Worlds most expensive beer made from Antarctic ice

Australian beer maker Nail Brewing revealed the secret behind its latest ale, which set a new record for the most expensive beer ever produced when it was sold at auction last month. The new limited edition brew, which was produced and sold for charity, was made from melted Antarctic ice.

Dubbed Antarctic Nail Ale, the beer first went on the auction block to raise money for the Sea Sheperd Conservation Society, an organization dedicated to protecting whales and other sealife around the globe. On November 3, a single bottle sold for an amazing $800 AUD (roughly $780), setting the new record for the worlds most expensive beer in the process. That auction was just the warm-up however, as another bottle went up for sale on November 19, smashing the new record. That second bottle sold for a whopping $1850 AUD ($1805)!

The beer was created by John Stallwood, the owner of Nail Brewing. Stallwood’s brother-in-law is part of the crew on board a Sea Sheperd ship, and recently visited an iceberg floating in the waters off Antarctica. He collected some of the ice there and flew it back to Tasmania, where it was melted and then passed on to Stallwood to use in the beer.

I’ve had some expensive beer before, but $1850 for a single bottle? I’d have to nurse that one for a really long time.

Homewood Suites by Hilton helps national expansion of “Books For Kids” libraries

Staying in the spirit of the holiday season, Homewood Suites by Hilton has teamed up with the Books for Kids childhood education advocacy group.

Books for Kids helps provide books to “at risk” kids, helping with new books, and reading programs.

In October, the partnership yielded a massive result – a brand new library in Washington D.C. filled with 1,000 new books. The Library used to be an unused classroom, but thanks to the help from Homewood Suites team members, it was transformed into an amazing room with duck benches and reading forts.

Over the next several years, the two plan to build more libraries – which is where you can help. On the Homewood Suites Books for Kids site, you can learn how to donate to this fantastic cause.

Photo of the day (12.2.10)

Seeing animals in the wild can be one of the highlights of any trip, especially when everyone comes out of it with all body parts intact. Flickr user kumukulanui captured this “Emu intensity” in Perth, Western Australia. I love the emu’s soulful eyes and curious/bordering-on-scary expression. I don’t know how the meeting will end, but I’m glad to have caught a moment. Emus are native to Australia and quite bold about approaching human, particularly when they have food, and have also inspired the Perth-brewed Emu Beer.

Have any interesting animal encounters on your travels? Add your pix to the Gadling Flickr pool and we may use one for a future Photo of the Day.

New Mophie Juice Pack Plus doubles your iPhone 4 battery life

Mophie has long been the leader in iPhone battery power cases – and with their new Juice Pack Plus, they will probably keep that position for some time.

The new Juice Pack Plus provides 2000mAh of extra battery capacity, more than doubling the battery life of your phone. Best of all, it does this in a case that does not make the phone all that much thicker.

Charging and syncing is taken care of with a MicroUSB port, and the phones speakers are “enhanced” through a virtual speaker box.

The case is available right now in black, with the three colors you see above arriving “soon”. The Juice Pack Plus is available directly from Mophie, and retails for $99.95.

Daily Pampering: Order your holiday chocolates from The Ritz Paris

Want to bring your loved one a memento from Paris … without actually taking them on vacay? How about ‘ exclusive limited edition chocolate ball from The Ritz Paris? Underneath a crisp dark chocolate shell sits a tender mixture of light almond mouse and crispy carmelized hazelnut. But that’s not all – slice just a bit deeper and you’ll find a tender center of almond merenge cake covered with orange marmalade.

The limited-edition ball is wrapped in a custom-made box and serves four (or one person with a really big sweet tooth) and can be special-ordered via boutique@ritzparis.com or by calling +33 (0)1 43 16 34 86. It retails for £125.

Now that’s much better than getting an orange in your stocking!

Want more? Get your daily dose of pampering right here.