Scottish beer has some big balls under that kilt at 32% Alcohol

A controversial Scottish brewery has launched what it described as the world's strongest beer - with a 32% alcohol content.

Tactical Nuclear Penguin has been unveiled by BrewDog of Fraserburgh.

BrewDog was previously branded irresponsible for an 18.2% beer called Tokyo, which it then followed with a low alcohol beer called Nanny State.

Managing director James Watt said a limited supply of Tactical Nuclear Penguin would be sold for £30 each.

This is an extremely strong beer; it should be enjoyed in small servings and with an air of aristocratic nonchalance Tactical Nuclear Penguin label warning

He said: "This beer is about pushing the boundaries, it is about taking innovation in beer to a whole new level."

Mr Watt added that a beer such as Tactical Nuclear Penguin should be drunk in "spirit sized measures".

A warning on the label states: "This is an extremely strong beer; it should be enjoyed in small servings and with an air of aristocratic nonchalance. In exactly the same manner that you would enjoy a fine whisky, a Frank Zappa album or a visit from a friendly yet anxious ghost."

However Jack Law, of Alcohol Focus Scotland, described it was a "cynical marketing ploy" and said: "We want to know why a brewer would produce a beer almost as strong as whisky."

The beer has been launched on the day alcohol was at the top of the political agenda with the unveiling of the Scottish government's Alcohol Bill including proposals for minimum pricing on drink.

Meanwhile, BrewDog's plans for a new headquarters to produce millions of bottles of beer a year have been approved by Aberdeenshire Council.

The decision was taken at a full council meeting despite having been recommended for refusal by officers because the site at Potterton, near Aberdeen, is in the green belt.

via bbc

Brewtender

Pretty cool idea. Its a mini tap that is portable to serve cold beer anywhere. This tabletop marvel keeps up to 80 ounces of your favorite brew cold, thanks to a central removable ice chamber that's separated from the beer to stop the watering down process in its tracks. A bar-style front tap keeps things flowing, while an internal illumination system lights your way when the sun goes down.

kegworks.com

Pabst Blue Ribbon for sale

If only I had $300 million - Sounds like a bargain to me.

"MILWAUKEE Pabst Brewing Co., owner of Pabst Blue Ribbon, Schlitz and other old-line beer brands, is on the sale block again.

Pabst's owner, the Kalmanovitz Charitable Foundation, based in Mill Valley, Calif., has hired Bank of America Merrill Lynch to find a buyer willing to pay around $300 million, according to the New York Post, which cited unnamed sources in a Monday article.

Executives at Pabst, based in suburban Chicago, and foundation officials didn't return phone calls seeking comment.

The sale effort is apparently the result of a deadline imposed by the Internal Revenue Service. Federal tax laws don't allow charitable foundations to own for-profit companies.

The IRS initially gave the foundation until 2005 to sell Pabst. That deadline was extended to 2010 when a buyer couldn't be found, according to a 2008 report by the Chicago Tribune.

Pabst, and its predecessor company, Best Brewing Co., was a Milwaukee mainstay for more than a century when it was acquired in 1985 by Paul Kalmanovitz. He bought other declining breweries, including Pearl and Falstaff, that were losing market share to growing giants Anheuser-Busch and Miller Brewing. Kalmanovitz died in 1987.

Pabst closed its Milwaukee brewery in 1996 and shuttered its last remaining brewery in 2001 after hiring Miller, now known as MillerCoors LLC, to brew its brands. Pabst in 2006 moved its offices from San Antonio, Texas, to Woodridge, Ill., where it has around 30 employees.

Because Pabst doesn't own breweries, it mainly operates as a marketing company, crafting strategies for selling dozens of brands, which also include Old Milwaukee, Stroh's and Heileman's Old Style.

In recent years, Pabst Blue Ribbon has seen revived sales when it was embraced by drinkers in their 20s, who see it as welcome contrast to heavily marketed beers.

Pabst Brewing also successfully relaunched Schlitz with its original formula from the '60s and announced it was bringing back "kraeusening," a process that uses additional fermentation, for Old Style.

Despite those efforts, Pabst Brewing's sales volume in 2008 dropped by 3.3 percent, to 5.9 million barrels from 6.1 million barrels, according to data compiled by Beer Marketer's Insights.

But that was a smaller drop than Pabst Brewing had seen in previous years. And it came as the company saw a big boost during the fourth quarter of 2008, with a 9 percent increase. That was fueled by a big jump in Pabst Blue Ribbon sales and higher Schlitz sales." Chicago Tribune