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{{trope}}
[[File:
{{quote|''"Never drink any drink with a [[Umbrella Drink|paper umbrella]] in it, never drink any drink with a humorous name, and never drink any drink that changes colour when the last ingredient goes in."''
|'''Mustrum Ridcully''', ''[[Hogfather]]''}}
▲{{quote|''"Never drink any drink with a [[Umbrella Drink|paper umbrella]] in it, never drink any drink with a humorous name, and never drink any drink that changes colour when the last ingredient goes in."''|'''Mustrum Ridcully''', ''[[Discworld (Literature)/Hogfather|Hogfather]]''}}
A drink so potent the whole room hushes when someone orders it. The bartender pales and asks, "Are you sure?", and then, after putting on a welding mask and asbestos gloves, takes the bottle out of a locked safe and pours it with tongs. When the stirring spoon is removed, [[Ate the Spoon|it's been melted away]], and the ice cubes jump out with a yelp when dropped into it. And that's just the beginning of the fun.
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Consumption often results in a [[Fire-Breathing Diner]], [[Intoxication Ensues]], the [[Mushroom Samba]], or if you're lucky, quick, merciful unconsciousness. If you're ''UN''lucky, all of the above. Except unconsciousness, at least until the least opportune moment.
A common scene involves a character (often a [[Cloudcuckoolander]]) downing an entire
Named after the Pan-Galactic Gargle Blaster from ''[[The Hitchhikers Guide to The Galaxy (
Beware of anyone who has this as their [[Drink Order]].
Contrast with [[I Drank What]], when someone drinks something that's not supposed to be drunk ''at all.'' Compare/Contrast with [[Unsuspectingly Soused]], when someone drinks a
{{examples}}
== [[Advertising]] ==
* A commercial from 8TV Malaysia's early days involves a skit where a tea lady offers all sort of strange concoctions which everyone except the sane nerd of the office orders. The tea lady then explains that 8TV is different from the other channels, and the sane nerd, still a little unconvinced, ends up ordering wasabi tea.
▲== [[Anime]] & [[Manga]] ==
* [[Genius Bruiser|Sadaharu]] [[Badass Normal|Inui]] from ''[[The Prince of Tennis]]'' is ''infamous'' among his peers for making disgusting vegetable juices. He often uses them [[Lethal Chef|as punishment]] for players that fail their training exercises. One drink was even called "Penal Tea". The only two known survivors of these drinks are Tezuka and Fuji, though once even ''Fuji'' was KOed by one of the drinks and swore "never again" to be incapacitated by it by winning the next outing event.
* In ''[[Martian Successor Nadesico]]'', Megumi's opening gambit in [[Cooking Duel|winning Akito's heart through his stomach]] is an "energy drink" that's one of these, made from a nonsense list of horrible ingredients. She gives it to him as he's begging for something to wash the taste of Yurika's equally horrific [[Lethal Chef]] fare out of his mouth. It really, ''really'' does not help.
** In Japanese, the ingredients list is a combination of folk "potency" (prehistoric Viagra) remedies.
* The ungodly "energy drink" seems to be a fairly common trope in anime, and even ''[[Super Robot Wars]]'' uses it, going so far as to include it as an item with very unusual effects.
* One episode of ''[[Ah! My Goddess
* The ''[[
* The suicide sauce from ''[[
* The Kamogawa energy drink in ''[[Rinne no Lagrange]]'' is deadly to anyone who isn't Madoka.
* In ''[[My Hero Academia]]'', Midnight is known to make some potent ones when she's drunk, and unfortunately, she's the type who ''loves'' to share...
== [[
* In ''[[Knights of the Dinner Table]]'', during a [[Hackmaster]] campaign, a particular bar requires first-time patrons to order ''Gut Busters''. They use it to weed out low-level characters; drinking a drink of it does 1d10 damage, which is more than most first-level characters have. Bob's character, after being assaulted by certain patrons, gets a double, forgetting both that he's been injured and that each shot does 1d10 damage. He dies from the drink, to the shame of his party members.
* In the ''[[Achille Talon]]'' album ''Viva Papa!'', the only product of the [[Banana Republic]] of Tapasambal is an alcohol made from cactus juice. The locals seem able to drink it without trouble, but when the hero and his sidekick Lefuneste sip a little, they instantly turn red and produce cartoonish jets of steam. Along with the obligatory ''Les Tontons flingueurs'' (see below) [[Shout-Out]]: "''Cha, ch'est une boichon d'homme, cha!''" ("Now, jhat'sh a men'sh drink, jhat!").
* Subverted in one old ''[[Hagar the Horrible]]'' strip: told that "You gotta be tough to drink in this place" at the bar he's frequenting, Hagar downs something that creates the typical effects... but when he asks for a glass of water afterward, the bartender tells him, "That ''was'' a glass of our water!"▼
* In ''[[Nodwick]]'', we have "Skullwhomper Ale". The effects are rarely shown in the comic itself, but its consumption almost invariably leads to some sort of [[Noodle Incident]]. The destruction of the local tavern it is served in is a frequent component to these, and when a local Elven/Dwarven war takes over the town, the invaders end up classifying the ale as an incendiary weapon.▼
** Skullwhomper Ale was initially brewed by a dragon who ''did'' intend to use it as an incendiary weapon. [http://nodwick.humor.gamespy.com/gamespyarchive/index.php?date=2008-02-20 When it found out that people were stealing its concoction for drinking], it was so embarrassed that it gave Nodwick the recipe and completely gave up on its plan.▼
* The Kickapoo Joy Juice from ''[[Lil Abner]]'', having been described as "more inflammable than jet fuel".▼
== [[
* There's whatever Honest John was drinking in ''[[An American Tail]]''. Seems to do nothing to him but get him drunk, but it does burn holes in the floorboards.
* In ''[[The Rescuers]]'', Luke the muskrat is always toting a jug of "swamp juice" which he charitably gives to anyone who looks a little tired ("It's good for what ails ya."), leaving the poor drinker with [[Fire-Breathing Diner|fire and smoke coming out of his mouth.]] That, and it gives the dragonfly, Evinrude, a burst of
* On ''[[Monsters vs. Aliens]]'', Dr. Cockroach offers Susan's folks some "atomic gin fizz". It explodes as he's mixing it. Lord knows what would have happened to the poor soul who would ingest it.
* In ''[[The Emperor's New Groove
* Cactus juice in ''[[Rango]]''. A fly drinks it and keels over... and then one of its eyes pops out. It also made Rango breathe fire (after ''eating'' a lit cigar).
* ''[[The Nutty Professor]]'' features the "Alaskan Polar Bear Heater", a drink invented by the lead character and dictated to a barman. Although Buddy drinks it without any noticeable effect, the barman takes a sip and loses consciousness.
* In ''[[Back to
* Quint gives Brody a glass of ''something'' he made himself in ''[[Jaws (
* A very famous scene of French movie ''[[
* The Disney flick ''[[Condorman]]'' has the title hero (a comic book writer pretending to be a CIA agent) order an "Istanbul Express" for a Russian spy he's trying to impress
* Another Disney flick, ''[[Snow Dogs]]'', features "soup", which is stored in a hip flask. When questioned about the quotation marks, the maker replies, "Well, there's soup ''in'' it."
* ''[[Revenge of the Nerds]]''. Another Alpha Beta brother asks Stan Gable to try a drink called simply "Fireball". He has one sip straight from the bottle and promptly [[Spit Take|spits it out all over]]. As it turns out, it has a ridiculously high proof, and Haystack later spits it through a lighter's flame and burns down the AB house.
* In ''[[The Great Escape]]'', Americans Hilts, Hendley and Goff celebrate the Fourth of July by [[Military Moonshiner|distilling some homemade booze]] and sharing it with the others. It appears to be powerful stuff.
{{quote|
'''MacDonald''': (''mildly'') Well, I think it's rather good. }}
* It's not alcohol (probably) but Wednesday and Pugsley make some rather fiery lemonade when they try to make money selling it in ''[[The Addams Family (1991 film)|The Addams Family]]''. When they give a free sample to Lurch, he feels some discomfort for a moment or two after drinking it, then breathes fire, scorching a wooden statue of an Indian. [[Nigh Invincible| Then he just shrugs and continues on his way.]] Sadly, we never see a scene where they sell any to an actual customer.
