Missed this yesterday but well done to Brew dog for a bit of humour.. From BBC
A brewer criticised for making what it claimed is Britain’s strongest beer has unveiled an ale with a 1.1% alcohol content.
BrewDog said it launched Nanny State in response to the outcry caused after launching Tokyo* with an 18.2% alcohol content.
In July health experts said a high-alcohol percentage can cause as much damage as drinking to excess.
A 330ml bottle of Tokyo* contains six units of alcohol – twice the recommended daily limit.
BrewDog, based in Fraserburgh, Aberdeenshire, said the stronger beer will help change the country’s binge-drinking culture because it is so rich that people will consume less of it.
Richard McLelland, the firm’s sales director, said today: “We are very responsible retailers. People in the UK want to buy beer based on flavour not on alcohol content and BrewDog creates bold, dramatic, flavoursome beers.
“We’ve had to control the brewing process to create a very low alcohol content.
“Nanny State’s available in cask just now. It is being bottled at the moment but it should be available later this week.
“Nanny State is mild imperial ale containing more hops per barrel than any other beer ever brewed in the UK.
“It is an extraordinary little ale, jammed full of all the brewer’s favourite hops, giving it as much body and mouth feel as possible, ensuring that low strength does not translate into reduced flavour,” he added.
Mr McLelland said the new beer had such a low-alcohol content that the Government did not class it as a beer and it was not subject to beer duty.
BrewDog founder James Watt wrote on his blog: “Anyone who knows BrewDog, knows beer, or anyone has more common sense than a common (or garden) gnome will know that the scathing and unrelenting criticism we faced was pretty unjustified.
“If logic serves the same people who witch-hunted and publicly slated us should now offer us heartfelt support and public congratulations. However I fear that this, unfortunately, is an arena devoid of logic and reason.”
BrewDog also caused controversy earlier this year when drinks industry watchdog the Portman Group said its drink Speedball should be withdrawn from the shelves because it shared a name with the drugs cocktail which killed actor River Phoenix.
Nanny State will be available online at www.brewdog.com with bottles costing £2.49 each.
