Buzz
From multicolored beer to frog-based “Viagra,” there's a peculiar drink to either fascinate or repel nearly every taste.
10. Deer Penis Wine
For years, Chinese athletes have turned to animal-based concoctions to enhance their athletic abilities. In the 1990s, Chinese track coach Ma Junren attributed the success of several unknown runners and their world records partly to a strange mix of turtle blood and caterpillar fungus—although rumors of illicit testosterone use were also circulating at the time.
For those seeking extreme forms of sports medicine, some enthusiasts swear by deer penis wine, a controversial concoction that, despite its purported healing properties, was banned from the 2008 Beijing Olympics. This beverage, alongside many traditional Chinese remedies involving animal penises, contains herbal ephedrine, a substance considered by various sports organizations to be a performance-enhancer.
Drinks made with deer penises are also thought to boost another form of performance—male sexual vitality. The belief is that they achieve this by stimulating blood circulation and enhancing the flow of qi, the vital energy central to traditional Chinese medicine.
A particularly potent variation of this remedy, called 'three penis wine,' combines the sexual organs of deer, dogs, and seals. According to a National Geographic team, this wine has a 'creamier' taste compared to its mouse-based counterpart, another popular remedy in Asia claimed to treat ailments like liver disease and asthma. In the Korean version, 10-15 baby mice are submerged in rice wine and left to ferment for 1-2 years. After drinking the wine, which is said to have a 'gasoline-like' flavor, the mice are consumed.
Thanks, but we prefer sticking to good old aspirin.
9. Rainbow Beer
The brewery’s concept draws inspiration from the four seasons of Hokkaido, Japan’s northernmost island. Airi Brewery, located there, creates beers that mirror the region’s unique environment, which sits on the Okhotsk Sea—a cold part of the North Pacific Ocean lying between Japan and Russia.
Airi Brewery’s colorful beer collection is inspired by the changing seasons. For instance, the Ryuhyo Draft, made in winter, uses water from icebergs that drift by Hokkaido’s shores. The beer’s vibrant blue color is derived from seaweed extract, as is the green Shiretoko Draft, which incorporates fermented seaweed.
The Ryuhyo Draft beer, symbolizing winter, is made with iceberg water from the Okhotsk Sea. The bright blue shade of the beer is thanks to seaweed extract. Similarly, the Shiretoko Draft, representing spring, uses fermented seaweed for its green hue.
Hamanasu Draft, with its rich ruby color, is made from hamanasu fruit (also known as shore pear), which represents the wildflowers blooming along the coast during summer. Meanwhile, Jyaga Draft, created with purple potatoes, captures the essence of the autumn harvest.
Kimchi Soda – a surprising fusion of traditional Korean flavors and fizzy refreshment. This unique beverage offers a tangy, spicy kick that will leave your taste buds dancing. A true adventure in a bottle.
The Codd Stopper, named after its English inventor Hiram Codd, is a technique that revolutionized bottling carbonated beverages. This method, which uses a marble sealed by a rubber stopper (or modern-day plastic ring), creates an airtight seal thanks to the pressure from carbonation pushing the marble into place.
To crack open a bottle of Ramune, you’ll need to press the center of the plastic cap with your thumb, using it as a plunger to push the marble into the bottle. People have devised all sorts of creative, albeit dangerous, methods to remove the marble, such as melting the plastic ring or using a knife and hammer. While these techniques are not recommended, watching others attempt it is sure to be entertaining.
The Codd Stopper method has inspired plenty of clever attempts to retrieve the marble without damaging the bottle. However, please don’t try these risky tricks yourself—though they do offer a fun spectacle when others attempt them, from melting the plastic ring to using a knife and hammer.
Peruvian Frog Juice – also known as rana y maca or “Peruvian Viagra” – is a drink originating from the waters of Lake Titicaca, Peru. This fascinating concoction features the Telmatobius coleus frog as its primary ingredient, which is believed to have energizing and aphrodisiac properties.
Rana y maca, or “frog juice,” is created using the Telmatobius coleus frog, found in the high-altitude waters of Lake Titicaca in Peru, the world’s highest navigable lake. Known as “Peruvian Viagra,” this beverage is said to have aphrodisiacal properties.
The process of making rana y maca begins by taking a live frog and striking it against a counter until it is rendered unconscious or dead (though reports on this detail differ). The frog is then carefully skinned, and its body is blended with hot bean broth, honey, aloe vera, and maca root. The final product is a viscous, milkshake-like drink that may have a sharp taste.
Sadly, the growing trend of consuming “Peruvian Viagra” has resulted in the endangerment of the Telmatobius coleus frog. According to the US Fish and Wildlife Service, this has put the delicate ecosystem of Lake Titicaca at risk. In 2010, the agency allocated a $25,000 grant through its Wildlife Without Borders program to help preserve the frogs by promoting a change in local customs through a social marketing campaign.
Liquid Smoking, a short-lived beverage, was introduced by the Dutch company United Drinks and Beauty Corporation. The drink promised to ease nicotine cravings for up to four hours. Although it found some popularity in the Netherlands, it was launched in the UK in 2008 to help smokers manage the newly enforced smoking ban in public places.
Liquid Smoking, a beverage that promised to reduce nicotine cravings, gained fleeting attention in 2008. Created by United Drinks and Beauty Corporation, it was marketed as an alternative to traditional nicotine products, claiming to provide a temporary craving suppressant. This drink was primarily aimed at helping smokers cope with the UK’s new public smoking restrictions.