== [[Game Books]] ==▼
* Bor-brew ale from the ''[[Lone Wolf]]'' series doesn't look that threatening and even has a pleasant taste ("malted apples"). It has a fearsome reputation because it's the favored beer of ''dwarves''. The first time Lone Wolf can drink it, he runs the risk of falling unconscious and waking up with a hangover that robs him of [[Hit Points|Endurance]]. Later it seems the brew became even more potent; the second time he can drink it, he runs the risk of ''suffering horrifying hallucinations'', falling unconscious, and waking up with a hangover that again robs him of Hit Points. Yes, [[Everything Trying to Kill You|even the beer is trying to kill Lone Wolf]].▼
== [[Literature]] ==
* ''[[The Hitchhikers Guide to The Galaxy (
* "Scumble" from the ''[[
{{quote|
** As everyone knows, there's no danger of encountering watered-down scumble
** There's one humorous scene in ''[[
*** Rendered very amusingly in the "Big Comic" edition where the view cuts to the horrified customers exclaiming "A ''pint''?!?" in hushed tones when Mort places his order.
** See the [[Real Life]] section below for the drink scumble is based on.▼
** In ''[[
*** Also mentioned is the rotgut brewed by and flogged to soldiers, hangman (one drop and you're dead!)
** Trolls also have a drink called luglarr, or "Big Hammer", a variant of Troll beer made by adding certain metallic salts to the drink that manages to make it even ''more''
** ''[[
** From ''[[
** In ''[[
** An early ''Discworld'' book mentions the mountain farmers making a strong real-life liquor called applejack by putting buckets of cider out in the winter and letting everything but the alcohol freeze.
** In the Tiffany Aching series, there is the often-referred-to "special sheep liniment", a type of moonshine whisky which all the sheep-farmers keep around for cold nights; it is said to put hair on your chest. It is often speculated by people who are unfamiliar with it what would happen if one were to actually give it to a sheep, with the implication usually coming back that they are not sure, but it probably wouldn't be good.
** ''[[The Last Continent]]'' features a mild example of this in a beer known as "Funnelweb" (a type of venomous spider). Except that's not it's name, that's the list of ingredients. It actually manages to turn ''Rincewind'' [[In Vino Veritas|into an optimist]].
** In ''[[
▲** See the [[Real Life]] section below for the drink scumble is based on.
▲** In ''[[Discworld (Literature)/Snuff|Snuff]]'' Willkins has created a non-alcoholic Gargle Blaster for the [[The Teetotaler|recovering]] [[The Alcoholic|alcoholic]] Vimes. Vimes isn't sure ''exactly'' what gives it its kick, [[You Do NOT Want to Know|and isn't sure he wants to]].
* Maple mead from [[Lois McMaster Bujold]]'s ''[[Vorkosigan Saga|Vorkosigan]]'' series is always discussed with trepidation by the main characters. The Dendarii mountain folk, who are backwards even for a backwards planet like Barrayar, don't mess around with their alcohol. In moderation, the drink doesn't have much kick. The first glass or two taste sickly sweet, the next few glasses taste pretty good... and then you wake up the next morning with a killer hangover.
* The [[Zero Punctuation|Yahtzee]] novel ''Fog Juice'' is named for the Gargle Blaster prepared by the protagonist to solve problems. It is said to be a recipe passed down through generations of university students, which can be summed up as every bottle in the kitchen plus a large mixing bowl. Its main advantage is that when you come round, whatever unfortunate situation you were in will definitely have resolved
* The most popular drink in the title country of the ''[[Welkin Weasels]]'' series is honey dew, "known to make angels out of hawks and devils out of hickory sticks." (Translation: It's really strong, though it may just be strong in proportion to the weasels, who are very small and presumably can't handle huge amounts of alcohol.)
* ''The Commissar'' by [[Sven Hassel]]. While behind enemy lines in Soviet uniform, the German protagonists are stopped by suspicious [[State Sec|NKVD men]]. Tiny invites them to take a swig from his bottle. The NKVD men do so, turn pale and collapse. Tiny then drinks from the same bottle with no ill effects.
* In one of the ''[[Captain Future]]'' books, a character orders some drink which the others describe as something like "one ounce makes you feel like being hit with a meteor, two make you become one". Being an android, the character drinks the entire (ceramic) bottle with no visible effect, and then orders wine with radium
* The title hero of the ''[[Sten]]'' series drinks an alien brew called stregg, a vile libation named after said aliens' (extinct) ancestral enemy. Since even the Eternal
** In the same scene, Sten proves capable of downing entire glasses full of said 180-proof moonshine like it was distilled water, because after you've gotten used to drinking stregg a ''mere'' 180-proof beverage doesn't even get you buzzed.
* In the ''[[Night Huntress]]'' books, Bones gives [[Half Vampire|Cat]] a bottle of his special moonshine to drink to persuade a recalcitrant ghost. ([[It Makes Sense in Context]]). She ends up drinking the entire bottle when she was only supposed to have a few sips. Bones is amazed that she's alive, let alone that she can walk (barely).
* "You let her drink a [[Black Jewels|Gravedigger]]?" (The [[Capital Letters Are Magic|Blood]] in Anne Bishop's [[Black Jewels]] universe have very high metabolisms, especially when their power is deep. This makes it difficult for some characters to get drunk without making use of a
* The fourth book of [[Stephen King]]'s [[Dark Tower]] series, ''Wizard and Glass'' mentions one of these. In the bar in Mejis where young Roland and his compatriots are staying, the bartender dumps the unfinished drinks of all her customers into a keg labeled "Camel Piss", and charges a small sum to anyone who is stupid, brave or desperate for alcohol enough to want to drink it.
* Dragon's Blood in ''You Fire Me Up'' by Katie
== [[Live-Action TV]] ==
* The cast of ''[[Mystery Science Theater 3000]]'' once invented a ''non-alcoholic'' Gargle Blaster in the form of the Killer Shrew, a drink that combined about twelve different types of sugar in a blender (chocolate ice cream, Captain Crunch ''with Crunchberries'', peanut M&Ms, Mrs.
* On the episode of ''[[Married...
* ''[[Star Trek:
** The big surprise at the end of this
** This was also a [[Shout-Out]] to an episode of ''[[Star Trek:
** "Up The Long Ladder" featurs Worf ordering a syntheholic Klingon drink called ''Chech'tluth'' for a [[Space Jews|Space Irishman]] who is looking to get drunk. Despite being a champion drinker, one sip of the stuff makes the man tipsy and renders him unable to communicate except in desperate gasps for several seconds.
** ''[[Star Trek: Deep Space Nine]]'' features a bar regularly, but the mix that most evoked this trope is the (implied to be [http://memory-alpha.org/wiki/Warp_core_breach aptly-named]) [http://memory-alpha.org/wiki/Warp_core_breach_(beverage) "warp core breach"].
** Klingon Blood Wine is so stated to be much stronger than
** Romulan ale.{{context}}<!-- I believe canon only says it's blue, not that it's potent - or even alcohol -->
* A ''[[Lost in Space]]'' episode where Doctor Smith is mistaken for a lookalike gunslinger and plays it to the hilt, ordering the gunslinger's favorite drink in a saloon on a Western Planet, inspiring awe among the crowd. IIRC, the bartender actually has to assemble the ingredients wearing heavy gloves.
* Granny's "tonic" on ''[[The Beverly Hillbillies]]''.
* Baxter's illegal hooch on ''[[
** Yes, because obviously TV characters in a comedy show aren't allowed to exaggerate for comic effect!
** In series 6, when the crew were without the ''Red Dwarf'', Kryten brewed up an opaque liqueur which might fool the unwary into believing it looked like margaritas. It was in fact ''urine recyc'', and left stains that needed removing with turpentine and no happy drinkers at all.
** Another ''Red Dwarf'' example: in the episode "Gunmen of the Apocalypse", Kryten asks for "the stuff where you get your eyesight back in three days -- guaranteed." Later, Lister, Rimmer, and Cat presumably try the same stuff, causing Rimmer to throw up in somebody's hat.
