bottle. It was said it had an incredible alcohol burn which would stay on your tongue. Nice, I guess…

The German brewer wanted a higher ABV than the SchorschBock 57%, which was not feasible because the beer would have violated the 500-year old Germanic beer purity law (which is an amazing law btw). Schorschbrau also had another SchorschBock at 43% that had much the same effect as it’s big sister beer.

Recently the Schorschbrau brewery collaborated with one time competitor BrewDog to create another extreme beer called Strength in Numbers, at 57.8% ABV. The collaboration claims that it is the world’s strongest beer, and more of a “real” beer than the Snake Venom due to a greater adherence to the Eisbock Method, as it does not add more alcohol to the mix in the middle of the process…

BrewDog wrote the following on its website at the time of the new beer’s release:

“…we join forces with Schorschbrau for the ultimate collaboration. Strength in Numbers is a 57.8-percent beer that reaches its colossal ABV through the traditional Eisbock method, which means freezing the beer and removing chunks of ice (water) so that you are left with the concentrated high ABV liquid. The beer also features a blend of BrewDog’s own Death or Glory, an ice distilled Belgian golden ale that’s been sitting in whisky casks for 10 years. The result is unlike anything you’ve had before or are likely to have again.”

The Strength in Numbers beer backed up its ballyhooed arrival by selling out almost immediately, although there’s unlikely to be more bottled.

  1. BrewDog End Of History (55% ABV) Credit: freemind-production / Shutterstock.com   Check Price   Scottish Brewer BrewDog have always been in and around the quest for the world’s strongest beer (although as a craft brewery they’re a top drawer worldwide brewing operation). They mix amazing names for their brews, a variety of weird advertising gimmicks, and other off the wall behavior with a top-quality commitment to making quality regular beer and the odd niche beer with high alcohol content. They once dropped stuffed cats from out of a helicopter over London. When it was released in 2009 the Tactical Nuclear Penguin held top spot as the strongest beer in the world at 32% alcohol content. Soon after that they released the End of History beer in a short-lived but entertaining micro-brew battle with Koelschip (who are now no longer around). You may have heard of End of History. It was the highest ABV beer (for about a weel) that cost a tick under $800USD per bottle and came packaged inside taxidermy roadkill animals, such as squirrels. They only made 12 bottles!

However, it’s the company’s high alcohol beer Sink the Bismarck! IPA that’s most worth taking note of. Sink the Bismarck! was billed as “a quadruple IPA that contains four times the hops, four times the bitterness and frozen four times to create at a staggering 41% ABV.” It was well liked by the IPA beer lover who wanted a real tasting brew with a point of difference worth talking about, which seems to be exactly what putting out a limited release extreme beer was all about for BrewDog.

Scottish Brewer BrewDog have always been in and around the quest for the world’s strongest beer (although as a craft brewery they’re a top drawer worldwide brewing operation).

They mix amazing names for their brews, a variety of weird advertising gimmicks, and other off the wall behavior with a top-quality commitment to making quality regular beer and the odd niche beer with high alcohol content. They once dropped stuffed cats from out of a helicopter over London.

When it was released in 2009 the Tactical Nuclear Penguin held top spot as the strongest beer in the world at 32% alcohol content. Soon after that they released the End of History beer in a short-lived but entertaining micro-brew battle with Koelschip (who are now no longer around).

You may have heard of End of History. It was the highest ABV beer (for about a weel) that cost a tick under $800USD per bottle and came packaged inside taxidermy roadkill animals, such as squirrels. They only made 12 bottles!

However, it’s the company’s high alcohol beer Sink the Bismarck! IPA that’s most worth taking note of. Sink the Bismarck! was billed as “a quadruple IPA that contains four times the hops, four times the bitterness and frozen four times to create at a staggering 41% ABV.”

It was well liked by the IPA beer lover who wanted a real tasting brew with a point of difference worth talking about, which seems to be exactly what putting out a limited release extreme beer was all about for BrewDog.