Czech brewer Drinks Union has launched what it describes as the country's strongest beer, with an alcoholic content of 21 per cent. The dark amber brew will be on sale in Germany under the label Doppel Doppel Bock, and there are plans to export it to the US market.

Daniel Vasha, the brewery's technical director, said Drinks Union was the only one among the country's seven major breweries to produce beer of such strength. "You could describe it as a liqueur beer," he said. Based in Usti nad Labem in the north-west, Drinks Union is the country's fourth-largest brewery.