Butterbeer

Warning! At least some content in this article is derived from information featured in:Harry Potter: Hogwarts Mystery &Harry Potter: Puzzles & Spells &Harry Potter: Magic Awakened &Hogwarts Legacy. As such, spoilers will be present within the article.

Butterbeer

Butterbeer was a popularwizarding beverage described as tasting "a little bit like less-sicklybutterscotch".^[3] It was served at numerous locations in the wizarding world and had a very slightalcoholic content. Students ofHogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry would often buy it when visitingHogsmeade. It could be served either hot or cold.

Description[]

Butterbeer was served cold in bottles and hot in "foaming tankards".^[4] InHogsmeade, it's sold at theThree Broomsticks Inn^[5] and theHog's Head Inn,^[6] although the fact that the latter pub's stock was described as "very dusty" suggested that it was not sold there very often. InDiagon Alley, the drink had been known to be sold at theLeaky Cauldron. It was made out of butterscotch, sugar and water.

At the Hog's Head, customers were charged twosickles per Butterbeer (£0.60 approximately),^[6] but it was not certain whether this was a universal price for the drink, or if the price of the drink varied from location to location.

Anextra sweet variant was brewed byMadam Rosmerta. At least some of the ingredients she uses includeSugar Shrub,Mallowsweet, andMoondew.^[7] It is unclear if these ingredients are required only for the 'Extra Sweet' version, or if these are standard ingredients in normal Butterbeer. Another variant of Butterbeer was namedButterbeer 1707, which was considered very rare and could be ordered for delivery.^[8]

Alcoholic content[]

Butterbeer had a slightalcohol content. Humans could handle without becoming intoxicated, it was strong enough thathouse-elves could get drunk by it,^[1] though anantidote to this existed. This is likely due to house-elves having both significantly smaller bodies as well as a slightly different body chemistry than humans, thus increasing their vulnerability to the effects of alcohol in any volume. It seemed to have a less pronounced effect onhumans than smaller creatures such as house-elves, but humans could still fall "under the influence" of it.^[9][10]

In1996,Harry Potter wondered whatRon Weasley andHermione Granger might do atProfessorHorace Slughorn'sChristmas Party "under the influence of Butterbeer",^[9] which indicated that it could lower inhibitions, perhaps like alcohol.Winky, a house-elf, took to getting a drunk-like state off of Butterbeer after losing her job with theCrouch family^[1] — an addiction from which she never fully recovered.^[11]

History[]

Butterbeer was served foaming hot in mugs and cold in a bottle^[4] and bottle of Butterbeer in theHog's Head cost 2 Sickles each.^[6]

The mascot of theBallycastle Bats,Barny the Fruitbat, appeared in Butterbeer advertisements with the slogan "Barny says: I'm just batty about Butterbeer!"^[12]

In the1985–1986 school year, theThree Broomsticks Inn created a very sweet version of Butterbeer, which was very well-received by drinkers.^[7] By the1986–1987 school year, the Butterbeer 1707 was a variant of Butterbeer which could be ordered and purchased in the Three Broomsticks Inn. It was a very rare vintage beverage kept in a barrel in the back room of the Inn.^[8]

During the1990–1991 school year, awizard inGreat Britain who wished to sell his own brand of Butterbeer sneaked into the cellars of several wizarding pubs topoison the Butterbeer supplies, which caused the affected drinkers to be admitted toSt Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries. He was later caught by theDepartment of Magical Law Enforcement and taken into custody.^[13]

TheCircle of Khanna held a party in the Three Broomsticks for Jacob's sibling which included plenty of Butterbeer, following the success of thetrial ofKazuhiro Shiratori.^[14]

Peregrine ordered two Butterbeers for him and Jacob's sibling, his child, in the Three Broomsticks. However, Rosmerta ended up dropping both mugs when Peregrine ordered her not to listen in on their private conversation.^[15]

House-elves could get drunk off Butterbeer, as Winky often did. During Harry Potter's fourth year atHogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, Winky was often found drunk within the kitchens after she was sacked byBarty Crouch Snr. For a house-elf, the drink was much stronger and Dobby would take her to theRoom of Requirement to find anantidote there. It was considered shameful for an elf to consume such large quantities of Butterbeer.^[16]

Lupin was surprised that Harry had tasted Butterbeer when, as far as the professor knew, Harry had never been toHogsmeade.^[17] This was untrue as Harry had been to Hogsmeade previously when he sneaked in and had tried Butterbeer atThe Three Broomsticks. This suggests that Butterbeer was not readily available in Hogwarts castle; Harry lied that Ron and Hermione brought some back from Hogsmeade for him.

