A good ole bottle of beer just got kicked up a notch! There’s a new type of beer on the market that’s as strong as vodka. We read about this in Time magazine. It started last November, when a Scottish brewery released a beer that set a record for alcohol by volume – at 32% alcohol. That made it six times as strong as something like Budweiser. They created this super-strong beer by fermenting it at an ice cream factory at 6 degrees Celsius – which is below freezing – for 21 days. Since alcohol freezes at lower temperatures than water, they make the beer stronger by freezing it, then removing excess water, so what’s left is more potent. However, once this Scottish brewer set its record, a German brewer set out to beat it – and they did. They released a beer that was 40% alcohol – about the same as most vodkas. Then the Scottish guys upped their brew to 41% alcohol – and it’s still going back and forth as breweries try to create the world’s strongest beer.

As you can imagine, alcohol watchdog groups are not amused. They say these super-strong beers are irresponsible. They worry that people will drink them the way they would drink a regular beer – say having three or so in a sitting – and not realize it’s the same as having three or four whiskey drinks in a sitting. The beer makers say they’re doing their part by putting warning labels on their product. Another deterrent? The price. Right now, these beers are imported – and the cost of one bottle can be as much as $60. Half of all the super-strong beer is being bought by Americans, and of course, American breweries are trying to get in on the act. The beers taste very bitter, like hard alcohol – because that’s what they are. So be warned – when you hear about beer that’s been freeze-distilled, it’s extremely strong. It’s not something you should drink a 6-pack of while watching the game. If you do, you could easily wind up with alcohol poisoning.