{{quote|
'''Cat:''' I was expecting something with a little more kick to it. }}
* On ''[[Cheers]]'', Carla is known for making strong drinks with names such as "Leap Into An Open Grave" and "I Know My Redeemer Liveth
* The "Recipe" for moonshine on ''[[The Waltons]]'', given the respect it was given by everyone who knew what it really was (unlike the two elderly sisters who brewed it from their late father's, um, recipe). However, no one was ever really shown getting blitzed on the stuff.
* On ''[[Greek]]'', the Honors Engineering students whip up a batch of "Aerosol Death Juice" for their party, and have one of the wildest parties ever to grace the Kappa Tau house. And if you consider that Kappa Tau is the [[Animal House|Delta House]] of CRU's Greek Row, that's saying something.
* ''[[Top Gear]]'' has made what James May dubbed the '[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vDlMLqdvHzI Bloody Awful]' (Jeremy Clarkson, who came up with the recipe, called it "a man's V8 smoothie", while Hammond suggested "A Desperate Shag in a Skip"). It consists of several pounds of beef (raw, with bones), a dozen chillies, a half-gallon of bovril, what looks to be about two cups of Tabasco sauce, and, for extra bite, a BRICK. It was all mashed together with a V8-powered 'blender' of Clarkson's design. James May drank some down, because he is A MAN. Apparently, it wasn't particularly pleasant.
{{quote|
'''Hammond:''' It's put hairs on my eyeballs! }}
* In the Australian soap opera spoof ''[[Let the Blood Run Free]]'' one character's "friends" are trying to corrupt him before his wedding night. After all else fails they resort to a glass of PURE ALCOHOL! (which is steaming ominously). He takes a swig, immediately declares that he's going to get his rocks off with a nearby prostitute, then collapses unconscious.
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* ''[[Black Books]]'' has "Life Cry". Fran shows it to her friends and they fall silent, awed by what is apparently the most potent drink in the Black Book universe. As Fran remarks: "You know you're in for a good night when there's a picture of a polar bear bleeding on the label".
* In one episode of ''[[Bottom]]'', Eddie, asked if he has any alcohol, produces a bottle apparently containing a mixture of Brandy, Meths, Pernod, paint stripper, Mister Sheen, brake fluid and Drambuie. ("You've got to put something in for the birds, haven't you?") Richie takes a sniff, recoils, and asks...
{{quote|
'''Eddie:''' ''(tapping side of nose)'' I may very well not be. }}
** In another episode, they combine Pernod, Ouzo, marmalade and salt to create a cocktail Eddie eventually dubs "The Esther Rantzen" on the grounds that it pulls your gums back over your teeth.
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* In ''[[The Young Ones]]'' episode "Interesting" Vyvyan drinks a mysterious blue drink that removes his hair and reveals a '666' tattoo, causing the Christian to remark, "Behold the Beast," though whether it was alcoholic was not mentioned.
** Vyvyan is known to mix his drinks with paintstripper and bleach, resulting in a very strong hangover.
* It's non-alcoholic, but the [[Exactly What It Says
* Tom's homemade wine in ''[[The Good Life]]''.
* On ''[[Parks and Recreation]]'' the Swanson family makes their own moonshine 'whose only legal use is stripping paint off of speedboats'. April has a fit after drinking one sip of it and everyone is amazed that Leslie can drink a few glasses as part of a [[Drinking Contest]]. Ron's mother and ex-wife are able to drink it without much effect and Ron ends the drinking contest by consuming half a jug in one gulp.
* One episode of ''[[ER]]'' has Dr. Susan Lewis ordering drinks, and when the bartender gives them to her, they're in martini glasses a ''foot wide'' with multiple paper umbrellas.
{{quote|
'''Susan:''' Oh my God! How much alcohol is in those?
'''Bartender:''' Enough to make you forget you're being thrown into a volcano. }}
* [[
== [[Music]] ==
* [[Filk Song|Filksinger]] [http://www.tomsmithonline.com/ Tom Smith] is particularly well-known among science fiction fans for his song
{{quote|
''And what it did to test equipment frankly was obscene...'' }}
** A Seattle-based filker created an answer song called "307 Hell," about what happens to the drinker under the influence of said ale. It involves puking on a cop, getting tossed in the drunk tank, and having to raise "307 Bail"
* The title brew of George Jones's song "White Lightning" is implied to be about one of these.
{{quote|
''I think I wanna taste that powerful stuff
''He took one g-g-glug and drank it right down
''And I heard him a-moaning as he hit the ground...'' }}
* ''[[The Two Ronnies]]'' as Jehosaphat and Jones:
{{quote|
''A cocktail made up of whatever you think.
''She mixed it, he drank it, he went quite cross-eyed,
''And three hours later he came to and cried...'' }}
* ''[[Dos Gringos]]'' (a [[Yanks With Tanks|USAF]] fighter pilot band) gives us ''Jeremiah Weed'':
{{quote|
''Does it make you smarter? [[Biggus Dickus|Will it make your penis grow?]]
''It won't bring you women, and it won't bring you luck
''So why do we drink it?''
'''Every fighter pilot in the room:''' ''''''CAUSE IT TASTES LIKE FUCK!''''' }}
* The Poxy Boggards have a song called [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JZhinyam4mY "Happy Jack's Undrinkable Ale"] (here covered by the Wild Oats):
{{quote|
''He seemed alright, so we all went off to bed.
''We awoke to the screams of our captain way up in the crow's nest.
''He tried to fly with the wind -- but he ended up dead! }}
* [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CzDkzX0pcoU That good ol' Mountain Dew] probably qualifies, given that the fumes from the still in which it's made intoxicate any birds flying over it.
* Gaelic Storm has a song about "Johnny Jump Up", an especially potent "cider".
** It's a traditional Irish song that has been done by a variety of performers.
* The [[Flanders and Swann
▲* Subverted in one old ''[[Hagar the Horrible]]'' strip: told that "You gotta be tough to drink in this place" at the bar he's frequenting, Hagar downs something that creates the typical effects... but when he asks for a glass of water afterward, the bartender tells him, "That ''was'' a glass of our water!"
▲* In ''[[Nodwick]]'', we have "Skullwhomper Ale". The effects are rarely shown in the comic itself, but its consumption almost invariably leads to some sort of [[Noodle Incident]]. The destruction of the local tavern it is served in is a frequent component to these, and when a local Elven/Dwarven war takes over the town, the invaders end up classifying the ale as an incendiary weapon.
▲** Skullwhomper Ale was initially brewed by a dragon who ''did'' intend to use it as an incendiary weapon. [https://web.archive.org/web/20080920130928/http://nodwick.humor.gamespy.com/gamespyarchive/index.php?date=2008-02-20 When it found out that people were stealing its concoction for drinking], it was so embarrassed that it gave Nodwick the recipe and completely gave up on its plan.
▲* The Kickapoo Joy Juice from ''[[
* Non-alcohol example, in ''[[Garfield (Comic Strip)|Garfield]]'', Jon's lemonade [https://www.gocomics.com/garfield/1985/08/15 ''really'' needs sugar.]
== [[Oral Tradition]], [[Folklore]], Myths and Legends ==
* In Haitian mythology, Baron Samedi, the Loa (ie, god) of death loves to drink fiery, home-brewed rum spiced with hot peppers. Not surprisingly, he is often depicted as a drunkard [[Life of the Party| who loves to party.]]
== [[Radio]] ==
* The aforementioned "Pan Galactic Gargle Blaster" from ''[[The
** ''Hitchhiker's Guide'' also features Old Janx Spirit, which in addition to getting people drunk also suppresses their telepsychic powers. (This property is exploited in an amusing [[Drinking Game]], which Ford plays to lose.) An old Orion mining song describes its side effects as: "my head will fly, my tongue will lie, my eyes will fry and I may die". Naturally, it's an ingredient in the Pan Galactic Gargle Blaster.
== [[Recorded and Stand Up Comedy]] ==
* In one bit, [[Patton Oswalt]] talks about the Guinness in Ireland, which he describes as tasting like a "cupcake and [[Insubstantial Ingredients|handjob]] smoothie". He goes on to say, "You don't even realize you're getting drunk, until two hours later, when you're punching a fire hydrant."