However, after Harry became a Hogwarts champion in theTriwizard Tournament and then again after he won the First Task, theGryffindor common room was awash with the stuff.^[18][19]

Butterbeer was served at theYule Ball^[20] and atBill and Fleur's wedding.^[21] It could be found at the refreshment table, with theRefilling Charm placed upon it.^[22]

Dean Thomas andSeamus Finnigan, once planned an after-exam party and talked about how many "black-market Butterbeers" they would have needed.^[23]

Luna Lovegood often wore anecklace of Butterbeer corks throughout her time at Hogwarts, and many of the other students in attendance found it to be strange and would often laugh in regards to it.^[24][25][26]

Gwenog Jones enjoyed "relaxing with friends, drinking Butterbeer, and listening toThe Weird Sisters".^[27]

During theCalamity in the late2010s and early2020s, Butterbeer became scarce at certain wizarding inns, leading to theBritish Ministry of Magic turning to aCalamity Investigator working for theStatute of Secrecy Task Force for help. The Calamity Investigator designed and implemented a series of bureaucratic shortcuts that allowed for quicker inspection and approval of Butterbeer stockpiles, increasing the availability of the drink at the affected inns. The inn owners thanked the investigator by offering them higher-energy food at their inns.^[28]

Behind the scenes[]

• Michael Gambon, the actor who had portrayedAlbus Dumbledore since thethird film, once said that the first thing he would do when he got toThe Wizarding World of Harry Potter theme park was to order eight pints of Butterbeer. He stated: "...it is not alcoholic, and it is refreshing."^[29]
• Executive Chef ofUniversal Parks and Resorts, Steve Jayson commented that Butterbeer is "real comforting and nice and smooth going down".^[29]

• Butterbeer atThe Wizarding World of Harry Potter could be served either cold with a taste similar to cream soda or frozen as a slush with a butterscotch-like foam on top. One may also purchase it either in a regular plastic cup or in a collectable mug. As of12 December2012, over five million glasses of Butterbeer were served at the park, an event that was commemorated by the park giving away free Butterbeers to one thousand guests that day.^[30] Butterbeer was also served atThe Making of Harry Potter.

• "A tankard of Butterbeer" was one out of the thirty-two options generated by an old feature^[31] onPottermore, "Wonderful wizarding world happiness generator", which was about things that could cast away the Blue Monday blues.^[32]
  • The description was "a warming glass of Butterbeer is exactly what you need to thwart your winter blues".^[33]
• Butterbeer may be based on Buttered Beer, which was a real drink. The earliest reference to Buttered Beer was from,The Good Huswifes Handmaide for the Kitchin published in London in 1588 A.D., made frombeer,sugar,eggs,nutmeg,cloves andbutter back in Tudor times. Another old recipe for Buttered Beer, published by Robert May in 1664 A.D., from his recipe book,The Accomplisht Cook called forliquorice root and aniseeds to be added. British celebrity chefHeston Blumenthal recreated it for his Tudor Feast.
• Alternately, Butterbeer's name may also be an homage toBarliman Butterbur, the owner of The Prancing Pony, an inn and pub prominently featured in J. R. R. Tolkien'sThe Lord of the Rings as the location where Frodo and the other hobbits first meet Aragorn.
• Butterbeer remains a popular drink withHarry Potter fans. Several fan-created recipes can be found online. These recipes vary between being non-alcoholic for children and teetotallers and being highly alcoholic in their composition.
• Merchandise found inThe Wizarding World of Harry Potter states that Butterbeer has been brewed 'since 1867', however this is contradicted by the existence of Butterbeer that has been brewed earlier, since1707.
• In the gameHarry Potter: Magic Awakened, Butterbeer could be purchased at theDance Club for 10 Gems, increasing stamina by 1 point.^[34]

Real world interpretations[]

Non-alcoholic[]

• The Wizarding World of Harry Potter sells bottled non-alcoholic Butterbeer.
• The Making of Harry Potter exhibition serves Butterbeer either in plastic cups, or in souvenir tankards. They also sell Butterbeer ice cream in cornets or in a souvenir cup.
• Reed's Inc producesFlying Cauldron Butterscotch Beer.
• The Starbucks secret menu boasts a "Butterbeer Frappuccino" which is a Creme Frappuccino with 3 pumps each ofcaramel and toffee nut syrup and caramel drizzle on top.
• In March of 2017, Yuengling's Ice Cream debuted a flavour inspired by Butterbeer. The ice cream is made from half buttercream ice cream, half butterscotch ice cream, and twisted with a butterscotch swirl.^[35]

Alcoholic[]

• There are many alcoholic recipes available online, most include butterscotch sauce and rum.

Appearances[]

The Harry Potter Wiki has 90 images related toButterbeer.

• Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (video game)(Mentioned only)(PS1 version only)
• Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (video game)(GBC and console versions only)
• Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban(First appearance)
• Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (video game)
• Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
• Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
• Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (film)(Mentioned only)
• Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (video game)(Mentioned only)
• Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
• Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (film)
• Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (video game)
• Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows
• Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2
• Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 (video game)
• Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore: Movie Magic
• Quidditch Through the Ages(Mentioned only)
• Pottermore
• HarryPotter.com
• The Wizarding World of Harry Potter
• Wonderbook: Book of Potions(Mentioned only)
• Fantastic Beasts: Cases from the Wizarding World
• The Art of Harry Potter: Mini Book of Graphic Design
• Harry Potter: Hogwarts Mystery
• Harry Potter: Wizards Unite
• Harry Potter: Puzzles & Spells
• Harry Potter: Magic Awakened
• The Magic of MinaLima: Celebrating the Graphic Design Studio Behind the Harry Potter & Fantastic Beasts Films
• Hogwarts Legacy
• The Art and Making of Hogwarts Legacy

Notes and references[]