If you’ve ever cracked open a can of lager that’s been at the back of a cupboard for a couple of years, you’ll know it’s a bad idea to take a sip.
But what if that beer was specially brewed for explorers on an Arctic expedition? And what if it hadn’t just been sitting around for a few years, but more than a century and a half?
In that case, it might present a valuable business opportunity.
Just ask Dougal Gunn Sharp, the booze kingpin who founded Edinburgh brewery Innis & Gunn.
He got his hands on an 1875 bottle of Allsopp’s legendary Arctic Ale at an auction for more than £3,000 more than a decade ago – and he’s finally decided what to do with it.
The tipple was created in the mid-nineteenth century for souls venturing into the frozen north, who required strong beer to keep their insides feeling toasty.
Allsopp’s certainly ticked that box – it had an alcohol strength of 9% or so and six times the calorie content of your average beer.
Records from the time recount how it was so thick it needed to be lifted from the copper brewing vessels in buckets, and it is packed with unfermentable sugars to stop it freezing in polar temperatures.
You’re probably now wondering how you can get your hands on some before the grim British winter properly sets in.
Rare examples have popped up at sales over the years, but Mr Sharp now wants to bring a close replica to the market… seeded with the contents of his own bottle.
He said: ‘Some people might think it’s madness to open it, but I think the real madness would be to leave it sitting on a shelf.
‘Beer is meant to be shared, particularly on this, its 150th anniversary.’
His iteration, following the original recipe, will be called Innis & Gunn 1875 Arctic Ale. It will be made in partnership with the Allsopp’s brewery itself, which was resurrected in 2021 after around 60 years of stasis.
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Jamie Allsopp, founder of the new-look business, said: ‘It’s one of the strongest and most extraordinary beers ever made – more like a Madeira than a modern ale – and its legend has only grown with time.
‘Very few bottles still exist, and I’ve only ever seen two come up for sale.
‘So when Dougal told me he planned to use one of his to help recreate it, I honestly thought he was mad – but I love it.’
Any Roald Amundsen wannabes looking to try the Arctic Ale will be able to find it later this year at Innis & Gunn taprooms in Edinburgh and Glasgow, as well as Allsopp’s venues in London.
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