I love beer, and I love space. So how could I not love beer from space? I'm not usually one for beer gimmicks, but somehow Sapporo's Space Barley is an exception.

The beer was made with grains descended from barley that spent five months in the Zvezda Service Module on the International Space Station. The very limited results, just 250 precious six-packs, will be sold through a lottery for 10,000 yen ($110) each. But only people living in Japan are eligible. Sigh.

Why are the Russian Academy of Sciences, Okayama University and presumably Russia's space agency Roscosmos aiding this scheme? Well, science of course. And charity.

"This beer will be sold for charity, to contribute to the promotion of science education for children and the development of space science research in Japan and Russia, through donation of all proceeds to Okayama University," Sapporo stated in a press release Dec. 3.

And that sounds nice. But I think the real reason is: Space Beer!

Also, what will astronauts drink on future extended spaceflight missions? They can't take multiple years' worth of beer with them, so clearly they will have to brew it themselves. But what about the hops, you say? Don't worry, those were launched into space in August. Super Space Beer!

Indeed, according to Sapporo, the space-barley research was done for "the purpose of achieving self-sufficiency in food in the space environment." Because how self-sufficient could one really be without beer?

Images: 1) NASA. 2) Sapporo.

*Story via On Orbit

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