Beer we go again

What is it about booze that causes so many otherwise rational people to lose their critical faculties completely?

I'm not talking about drinking the stuff, but people's reactions to news stories about booze, as I see that some people are getting themselves worked up about the introduction of what is claimed to be the UK's strongest ever beer.

For a start, at 12% ABV it's nowhere near the strongest beer ever launched in the UK. A quick Google search brought up this item about a beer launched a few years ago which was 23%. I also have memories of trying out a beer a few years ago which was 14%, so it's absolute nonsense to claim this is the strongest beer ever in the UK.

And the owners of BrewDog, the brewery which has produced this new beer, are absolutely right to say that it's not going to tempt binge drinkers. Why pay £4 for a bottle of beer when you can spend the same or less on a similar strength bottle of wine and get at least half as much liquid again as you'd get with the beer?

This beer is only going to tempt people like me who like sampling different beers and do so in a (more or less) responsible way. I look forward to trying Tokyo at some stage.

And you know what? Even if it proves to be the best beer in the world, given its price tag I doubt I'd have more than one in a single session. Associating Scotland's thriving microbrewing industry with binge drinking is just hysterical nonsense.