Page 11 - IAV Digital Magazine #531

iAV - Antelope Valley Digital Magazine
Samuel Adams' New Beer Is So Strong It's Illegal In 15 States
By Ramishah Maruf, CNN Business
New York, NY (CNN)Samuel Adams is launch- ing a new, limited edition beer, and it packs such a potent punch it's illegal in 15 states.
The brewer releases a new version of its Utopias brand every two years, and the twelfth edition will be on shelves starting Oct. 11. But don't bother looking for it in Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Idaho, Missouri, Mississippi, Montana, North Carolina, New Hampshire, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Carolina, Utah, Vermont or West
Virginia. Utopias are illegal in those states because they contain 28% alcohol by vol- ume, more than five times the potency of typical US brews.
But even in places where the brew can be sold,
it might still be dif- ficult to get your hands on it. Samuel Adams only brews around 13,000 bottles of Utopias every two years, according to its website. And it's expensive — the suggested retail price is $240 for
25.4-ounce bottle.
"We pioneered the barrel-aging and blending process of Utopias almost thirty years ago and continue that time-honored tra- dition today," Jim Koch, founder and brewer of
Samuel Adams, said in a state- ment.
Utopias were first introduced in 2002, and have increased in price over the years. The 2017 version cost $199, 2019's cost $10 more than that. This
year's version is also notable as it is finished with 2,000 pounds of cherries and some batches have been aged for up to 24 years in a variety of bar- rels.
Samuel Adams was the official beer of Inspiration4, the first fully civilian tourism mission to space that returned from orbit Saturday. The mission served as a fundraiser for chil- dren's cancer hospital St. Judes, and a Utopia bottle signed by Koch and Inspiration4 crew members will be up for bid at the hospital's upcoming charity auction.
https://6abc.com/samuel-adams-beer-illegal-in-15-states-28-alchohol-utopia/11032388/
iAV - Antelope Valley Digital Magazine