Happy Friday! Now allow me to take it down a few levels.

British brewery “BrewDog” has produced a new special-edition line of beers called “The End of History” retailing for $750 each. If the price doesn’t make you fall backwards, then perhaps the 55% alcohol in each will. Still standing? Ok, each one comes wrapped in a dead animal.

”In true BrewDog fashion, we’ve torn up convention, blurred distinctions and pushed brewing and beer packaging to its absolute limits,” said co-owner James Watt. “This is the beer to end all beers. It’s an audacious blend of eccentricity, artistry and rebellion; changing the general perception of beer, one stuffed animal at a time.”

The Telegraph article is quick to point out that the animals (seven dead stoats, four squirrels and one hare.) were not killed for the bottling process. Still, animal groups in the UK are predictably all over this one.

“Using shock tactics to get attention is terribly out of date, especially when this involves exploiting or degrading animals,” said Ross Minett, campaigns director for the charity Advocates for Animals. “The modern approach is to celebrate the wonders of animals and respect them as individual sentient creatures. I’m sure this would have much greater appeal with the animal-loving public.”

Personally, I find it revolting — and I’m willing to bet that I’m not alone here. But Brewdog has succeeded in emulating the shock marketing so familiar in today’s world — and they’re bound to sell out of this latest “batch” rather quickly. Let’s hope it ends here — I’d hate to see where “animal packaging” could go in the beer world.

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About Michael dEstries

Michael has been blogging since 2005 on issues such as sustainability, renewable energy, philanthropy, and healthy living. He regularly contributes to a slew of publications, as well as consulting with companies looking to make an impact using the web and social media. He lives in Ithaca, NY with his family on an apple farm.

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