* [[Jay Mohr]] talks about the "[[Funetik Aksent|gret]]" beer he had at a pub in Scotland, which he describes as "black, with leaves in it, and piping hot. I took one sip, and instantly shit my pants."
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== [[Tabletop Games]] ==
* The Gargle Blaster is a common running in-joke among several [[Tabletop Games]] groups, featuring such novel notions as alcohol proofs greater than 200 (such as the distilled vodka "357", which is somehow 178.5% ethanol) and a drink known as "Engineer's Entropy", which is so potent, it must be stored separately from other alcohol, handled with tongs, and served in a reinforced crucible. At worst, it causes instant death. At best, irreparable liver damage and a round of applause.
* ''[[Warhammer Fantasy Battle]]'''s goblin fungus beer allows goblins (more or less a human-child in size) to easily swing around metal balls bigger than them. It also make them meaner and crazier, and you're never sure ''where'' they are going to impact.
* ''[[Tales From The Floating Vagabond]]'', is a sci-fi comedy RPG centered around [[Inn Between the Worlds|a dimensional nexus that's also a pub]]. The house special is called "The Singularity", which only the Floating Vagabond's bartender knows how to mix without killing the person ordering it. There's a random table you roll on whenever you drink one. Some of the results from that table include "Imbiber instantly goes to maximum intoxication stage", "Imbiber is ''temporarily taken over by a past life''", "Imbiber ''grows extra limbs''", and "Imbiber's clothes come alive and gain sentience".
** The absolute minimum possible result from drinking a Singularity is +5 Intoxication Points... which in the Vagabond system is the mechanical equivalent of drinking an entire case of beer and then finishing it off with three shots of vodka. The second-mildest result is '''10''' Intoxication Points. The result above ''that'' is "instant unconsciousness". ''There are sixteen tiers of intoxication above this on the Singularity table''.
* ''[[
* In the Tol Galen LARP/tabletop system (played only in the channel islands and filled to the brim with references) there are a few of these, the best established being Goblin Krakk (named for puns and the ballistic missile warhead from warhammer 40k) which is made from adding white powdered substances to berry juices and fermenting in however you can, it causes literal brain rot. Most recent addition to this list is called Surt (after the norse fire giant destined to ingulf the world) that was invented by accident when Blackwatch (a mercenary company with a hideously complex corporate structure that borders on SCP foundation levels of protocol) sent the recipe for its existing gargle-blaster called Reaver (Brewed up by the poison department as a beverage strong enough to hide the taste of the hideously powerful combat drugs Blackwatch constantly trials on its forces, named after the Firefly characters that also inhabit our system as the virus) to its "Alternative power sources" division, roughly translated as the people who want to build weapons that make magic obsolete. The name for Surt is derived from the fact that the recipie was created on the containment site of an Utsuho expy and related materials contaminated the first batch. When the first bottle was opened the artificial atmosphere ignited and almost lead to a major containment breech. To cut a long story short, there is a drink in our system with the same properties as a thermobaric weapon.
* ''[[Changeling: The
** There's a special Contract only they can get that [[What Do You Mean It's Not Awesome?|lets them do this without even touching the drink in question...Which doesn't sound too useful, until you realize that you can do this with ANY Drink you're close enough to (Faerie healing elixirs, a Hunters Buffing Potions). Need to get a guy to spill a secret? Sit across the room, wait for him to take a drink of just about anything, and BOOM, he's spilling his guts.]]
* ''The D20 Guide to Alcohol'' (a third-party AD&D book), has an entire section composing largely of these. One of note is Minotaur Malt Liquor, a beer that can literally put hair on your chest, and horns on your head. Get smashed off the stuff and fail your save? Congratulations, you'll be a minotaur by this time next month.
* The ''[[GURPS]] Dungeon Fantasy'' supplement ''Taverns'' contains special drinks that are either [[Booze-Based Buff]], or this. For example, drinking the Vorpal Brew will cause one point of damage to you unless you already have alcohol in your system, and [[Punny Name|Wight Wine]] will give you a level of Fearfulness for a random amount of hours.
* ''[[Shadowrun]]'' features Hurlg, a beverage described as "a dark, thick ale the consistency of soup, swimming with hops and nutmeg". Humans and elves without special implants or toxin
* ''[[Dungeons and Dragons]]''.
** Feywine. Made by rulers of [[The Fair Folk]], it is made of a fermented mixture of honey, crushed flowers, and a secret ingredient (which some elves theorize is [[Insubstantial Ingredients| distilled moonlight]]). This stuff is known to get even ''them'' hammered, and is known to cause frivolous behavior; if mortals drink it, this behavior can last ''months''. They rarely share it with mortals (including most elves) for that exact reason. Supposedly, simply taking a raison from the Feywild and stirring it into a glass of water will create a far less potent version of feywine, but still one where even one glass can cause intoxication in mortals.
** A 3rd Edition sourcebook says that fiends cannot get drunk by drinking alcohol, because they do not have metabolisms in the way mortals are familiar with. In order to experience an intoxicated state, they consume special magical beverages, like Gughalaki, a potent liquid derived from the scent glands of certain giant arachnids native to the Third Layer of Hell. Of course, this stuff might as well be liquor — ''incredibly'' potent liquor, possibly a hallucinogenic — to mortals who drink it, if they could even do so safely.
** Viperwine is another ''Planescape'' liquor favored by demons. This is literally ''deadly'' to mortals, although some Lower Ward bars sell an antidote for those who want to drink it safely. Although, "safely" is subjective, as again, what makes fiends drunk is likely very potent to mortals.
▲* Bor-brew ale from the ''[[Lone Wolf]]'' gamebook series doesn't look that threatening and even has a pleasant taste ("malted apples"). It has a fearsome reputation because it's the favored beer of ''dwarves''. The first time Lone Wolf can drink it, he runs the risk of falling unconscious and waking up with a hangover that robs him of [[Hit Points|Endurance]]. Later it seems the brew became even more potent; the second time he can drink it, he runs the risk of ''suffering horrifying hallucinations'', falling unconscious, and waking up with a hangover that again robs him of Hit Points. Yes, [[Everything Trying to Kill You|even the beer is trying to kill Lone Wolf]].
== [[Video Games]] ==
* ''[[
** Boomshine itself qualifies to some degree. One of its ingredients is '''battery acid'''.
* ''[[Quest for Glory]]'' 1 featured "Dragon's Breath", which makes your character spontaneously combust if you drink it. In the fifth and final game, the Dead Parrot Inn has a rotating selection of house special drinks; one is the Dragon's Breath. After four adventures and defeating evil djinns, demons, and an [[Eldritch Abomination]], the hero is ''finally'' able to stomach it (but it still turns him fire-engine red and makes him bounce up and down like a [[Looney Tunes]] character).
** The series also features several powerful drinks with such wonderful names as Troll's Sweat and Djinn Sling. Drinking too much has such effects as knocking you out (at which point you wake up outside the bar with your wallet missing), or outright killing you.
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** Hilariously, one Argentinian news channel [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dP5bR1o-elg believed the aforementioned recipe to be genuine], a fact that earned it a mention in ''[[Tales of Monkey Island]]''.
* ''[[Neverwinter Nights]]'' allows the player to engage in a drinking contest, with the final round (before the opponent passes out) being a beverage known only as scurrd. It is, from a game-rules perspective, statistically ''impossible'' for any normal human being to imbibe scurrd without losing consciousness; it requires a Constitution score one point higher than what a first-level character is capable of having. A character with magically-enhanced or dwarven constitution can safely drink the scurrd, which results in the opponent passing out, and earns the PC massive respect from his buddies. If you successfully drink it, it temporarily doubles your hit points. It's the game world spontaneously recognizing the sheer [[Badass|BadAssery]] of your feat.
* Kusuha Mizuha from ''[[Super Robot Wars
** On Ryusei's route in the first game, Ryusei actually tries to explain to Giado and the others exactly what it is that goes into a "Kusuha Special" (something having to do with ground-up gecko tails and viper venom). Naturally, this doesn't sit well with Giado ''or'' his stomach.
