10 of the world's strongest beers

Inside this ceramic bottle made to look like a copper brewing kettle is a beer aged for up to 22 years in sherry, brandy, cognac, bourbon and scotch casks. The Boston-based brewer Samuel Adams releases new batches of the strong brew every two years. With its suggested retail price of $200 (about 190 euros), this sought-after strong ale is the most expensive beer in the United States.

The Scotland-based brewery BrewDog has been setting records for years; when it was released in 2009, this was the world's strongest beer. Imperial stout is frozen, then the frozen liquids are removed to leave behind more alcohol - inspiring the name. It's to be enjoyed in small servings, just like "a fine whisky, a Frank Zappa album or a visit from a friendly yet anxious ghost," its creators say.

De Struise Brouwers is a Belgian microbrewery. Their Black Damnation series is made from a dark Russian imperial stout beer, and among their different brews, VI - Messy is the strongest, with 39% ABV. It has never been released commercially, but connoisseurs who've tasted it at beer festivals say it still actually tastes like a real beer, compared to other very strong brews on this list.

Competing against BrewDog, the German brewery Schorschbräu was one of the two serious contestants in the arms race to create the world's strongest beer. It had already demonstrated its will to push the limits of beer with its Schorschbock 31%, an Eisbock stronger than any other beer available when it was released in 2008. Their 40% version was brewed at the end of 2009, beating BrewDog's Penguin.

BrewDog released this even stronger beer a few months later, in 2010. In a clear reference to its German competitor, it was named after the Nazis' largest battleship. It is described by BrewDog as a "quadruple IPA that contains four times the hops, four times the bitterness and frozen four times." At a 100 euros ($105) a bottle, it's also at least 40 times more expensive than a conventional beer.

Aiming to end the battle for the world's strongest beer with this 55% blond Belgian ale, BrewDog also added a controversial visual touch to The End of History by encasing each beer in preserved roadkill. Only 12 bottles were initially made in 2010. New editions were released for a 2016 crowdfunding campaign. Supporters who invested $20,000 in the company were rewarded with this collector's item.

Schorschbräu upgraded to a Schorschbock 43% in 2010 and retaliated with a yet stronger beer in 2011, the Schorschbock 57. The German brewer claims it would be impossible to reach a higher ABV without violating Germany's 500-year-old Beer Purity Law, which they apply in their creations. Only 36 bottles of this beer were initially made, each costing 200 euros (about $210).

Dutch brewer 't Koelschip, which translates to "the refrigerated ship," has also created a few ultra-strong beers. This one was released a month after The End of History - its name, Start the Future, was an obvious reference to its predecessor. The limited batch was also reasonably priced: 35 euros a pop was a bargain compared to the 750 euros for each bottle of BrewDog's dead squirrel creations.

Another Scottish brewery, Brewmeister, tried to claim the title of the world's strongest beer by releasing a line called Armageddon in 2012. However, lab tests demonstrated that ethanol - pure alcohol - had been added to the product. It has since been removed from Brewmeister's lineup.

In 2013, Brewmeister replaced its previous strongest beer, Armageddon, with the stomach-burning Snake Venom. One bottle is equivalent to drinking 15 shots of hard liquor. A label on the bottle recommends not exceeding 35 milliliters in one sitting. Not for purists, this beer is considered unratable by the site RateBeer as the Scottish brewer also admitted to correcting its ABV with pure alcohol.