Get ready Ohio: Serious ABV beers finally make their debut

Presented without comment.

We don’t take credit for much around here, but we’ve decided to take full credit for Ohio removing its 12 percent ABV limit on beer. We posted this, trashing the idea of the limit, and then just about a week later, it was removed. I mean, what else could have been the reason?

Well, I guess those irreverent Scottish brewers at BrewDog also had a little something to do with it. With their desire to open up a U.S. hub in Columbus, Ohio, the state decided to not let an arbitrary ABV limit stand in the way of an awesome destination brewery. Now that House Bill 37 is officially in effect, BrewDog is chistening this new era in the only way we expected them to, by introducing its infamous 55 percent alcohol by volume (ABV) brew, The End of History.

But not just everyone is going to get a taste. BrewDog is making this record-breaking brew an exclusive perk to investors that pledge $20,000 or more to its unique Equity for Punks USA crowdfunding model.

The name ‘The End of History” derives from the famous work of philosopher Francis Fukuyama — implying that The End of History is to beer what democracy is to history. Only 12 bottles were originally produced in 2010, each coming with its own certificate and presented in a taxidermy squirrel. The bottles are at once beautiful and disturbing, disrupting conventions and breaking taboos about how beer can be packaged, just like the beer they hold within them. The impact of The End of History is a perfect conceptual marriage between art, taxidermy and craft brewing.

The blond Belgian ale is infused with nettles from the Scottish Highlands and fresh juniper berries. To achieve The End of History’s record-breaking alcohol content, BrewDog’s brewers use an extreme freezing technique whereby the beer is kept at temperatures well below freezing to separate the water from the solution. The process is then repeated dozens of times, requiring hundreds of gallons of beer to be reduced through the process to produce just enough for a handful of exclusive bottles.

But wait, that’s not all, fellow Buckeyes

In beer news that’s more likely to find its way into your fridge, Dogfish Head will now be able to send its famed 120 Minute across our borders.

“We’ve heard your cries, and after years of waiting and wishing, we can now legally distribute our 120 Minute IPA in the Buckeye State! Thanks to House Bill 37, Ohio was able to say goodbye to ABV limits and hello to a whole new side of our portfolio,” the company stated on its site.

To kick things off the off-centered way, accounts from across Ohio tapped kegs of 120 Minute at midnight.

No word on if non-dog-themed breweries will be doing anything to mark the occasion.