** Elzam and Arado are among the few human characters who can withstand it. Elzam, being a [[Chef of Iron]], isn't intimidated by so-called "bad food" (he went so far as to name ''all of the ingredients''; granted, it was in the Alpha games, who have almost no translations at all), and Arado's undergone so much gene modification that he can consume almost anything that's generally edible. [[Gundam Wing|Heero Yui]] drank it in ''Alpha 2'' without passing out; Of course, he's [[Made of Iron]], so it wouldn't be surprising if he had a [[Stealth Pun|cast-iron stomach]].
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** Lamia Loveless, an ''android'', is incapacitated by the drink. Her first assumption is that they found out she was a spy and tried to poison her. Actually, she suspected as much before drinking it, but was absolutely ''positive'' afterwards.
* ''[[World of Warcraft]]'' has you construct several of these on various quests. How potent they truly are really depends on what level the quest is, although the quest giver will always act like it's the strongest stuff out there. "Dragonbreath Chili" is one of the few foodstuffs in the game that can directly damage your enemies after you eat it.
** The actual
** To quote Harkkan; "Thundermar ale is 220 proof; I don't know how that's possible."
* Whatever [[Drunken Master| Bo Rai Cho]] is drinking in ''[[Mortal Kombat X]]'' probably counts. It doesn't hurt him, but one of his Fatalities involves force-feeding it to his opponent, which makes the victim puke his/her guts out, ''literally''.
* ''[[Gemstone IV]]'' introduced a blackout-inducing drink called Eldreth's Death-rum, based on a real player-made concoction served during a gaming convention room party. Several employees watched as a brave attendee offered to try the stuff, pronounced it "not that bad" and started to walk away with no ill
* The potion maker in ''[[The Legend of Zelda:
* ''[[Kingdom of Loathing]]'' has a number of potent alcoholic beverages, such as the Pan-''Dimensional'' Gargle Blaster. Drinking it gives you the message "You feel like your head ''is'' a gold brick with a slice of lemon wrapped around it."
** There are a number of suitably dodgy drinks available in the clan dungeon Hobopolis, including fermented pickle juice, and the booze available from the hobo marketplace in the Hobopolis Town Square.
* When the MMO ''[[
* If you go to visit the nurse's office in ''[[Persona 3]]'' while tired or sick, the whackjob who runs it (who also teaches a class on ''magic'', mind you) offers you a concoction that is made of a number of poisonous substances and some good-luck charms (including rabbit's feet... ''in a drink''). If you choose ''not'' to drink it, he gives you actual medicine; if you drink it, it boosts your Courage, because he congratulates you on having the guts to try.
* White Gull is one of the few potions ''[[The Witcher]]'' can brew that isn't instantly lethally toxic to mortals. It can be brewed from any alcohol available, and makes the ideal base for any other potions. Even with his Witcher resistance to toxins, just one will make Geralt drift across the floor like a bobber on a fishing line, two will get him 86'd to wake up on the cobbles. Non-Witcher humans won't get through one. There is no canonical evidence of how much a dwarf can drink. It's sometimes used as an anesthetic on those already near death.
* ''[[Space Quest]] 6'' and the fan-made prequel ''Space Quest 0'' feature "Coldsaurian Brandy," an extremely potent and disgusting liquor (it has a rotting fish in the bottom of the jug). Roger doesn't ''drink'' the stuff, but it makes a mean Molotov cocktail, and it's good for poisoning purposes.
* In ''[[Atelier Annie]]'', nobody knows exactly what it is in Gillian's drinks, but know that the stench is so powerful it could fell a field of Punies from a mile away, so they (especially Annie and Pepe) don't go near the stuff. Gillian is oblivious to this sort of reaction, and guzzles her own concoctions like water.
* In the video game of ''[[Monty
* ''[[
* ''[[Mass Effect 2]]'':
**
** Then there's "ryncol", the krogan drink of choice. Said drink is said to have the effect of paint thinner on non-krogan. Shepard is knocked out by it. Then again, Shepard [[Cyborg|isn't quite human]] [[Back
▲* In ''[[Mass Effect 2 (Video Game)|Mass Effect 2]]'', the Dark Star bar on the Citadel serves the Commander "batarian ale". The bartender has never seen anyone drink it and remain standing. Shepard, of course, orders another one.
▲** Then there's "ryncol", the krogan drink of choice. Said drink is said to have the effect of paint thinner on non-krogan. Shepard is knocked out by it. Then again, Shepard [[Cyborg|isn't quite human]] [[Back From the Dead|anymore]].
▲{{quote| ''This is... it's green.''}}
▲*** The aftermath of Shepard's binge-drinking in the Dark Star is undoubtedly the most amusing part, with the Commander waking up on the men's room floor sometime later while a turian relieves himself at one of the urinals. Doubly hilarious if your Shepard is female.
▲*** Grunt's recommendation on ryncol is "Don't try to act tough -- that stuff'll go through a human's insides like broken glass."
** A [[Dummied Out]] piece of dialogue mentions something called Quarian Thruster Fuel. There's no mention of the effects but given that it's allegedly distilled from raw antimatter we can hazard a guess.
* In ''[[Nelly Cootalot]]'', the Barnacle Bar offers several drink with questionable names. Things like ''Texas Medicine'' and ''Admiral Nosehair's Old Unsanitary'' come to mind.
* ''[[
** Scrumpy is an actual drink, its made from hard cider. And yes, it is. It's Scrumble, from Discworld.
* ''[[Brave Soul]]'' has a cocktail called the "Lady Killer" which the bartender claims to be almost [[Critical Research Failure|100% alcohol]]. [[The Hero|Rudy]] is knocked out. Alicia claims it tastes like juice.
*
** Another has Auron creating a whirlwind and then hurling his entire jug in, at which point the tornado turns into a fiery pillar.
** A level of [[Fridge Brilliance]] when it comes to the alcohol: {{spoiler|He's ''already dead'', so that's why he can handle it}}.
* The ''[[Fallout]]'' series has a number of alcholic beverages and narcotics that give temporary benefits to the player, such as increasing their combat speed, making them more resistent to damage, or raising their carisma (one of the amusing side effects of alcohol). There's a [[Truth in Television]] moment in that your character can become addicted, and once the effects of the drugs wear off his stats are reduced until he is either cured of addiction by a doctor, or he takes another hit. It's surprisingly fun to play as a junkie.
** The ''[[Fallout: New Vegas]]'' DLC ''Dead Money'' introduces the "[http://fallout.wikia.com/wiki/Sierra_Madre_martini Sierra Madre Martini]", created by Dean, a Ghoul who's been in the Sierra Madre for two centuries and had time to experiment. It's created via brewing the residue of the poison cloud that permeates the place with a bag of [http://fallout.wikia.com/wiki/Junk_food potato chips] in a rusty tin can. Tastes hideous, highly addictive and gives some pretty nifty buffs.
* In ''[[Improbable Island]]'', you can buy one in the pub in the capital city. Those who drink one tend to wake up covered in other people's blood.
* In ''[[
** Talen-Jei, the waiter at the Bee and Barb inn, dabbles in making cocktails. The Cliff Racer, a blend of Firebrand Wine, Cyrodiilic Brandy, Flin, and Sujamma, fits this trope closest, but the Velvet LeChance deserves an honorable mention for being garnished with Deadly Nightshade (albeit a nonlethal quantity).
* In ''[[Chaos Bleeds|Buffy the Vampire Slayer
* Bottles of liquor found in [[System Shock]] 2 are usually somewhere around 250% proof, but they are graded after effect rather than alcohol content, and contain a number of other drugs that simulate the effects of alcohol.
== [[Web Comics]] ==
* In the webcomic ''[[
* In ''[[Girl Genius]]'', Theo's idea of a good home-brewed liquor can be expected to be at least 200 proof, and have other... interesting ingredients. [http://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20081006 "Hey, he's breathing again!"] One cup of Lingonberry Snap will apparently give you hallucinations. "Ah. I'd wondered why they were playing the music backwards."
