Large mug of beer in Iceland. Photo : Neurobite ( iStock )

Last week, thousands of U.S. troops arrived in Iceland; Newsweek explains that the “military personnel are headed to Sweden and Finland for the Trident Juncture 18—considered to be NATO’s biggest military exercise since the Cold War,” and made a pitstop at Iceland along the way.


Over the weekend, Iceland magazine reports that the influx of troops subsequently managed to deplete the capital of Reykjavík of practically every single beer available. Establishments like “the restaurant Sæta Svínið, The American Bar and other downtown bars reportedly finished all their beer supplies serving the 6-7,000 sailors who were in town.” The military personnel apparently preferred “local beers over imports, and were very willing to sample different micro brews as well as the more popular standard lagers.”

The bar owners then sent out elsewhere for supplies, trying to keep in beer in stock, but, as one local blogger put it, “they were fighting an overwhelming force.” The ships were only in town from Wednesday through Sunday and have now departed, hopefully offering bar owners a chance to restock before next weekend.