Latest batch of Samuel Adams Utopias beer sells out in under an hour—at $115-per-bottle

Last Friday, starting at 9 a.m., the LCBO made 150 bottles of Samuel Adams Utopias beer available to the public, with another 60 orders held for liquor licensees. Made from a blend of various batches of beer, some aged for up to 18 years, and weighing in at 27 per cent alcohol, the brew has achieved cult status. Indeed, as Crystal Luxmore explained last week in The Grid, 1,675 people entered last year’s lottery to win one of a mere 70 bottles. This year, the allotment was sold through the Vintages hotline at $115 a bottle by a staff that Luxmore points out is more accustomed to selling rare Bordeaux. And just how feverish was the demand this year? As LCBO spokesman Chris Layton put it, “The orders were taken starting at 9 a.m. on Friday, November 18, and by 10 a.m. that same morning they were sold out.” Better luck next year.

• Utopian Vision [The Grid]