** Note that 200 proof is pure alcohol.
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** When she tries it a second time? {{spoiler|She and another Congressman who tried it achieve world peace..}}
* ''[[Stickman and Cube]]'' has {{smallcaps|Una Muerte Con Mucho Dolor}}, which comes with several hours of warnings and disclaimers and must be served in a diamond glass.
* ''[[
* ''[[Something
* ''[[Questionable Content]]'' has Faye's brew of choice, Midnight Hobo.
** [//questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=717 Another time] the group asks for a liquor store's "finest whiskey" and gets it. The bottle glows and singing angels can be heard, and just one sip was enough to allow [[Bottle Fairy|alcoholic Faye]] to see quantum mechanics. [[Power Glows|It also glows]].
{{quote|
'''Hannelore:''' ''(reading label)'' "Warning: Consumption of this bourbon whiskey may cause you to get religion, get naked, or get arrested."
'''Dora:''' It doesn't say anything about relativistic time dilation. Maybe we should call the hospital. Or a physicist. }}
** An unidentified alcohol in [
* In ''[[Wicked Awesome Adventure]]'', one of the Big Three soda corporations fighting over the [[After the End|post-apocalyptic]] world has made Mule Kick Hallucinogenic Vision Potion. It may or may not be alcoholic, but Mule Kick [http://www.wickedawesomeadventure.com/2010/06/107-get-and-drink-beverage.html freely acknowledges (and even advertises)] its propensity to give its drinkers [http://www.wickedawesomeadventure.com/2010/10/197.html mind trips].
== Web Original ==
* ''[[
* ''[[Tasakeru]]'': [[Bottle Fairy|Faun's]] favorite drink is something called "Dead God Firewater". It's bright red, and the fumes alone are almost enough to make another character pass out. It's a type of whiskey, as the name suggests-with 10 percent unidentified red chemical (I suspect battery acid) and gunpowder to taste.
* Virtual pet site ''[[Neopets]]'' plays this one as a direct homage with their Pan Galactic Gargle Slushie
* An episode of ''[[Z! True Long Island Story]]'' had [[Zack Ryder]] revealing what an actual Long Island Iced Z is: A mixture of vodka, rum, tequila, diet soda, and protein. His attempt at drinking the concoction ended with him immediately vomiting it into the nearby sink, complete with "He's gonna puke!" sound byte from ''[[Beyond The Mat]]''.
* Brog ale in ''[[The
* In ''[[The Salvation War]]'', Satan wrings out an orc into a cup of his wine. The entrails dissolve.
== [[Western Animation]] ==
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** Don't forget the effect the drink has on Nasty Canasta (it makes his cowboy hat lift off his head and spin around, but that's it) versus Daffy and Porky (it makes them bend their hats into bonnets and prance around giddily while reciting "Mary Had a Little Lamb").
*** It also causes Daffy's guns to [[Bullethole Door|shoot a hole in the floor]], which he falls into and then rockets out of.
{{quote|
* ''[[The Simpsons (animation)|The Simpsons]]'',
** In
** Another episode features the Forget-Me-Shot, a concoction of Jägermeister, sloe gin, triple sec, ''quadruple'' sec, gunk from a dog's eye, "Absolut Pickle", the red stripe from Aquafresh toothpaste, and the venom of the Louisiana loboto-moth, stirred with a home pregnancy test (until it gets a positive response). The drink is so powerful it erases the previous 24 hours off of the drinker's memory.
** And there's the episode where Bart and Milhouse are in the Flanders house unsupervised, and they discover Ned's [[Beatles]] collection; they each down a can of 40-year-old Beatles-themed novelty soft drink, and Bart's causes him to briefly hallucinate about Milhouse as John Lennon.
** One episode has Homer visit a redneck town and develop a taste for "Fudd" beer, as opposed to his usual Duff.
* In [[Tex Avery]]'s ''The Shooting of Dan McGoo'', a character drinks a shot of ''straight whiskey'' and promptly shoots up to the ceiling like a rocket. When he lands, he complains, "This stuff's been cut," with Droopy adding, "Whaddaya want for 10 cents, gasoline?"
* Two episodes of the cartoon adaptation of ''[[The Mask (
** In the season one episode "Split Personality" (where Stanley Ipkiss's mask gets split in two and the evil half is worn by the bully who harassed Ipkiss in high school), Stanley (who's wearing the good half of the Mask) goes to a biker bar where he orders (after being taunted about not having ordered a "man's drink") a "red hot battery acid piledriver with extra formaldehyde in a dirty glass with a black widow spider riding on the olive." The bartender gives Stanley/The Mask the drink, but adds, "We're out of olives." Stanely/The Mask drinks it and breathes fire on the bartender.
** In the season two episode "Flight as a Feather", The Mask foils a suicide bombing attempt by the Mayor's stripper ex-girlfriend ([[It Makes Sense in Context]]) by pulling off her strategically-placed suicide belts, mixing them into a blender, and drinking the mixture (but not before distracting Kellaway and Doyle by flashing Cookie's naked body in front of them).
* In the ''[[Buzzy The Crow]]'' cartoon, ''Cat-Choo'', Buzzy makes a concoction of mustard, black pepper, hot sauce, and other spicy foods for a "remedy" for Katnip's cold. When Buzzy finishes stirring it, the spoon has completely melted. After drinking it, Katnip's tail shoots out fireworks like a cannon.
* ''[[Squidbillies]]'' has Early Cuyler's "Party Liquor" or "Glug". it's mostly pine cone liquor, but other ingredients include antifreeze, brake fluid, all-weather coolant, gasoline, hair spray, paint stripper, meth, [[Arson, Murder, and Jaywalking|mint leaves]] and Early's own ink (which is probably at least 70 proof).
* The ''[[
** Another T&J cartoon, Chuck Jones' "Is There A Doctor In The Mouse" has Jerry concocting a formula, which when he drinks it, gives him super speed.
* From ''[[American Dad]]'':
** This
** In another episode, Roger is trying to find a whiskey strong enough to actually make him drunk, as nothing he has tried manages to do it due to his alien metabolism. A liquor store owner tells him an legend about a four-armed giant with a dragon's tongue who lives on a mountain and brews the most potent whiskey in the world. In truth, the guy is a just a hermit who makes apple moonshine, but the moonshine is, indeed, potent. The legend seems to have originated because people have wild hallucinations when they drink it.
* The ''[[Amphibia (TV series)|Amphibia]]'' episode "Stakeout" has two non-alcohol examples. Anne brings an energy drink called Bam Berry Blitz ("The Drink that Punches You In the Face and Doesn't Stop") while Hop Pop brings special Gourd Tea. Each dares the other to try their drink, and they both take that dare. However, the Gourd Tea is clearly not meant for human consumption and Bam Berry Blitz isn't meant for Amphibian consumption either, causing both of them to have a [[Shared Mass Hallucination|shared]] [[Mushroom Samba]] hallucination.
== [[Real Life]] ==
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* In the Scandinavian countries people drink "Turkish Pepper" shots, which is vodka mixed with crushed [[wikipedia:Tyrkisk Peber|"Turkish Pepper"-candies]] (pepper and salmiak). The [[wikipedia:Salmiakkikoskenkorva|Finnish retail version]] was removed after (false) rumors of fatalities, and the version currently sold has less alcohol content. You really should mix it yourself though, and in this case it can apparently be [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kFI0vfCY23g&t=9m50s too strong for Vince Neil.]
* The "[[Horsemen of the Apocalypse|Four Horsemen]]" normally consists of one shot each of Jim Beam, Johnny Walker, Jack Daniels, and Jose Cuervo. Some people choose to replace one of the three whiskies with Captain Morgan, which doesn't agree with the tequila in most people's stomachs. To quote an experienced drinker, who was holding a buddy's head up over the toilet at the time:
{{quote|
* The "Bear Fight," which is a Jager Bomb followed immediately by an Irish Car Bomb. So called because after drinking one, it feels like there are bears fighting in your stomach
* The [[Non-Indicative Name|"Aunt Roberta"]], which has caused at least
** Three shots of vodka;
** Two shots of absinthe;
** One shot of brandy;
** One and a half shots of gin;
** One shot of blackberry liqueur.
* The theme camp
* "Chuck Norris" aka Jalapeño vodka, made from steeping the sliced hot peppers in vodka until it kicks like its namesake.
