Thursday 8 September 2011

BrewDog Jumps the Shark.....Again

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At first glance, I thought it was a neat self deprecating pisstake in which Fraserburgh's self appointed beer punks, BrewDog, attempt a rather nice slice of self parody. But it turns out to be 100% genuine, above board and for real.

What am I talking about?

I'm talking about BrewDog's latest gimmick venture in which they have created, what they claim is, the world's strongest fermented beer. It's a 28% ABV blonde ale that's been aged in all sorts of  'ground breaking' and 'amazing' places - Gaddafi's Tripoli tent, Anne Widdecombe's thong and Stephen Hawkins' football boots among others.*

It's called Ghost Deer and will be served from the head of a proper real live deer that's dead. There must have been a bit of a sale on at the taxidermist's when they were picking up the squirrels and stoat for End of History.





Don't these folks know that beers served from animals is so last year?

BrewDog describe the beer as a 'beautiful'  'masterpiece' and a 'schizophrenic delusional screw up of a drink'.  They say that it's a concept that has 'torn up convention', 'blurred distinctions' and 'challenged perceptions' in a 'defiant' and 'irreverent' fashion.

Clearly, hollow hyperbole is an art form just north of Aberdeen.

So, what's next for our brewing Burke and Hare? A cadaver that dispenses different beers from each rotting orifice? A Bangkok dancer than fires Imperial Porter filled ping pong balls from her poonanny into the open mouths of exhilarated BrewDog lovers? A hefeweizen dry hopped with hubris?

I'm sure it's meant as a bit of fun and a way of getting some cheap publicity but, boy, it's getting a bit tedious now.

Enough already.


*not sure about this bit. I might have been lied to.

20 comments:

  1. I'm just waiting for the head of some Scottish anti-drink loon to explode when he hears they're selling a 28% beer in pints!

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  2. @curmudgeon

    agreed.

    It'll go radio rental when they find out.

    I reckon the Edinburgh brewdog pub, where the beer is, will be busy this weekend with stag do's.

    Sorry, I'll get my coat.

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  3. They're selling thirds aren't they? £9.99 a pop too.

    I think they originally planned to release this at GBBF, Marc mentioned something about having been asked if dispensing through a stuffed deers head would be okay

    I for one would like to try the hubris-hefe, please let me know when it's released

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  4. Brewdog are doing something odd again...To me this is water off a ducks back....Oh that give me another beer dispense idea ;-)

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  5. This article in the Morning Advertiser says it will be sold at £9.99 a pint, but I agree £9.99 a third is more likely.

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  6. says "per glass" here http://www.digitalnewsroom.co.uk/brewdog/ghost-deer/

    looks like a third in an unlined pintglass to me
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1jFwbmEIYWw&feature=youtu.be

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  7. I'm losing the will to live with all of this. Brew Dog are opening a bar here in Manchester later in the year (they have mentioned late October but as there has so far been no planning or license application made (I am told) that may be a touch optimistic. I'm already braced for the tidal wabe of bullshit and hyperbole that will herald its arrival.

    John Clarke

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  8. Forget about the taxidermy and all the rest of the hype surrounding this. This is just Brewdog screaming ME ME ME, like they always do.
    What should maybe be celebrated is the technical brewing acheivement of a naturally fermented 28% ABV beer. From the reviews already on rate beer it seems to be quite drinkable too.

    John, it's easy to avoid the "bullshit and hyperbole" as you call it. You just have to avoid Brewdog.com

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  9. I was busy all day when they announced this so didn't see if there was much reaction online. From when I did look around, I didn't see much. I read the post and immediately didn't care. It's just another gimmick. I don't want gimmicks. I want cool ideas and great tasting beers. I fell in love with Brewdog because each new beer they released was exciting and I wanted to drink it, now I don't (although the cranachan Abstrakt they brewed this week sounds AMAZING!)

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  10. yawn!! how long until they start dispensing beer from a giant willy?

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  11. If you're finding it tedious, TBM, stop writing blog posts about it. It only encourages them.

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  12. I went to the launch night, and felt slightly dirty doing so, but anyhow....they were serving it in 50ml measures that night at £6.50 a pop...it's quite sweet, you can get the taste from the whisky and sherry casks, but for me i just kept thinking of watered down Jack Daniels....just more marketing nonsense

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  13. "they were serving it in 50ml measures that night at £6.50 a pop"

    Does that mean it's officially classed as a spirit, because it's not a legal measure for beer or wine?

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  14. At least they aren't selling it complete with stuffed deer for a gazillion quid a go this time. Or are they?

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  15. "it's getting a bit tedious now"

    Now?

    It's been tedious for about 18 months.

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  16. Ghost Deer? More like "no idea". I thank you.

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  17. @Curmudgeon not sure what it's classed as, i suspect it's beer and they just forgot about the law...I'll try and check to see if they're still serving in in 50mls this evening

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  18. You know I really want to try this, because it sounds interesting as a beer in terms of the complexity of flavours. As for the gimmicks, MEH! Ironically, the gimmicks mean I won't get to try it.

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  19. I Prise - yes I usually do avoid Brewdog.com - although for amusement I do some times drop by for a laugh as their postings are now hilariously beyond parody. Trouble is this nonsense does sometimes seep out into the mainstream media - as I am sure it will when they land in Manchester.

    And as for "From the reviews already on rate beer it seems to be quite drinkable too." - well it is a new, big and boozy beer so it would be remarkable if the Ratebeer reviews weren't gushing (apart from the fact that I suspect quite a few Ratebeer contributors are among the legion of uncritical Brewdog fanboys).

    John Clarke

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  20. Actually John, the three reviews on RateBeer are neither gushing, nor are the scores given particularly high. Certainly not at uncritical fanboy levels. Although none of them actually say "quite drinkable", none of them say "undrinkable" either. But that's not quite the same thing as "gushing" is it?

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