Samuel Adams Utopias

Samuel Adams Utopias, which went on sale in February 2002, was claimed to be the strongest commercial beer in the world, at 27% alcohol by volume. The beer was stronger than Millennium, a single release brew made by Sam Adams in 1999, at 21% alcohol.

Utopias are made with caramel, Vienna, Moravian and Bavarian smoked malts, and all four varieties of noble hops: Hallertauer Mittelfrüh, Tettnanger, Spalter, and Saaz hops. The beer is aged in scotch, cognac and port barrels for the better part of a year. It is described as having a "distinctive smell of cinnamon and vanilla with subtle hints of floral, citrus and pine."

The beer was packaged in a copper-finished kettle designed to resemble those used in the brewing process. 8,000 twenty-four-ounce bottles of Utopias were produced in all, with a suggested price of US$100 a bottle. The beer is considered by some to be more comparable to brandy or sherry than to other beers.

Because of legal restrictions, Samuel Adams Utopias are not offered in the states of Alabama, Georgia, Idaho, Iowa, Missouri, New Hampshire, North Carolina, Ohio, Oregon, South Carolina, Washington, or West Virginia.

Utopias are still being made and have been released in 2002, 2005, and 2007. Samuel Adams produced just 12,000 bottles for the 2007 holiday season, and plans to release the next Utopias in late 2009.