* The Drink called an "Adios Motherfucker"
* The infamous "Pájaro Verde" ("Green Bird") drink, which is illegally brewed and consumed in Chilean jails. It's strong enough to ''kill'' several inmates every year; that might have to do with the fact that the Pájaro Verde is made by fermenting garbage.
* There's a lot of challenge drinks out there, but one of the nastiest is a Prairie
** Sprinkle Parmesan or Asiago on a Prairie Fire: Boom! Grannie's Panties.
** Or a Buffalo Sweat; Replace the tequila with overproof rum (151, for example, but several other overproofs are even higher in alcohol content)
* Tequila and tabasco are not an uncommon mix, an ounce of each in a
* Most instances of homemade hard liquor -- "Moonshine"
** The [[Other Wiki]] has a guide to [[wikipedia:Moonshine by country|Moonshine by country]].
* Chinese peasant liquor certainly falls under this trope. It can best be described as smelling of death, and the experience of a half-shot was not unlike an aluminum baseball bat across the eyes. Due to poor brewing and distilling techniques, it often contains high concentrations of toxic methanol.
* A franchise bar called "The Hub" in Japan has a drink on its menu that's similar to this. It was a shot that is 3/4 rectified spirit and 1/4 absinthe.
* Absinthe is distilled multiple times during its creation, which results in a concoction that ranges from 50% to 70% alcohol by volume, depending on the variety. As such, it's usually drunk after being diluted with ice water three to five times over with sugar. The hallucinations are a myth, as well as the other rumored evil side-effects (blindness, insanity)... unless you drink about 200 glasses in one sitting. It is not, in fact, ''meant'' to be set on fire, though lighting the sugar, dropping it into the glass and dousing it with water is the "bohemian" method. It ''does'' have the interesting effect of sneaking up on the drinker- to the point where someone can drink several glasses of absinthe and legitimately not realize how drunk they are, until they try to walk away and suddenly find out that their legs don't feel like going anywhere. This is most likely an effect of the ingredients, which have amounts of natural stimulants and sedatives.
{{quote|
** Absinthe was originally made with wormwood, which caused the hallucinogenic effects and also shortened the drinker's life even more than the alcohol itself. This version of the drink was eventually banned, and the ban was lifted when the toxic component was left out.
* A chemistry trick is to drink 96% alcohol very slowly with an open mouth. Due to the high alcohol content, which is on the absolute border of what is possible under normal atmospheric conditions, the alcohol will evaporate in one's mouth. The trick is to breathe out while drinking, or it will have the reverse effect: alcohol vapor that enters the bloodstream directly through the lungs, skipping the stomach. This is not very healthy, to say the least. But, done properly, one could down an entire bottle of 96% while still reasonably sober.
* Graduate school chemists used to have a cheap way of making insta-gargle blasters. Take the pure ethyl alcohol jug from the lab, run it through a simple distillation to take out other alcohols, dilute with water and add some orange concentrate. The stuff was horrifically nasty and as strong as you felt like making it.
** [[Public Service Announcement]]: Drinking chemical-grade ethanol is extremely hazardous to your health, even in diluted form, as the last stage of purification to get rid of traces of water involves mixing it with benzene, the traces of which in the final product are '''extremely''' carcinogenic.
* During [https://web.archive.org/web/20120216232840/http://www.zug.com/scrawl/bar-drink/ this] pub-crawl a group go out seeking the worst drinks possible for entertainment value, including such horrors as "the bloody tampon" ... at one point the author appears to be summoning Cthulhu to come put him out of his misery. For bonus points, the Bloody Tampon was made up on the spot.
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20131030095655/http://www.myscienceproject.org/j-shot.html This Experiment] in which the goal was to get as much alcohol in a Jello shot as possible. [
* A Mobile, Alabama bar serves a Long Island Iced Tea variant called "The Paralyzer", where the Coca-Cola is replaced with Everclear. Some refer to it as the [[
** A standard LIIT is already stronger than most cocktails with equal parts vodka, tequila, white rum, gin, and Triple Sec. Though the liquor is diluted with lemon juice, gomme syrup, and coke, averaging out at a total of about 22% alcohol.
* Both Everclear & Golden Grain, at 190 proof, should be considered small-scale stand-alone Gargle Blasters due to their abilities to knock out anyone in 1-2 shots. More than a few jurisdictions have banned the sale of both products or limited it to the (relatively) weaker 151 proof versions (Which is still at least double the alcohol content of anything else a reputable liquor seller will carry.)
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*** Sounds a lot like some old-time Wild West whiskeys. Many times, the whiskey was "cut" with various other ingredients to try to extend the barrel life while keeping it potent. Kinds known as "snakeheads" threw rattler heads into the barrel, but other things that could go in ranged from the mostly innocuous (water, pepper, tobacco) to the insane (caustic soda, strychnine).
* Dubovka, a peculiar kind of Russian booze made by fermenting grain with oakwood splinters that was produced illegally during Gorbachev's anti-alcohol laws. It's green, tastes mild but makes you fall after the third shot.
* [[A Clockwork Orange (
* Ordering 100 ml of real Absinthe, straight up, in jurisdictions where real absinthe is legal, tends to get you stares. Also, the Absinthe-based version of the Flaming Lamborghini, with or without the sambuca. Bonus shock points for chasing straight up absinthe with a Flaming Lamborghini and managing to walk away on your own feet.
* In York, there's a bar that used to sell a drink called the Hellshot, consisting of a shot of 89% absinthe and 88% vodka (or something). You had to sign a disclaimer before you had one. Needless to say, the authorities banned it. Five years later, the bar still advertises it as "BANNED" though, presumably for street cred. Another bar has a shelf marked "Dangerous" with all the stronger spirits.
** The components of the Hellshot are still legal individually, however. Cue [[Loophole Abuse]].
* In Dawson City, in Yukon Territory, Canada, there's a bar in the Downtown Hotel which serves a drink called the [
* "Kehlenschneider" ("throat-cutter") is a German 80% chili schnapps with a 400,000 Scoville rating.
* [http://www.cracked.com/article_16314_nectar-broke-worlds-5-worst-ways-to-get-drunk.html This Cracked article] details a few alcoholic nightmares that can be quite dangerous to one's health. The worst being changaa, a Kenyan concoction that can contain battery acid or jet fuel.
* Brazilian cane liquor. It's the moonshine version of rum.
** You mean ''cachaça''. Don't compare it to moonshine, the thing is practically a religion in Brazil, and when properly distilled it tastes awesome. Still strong as hell, though.
* "Scorn": fruit liqueurs aren't usualy too dangerous, unless the fruit in question is Habanero.
* The [[Discworld]]'s Scumble is based on Scrumpy, a super-potent British cider. According to [[Terry Pratchett]], homebrewed scrumpy has "a kick that lasts for the rest of your life."
** Scrumpy isn't really that strong. It usually lands around 8-9% ABV, i.e. the strength of weak wine. The kick comes from the fact that the metal details on old cider presses tend to be lead, which reacts with the acids in the apple juice in interesting ways, and the fact that scrumpy is normally sold in pints (an Imperial pint is 568 ml).
* Similarly, applejack is cider distilled by repeatedly freezing the drink while removing any ice that forms. Given that this removes nothing but water, applejack has an incredible kick, especially considering that it has a fairly low alcohol content by brandy standards.
** A number of beers are also distilled in this fashion, the most notable being several German Eisbocks.
** The reason Applejack has such a nasty kick is that freeze distilling, while concentrating the alcohol content, also concentrates the methanol and fusel oil content, which are the wonderful things that cause hangovers.
* Real Jamaican ginger beer. That stuff makes Reed's ginger beer (the stuff that instantly clears your sinuses) taste like... ''[[Fear and Loathing
* There exists an annual poly/kinky gathering in Georgia, [http://www.duckstocktheparty.com Duckstock], whose name (and original raison d'etre) comes from a mixture known as 'Drunk Duck'. The exact recipe is a closely guarded secret.