According to Martin Hartman, CEO of United Drinks, Liquid Smoking did not contain nicotine but instead achieved its purported effects by combining various South African plant roots. These roots were said to induce a mild energizing effect, followed by a relaxing and euphoric sensation, purportedly helping smokers fight cravings.
Despite its promise and only 21 calories per 275 ml can, Liquid Smoking was met with criticism from the public. Much of the backlash stemmed from the design of the can, which resembled a pack of Marlboro cigarettes. The marketing and packaging choices sparked further negative reactions to the product.
Both Liquid Smoking and United Drinks and Beauty have disappeared without a trace. The link to United Drinks' Dutch website no longer works, and even the company’s CEO, Martin Hartman, seems to have vanished, as if ‘up in smoke.’
Kinohimitsu J’pan BustUp Drink makes bold and extravagant claims, asserting that it can increase breast size without the need for surgery or medication. Advertisements for the product suggest that it can address issues like small, sagging, or shrunken breasts, caused by factors such as aging, menopause, childbirth, or breastfeeding.
Kinohimitsu J’pan BustUp Drink boasts of its ability to increase breast size without surgery or medication. The drink is promoted as a remedy for breasts that are small, dull, sagging, or shrunken, often caused by aging, menopause, pregnancy, or breastfeeding.
The primary ingredient in BustUp is Pueraria mirifica (Kwao Krua Kao), a tuber that is rich in phytoestrogens. Used for over 50 years in Thailand as a remedy for menopause symptoms like hot flashes and night sweats, the herb is now touted by manufacturers as a miraculous solution for everything from preventing breast cancer to ‘tightening one’s vagina.’
BustUp also contains water, fructose, concentrated fruit juices (such as green papaya, apple, and peach), vitamin C, beta-carotene, royal jelly honey, and fish-derived collagen. Now, if only they could figure out how to incorporate some mood-boosting roots.
Panda Dung Tea
A Chinese entrepreneur is hoping that pandas can revolutionize tea the same way civets transformed coffee. An Yanshi, a calligraphy professor at Sichuan University, has patented a method to cultivate green tea using panda feces. The Ya’an Bifengxia panda base, located in Sichuan, is home to 80 captive pandas.
An sells his creation under the name Panda Ecological Tea, which is offered in three different grades and available in a limited edition of 21 50-gram (1.7oz) packages. The highest quality grade was priced at 440,000 yuan (approximately US$72,000) per kilogram, a tenfold increase over the cost of a rare 1960s box of Wu-Yi narcissus oolong tea from Hong Kong.
During the launch of his new tea, An, wearing a panda costume, explained that pandas only absorb about 30 percent of the nutrients from their food (bamboo), and that the remaining 70 percent is expelled in their waste, making his panda poo tea both nutritious and flavorful.
Placenta 10000 and Placenta-Pro
For women deeply concerned about aging, nothing surpasses products based on placentophagy, the practice of consuming a baby’s placenta after birth. The placenta—a temporary organ in the uterus that provides oxygen and nutrients to the growing baby via the umbilical cord—contains substantial amounts of iron, vitamin B-12, and hormones. It is said that consuming it can boost a new mother's energy, promote breast milk production, alleviate postpartum depression and bleeding, and make her appear younger.
But what if you want the benefits of the placenta without the need to give birth? Enter Nihon Sofuken’s Placenta 10000, a peach-flavored jelly made from pig placenta extract. Although the benefits of placentophagy have not been scientifically validated, many companies still market placenta as a youth-enhancing ingredient, found in products ranging from chips and tablets to drinks and smoothies.
If pig placenta doesn’t quite pack the punch you're looking for, there's always Placenta-pro, which is made from horse placental extract. Hi ho, Silver oy veh!
Jackie, a former journalist and Huffington Post blogger, has a keen interest in word origins and medieval history. Her blog, Nothing Too Trivial (Interesting Things for Interested People), can be found here.
Bird’s Nest Drink
birdsnest
After cleaning to remove any feathers and droppings, the nest takes on the appearance of a sponge composed of delicate, white strips. A standard nest is priced at approximately $500 per catty, which is a Chinese unit of weight equivalent to just over a pound. Less common are 'blood nests,' named for their reddish tint caused by blood in the birds’ saliva, which can fetch up to $1,300 per catty.
In order to make bird’s nests more accessible for the average person, some businesses offer it in drink form, claiming it has a mild mineral and sugary, floral taste. The texture, however, is said to be gelatinous and lumpy, with small pieces of bird’s nest floating within.
However, pollution and human expansion are damaging the cliffs where swiftlets reside, causing prices to rise and prompting some 'harvesters' to seize nests as soon as they’re constructed, or even while still containing eggs.
But honestly—who wouldn’t be willing to consume a little slimy, lumpy, endangered bird vomit for smoother, healthier skin?
1. Cow Water
Four years ago, a prominent Hindu cultural organization in India introduced gau jal (‘cow water’) as a supposed healthier substitute for sugary soft drinks. Hindus have long revered cows for their milk, which sustains life, but Ayurvedic practices also claim that bovine urine and excrement can heal conditions ranging from liver problems to diabetes and even cancer.
According to the team from the Cow Protection Department of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, the goal of their new beverage was to offer a wider audience the opportunity to experience the health benefits of cow urine, in a product they guaranteed would neither smell nor taste like urine.
While gau jal has not yet appeared on shelves in US grocery stores, it has carved out a niche market in Italy, where it is marketed as ‘acqua di vacca.’