* Jeremiah Weed, a bourbon whiskey sold in the United States, might seem tame compared to some of the very-lethal drinks on this page with its mere 100 proof--[http://www.check-six.com/lib/Drinks/JeremiahWeed.htm but it's also an icon] of [[Yanks With Tanks|American fighter pilot culture]]. Despite how awful it tastes.
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* For [[Yanks With Tanks|US Military in Korea]] [[wikipedia:Soju|Soju]] is like this for new drinkers. It looks like wine cooler but the alcohol content can vary. Many a soldier or airmen has tired to slam shots only to spend the evening being carried back to the barracks. However it's cheep and comes in many flavors so it's popular with troops and is now available in the US.
* Tactical Nuclear Penguin is one of the world's strongest beers, at 32% alcohol by volume. It's brewed in Scotland and sells for £35. The Brewery also produces Sink the Bismarck, at 41%, in an attempt to reclaim the world title from Germany. It is also £40 for 330ml. Or for the really suicidal, the brewery does a multipack with Tactical Nuclear Penguin. Seriously.
** Beers beyond 25% ABV tend to be technically either "ice beers" (freeze-distilled after brewing) or fortified (stronger spirits added). When it comes to the strongest all-fermented beer, the current champ is
* There is a story of a wealthy and possibly quite eccentric landowner, who, for reasons best left unknown, mixed four gallons of whisky with some chloride of lime and gave the mixture to his daughter. She took one sip of the mixture, proclaimed that it was quite delicious and passed out on the spot. This substance is now known as chloroform.
** For those who don't know, chloroform is produced when ethanol (i.e. "drinking" alcohol) or acetone is reacted with chlorine ions in an alkaline environment (both of which were provided by the bleaching agent).
** This is a somewhat butchered version of the true story of chloroform's discovery by Dr. Samuel Guthrie. He reacted chlorinated lime with whiskey in copper vessels in an attempt to produce the pesticide "Dutch Liquid". What came out instead turned out to be potable, but contained a small percentage of chloroform, which is 40 times as sweet as sugar. It was locally known as "Guthrie's Sweet Whiskey", but after isolating the chemical and discovering its properties, Guthrie started using it as a medical
* If you read the label of a bottle of Methylated Spirits, you'll notice that it says that the contents is 95% Ethanol. The other 5% is Methanol (and possibly a dye), which is added to make it toxic so people won't drink it. [[Too Dumb to Live|Of course some people do anyway...]]
** That's why it's known as a ''denatured''
** In Europe denatured alcohol doesn't contain any toxic additives (like methanol), but only the ones that make it taste horrible (like denatonium).
** And in Russia, denatured alcohol frequently contains neither denatonium nor toxic additives, but rather the bitter and slightly toxic castor oil. However, this can be relatively easily removed, leaving only a trace amount of castor
** There are multiple [[Blatant Lies|supposedly safe]] methods of "purifying" denatured alcohol. For example, adding a common bathroom cleaner, decanting, and filtering through a loaf of bread cut in half. [[Don't Try This At Home]], [[Schmuck Bait|seriously]]. Similarly, some novel included such a line as: "Did you drink denatured with chicken shit?"
* [[wikipedia:Four (energy drink)|"Four Loko"]] - nicknamed "Blackout In A Can" for the speed with which its mix of alcohol (12%) and caffeine renders drinkers (especially binge drinking college kids) non-functional. Banned in late 2010, then reintroduced, only without nearly so much caffeine.
** In real life, mixing a
* ''Baijiu'' ("white liquor"), the primary native alcohol of [[
** Bear in mind that [[Red China|Communist Party]] officials are known to down several
** This liquor is also sometimes known in the west as "Chinese lighter fluid".
** Liquor from Shaoxing, usually used for cooking, tends to taste like a cross between burning hair, soy sauce, and sorrow.
* Rocket Fuel: In a large bucket, combine half a liter of Everclear, about an equal portion of food grade dry ice, and a can of frozen juice concentrate of some kind; stir the mixture until the dry ice evaporates out, then serve it with a ladle. The dry ice makes it so cold, the alcohol freezes into a slush, so you don't even taste it until it thaws out, which you won't if you just shoot it. Perfect example of "you don't even realize you're getting drunk".
* Though technically not alcoholic, a kid-friendly version of this would be the Suicide - a
** Since it's a mixture of all the available sodas, some of which (like most lemon-limes and some root beers) don't contain any caffeine at all, it would actually be ''less'' caffeinated than a plain cola or Mountain Dew.
* Science-Fiction conventions and Ren Faires often make and bring homemade Gargle Blasters, creating real-world equivalents to their fictional counterparts that will knock the unsuspecting just as flat as the fictional ones
* Alaskan Martinis. Used to defeat visiting Texans waving around excessive ego about their booze capacity. Recipe: Everclear, left outside at 20-30 below zero. Seriously dangerous, from internal frostbite as well as the obvious.
* A group of chemistry post-grads at (I believe) the University of North Carolina used to exploit their knowledge of practical chemistry to create a terrifying drink known as Mech
* [http://www.thedrunkenmoogle.com/post/1204475764/ryncol-mass-effect-2-cocktail-ingredients-1-oz This] beverage, created in honor of the eponymous Gargle Blaster from ''Mass Effect 2''. With those two simple ingredients it lives up to its namesake and begs the question...WHY?!
** Doesn't sound too bad actually. 1 oz. absinthe, 1 oz. grain alcohol, that's barely more than a double shot. Probably tastes disgusting though.
* The Cement Mixer, an actual cocktail from the 1980s. 1 shot of Bailey's Irish Cream with 1 shot of Lemon juice. Taken at the same time. The lemon juice will curdle the Bailey's in your mouth, making it stick to your teeth like sugary cement. And people used to pay bartenders to serve them this...
* A mixture of 3 parts Samogan (traditional bootleg vodka, far stronger because it's often badly distilled, so badly that it can still contains fusel oil), 2 parts ''cask strength'' Scotch whisky, 1 measure of the strongest available schnapps, shaken with a cut-open chili pepper, poured, then served with pepper sprinkled in it (the pepper binds the oil in the samogan and carries it to the bottom of the glass). This drink is known as a Strike...as in 3 and you're out.
* The
* A restaurant in Quebec City called (the French translation of) "The Goblin's Tankard" serves a drink made of equal parts whiskey and sourpuss, adding tabasco and then heating. For those that think this is too girly, there's the "Holy Grail", which ups the ante on the alcohol content, adds strips of habanero pepper, and is served in a glass whose rim is bordered in paprika. Few people have resisted it.
* Chinese Herbal Tea, like most of Guangdong's delicacies which be rather foul tasting to the untrained tongue. Its bitterness will make you wonder if you are drinking sewer water or something similar.
* In the 2011 Halloween episode of ''Nerd to the Third Power'', UK Native Skyblaze told of the time her mother brought a bottle of poitin (pronounced po-teen), an Irish moonshine made out from, of all things, potatoes, to a Halloween party. The story ended with one woman waking up naked in her home a day later with no memory of the
** Legal versions of Poitin exist (although it was still Illegal in Northern Ireland
* A few submit their taste buds willfully to the terror of hrenovuha, Eastern European drink made by adding horseradish into 60-70 % ABV moonshine.
* Most military functions have their own version of "The Grog." Simply put, each unit brings a different type of alcohol (or other addition) and the various ingrediants are poured into a large pot. Ingredients have included such things as sand from Iraq (along with the boot it was brought home in) and shredded paper.
* The Cheap Date: fill a large glass half-way with juice, then add a double shot of everything that's behind the bar.
* [[wikipedia:
** Interestingly, wormwood is one of the classic Swedish vodka flavorings, The bitter flavor complements the traditional Swedish cuisine, which is usually quite heavy in fat and salt, very well. The Yanks drink it to prove how tough they are, the Swedes drink it because it goes well with food. Also, in Scandinavian folk medicine, wormwood vodka is considered a panacea for ailments of the stomach.
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[[Category:Comedy Tropes]]
[[Category:This Is Your Index On Drugs]]
[[Category:Hard-Drinking Tropes]]
[[Category:Food Tropes]]
▲[[Category:Gargle Blaster]]
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