Strange but True: The World’s Most Unusual Alcoholic Drinks

Most of us think we know our way around a drinks menu: beer, wine, whiskey, maybe a craft cocktail if we’re feeling adventurous. But travel to the right corner of the world, and “adventurous” takes on a whole new meaning. Some bottles hide actual snakes coiled inside. Others infuse vodka with tarantulas. These unusual alcoholic drinks are stranger, and more fascinating, than most people realize.

These aren’t gimmicks dreamed up for shock value (well, not all of them). Many unusual alcoholic drinks trace back to centuries-old tradition, folk medicine, or pure resourcefulness. So pour yourself something normal and sit back. Let’s take a tour through some of the weirdest beverages on the planet.

Snake Wine: Vietnam’s Most Talked-About Bottle

If there’s one drink that defines “strange but true,” it’s snake wine. And yes, it’s exactly what it sounds like.

What is snake wine? Distillers make it by submerging a whole snake, often venomous, like a cobra, in rice wine or grain alcohol. They sometimes add scorpions or herbs for good measure. Producers typically add the snake while it’s still alive, then let the bottle steep for months. Over time, the snake’s body infuses the liquor with flavor and, according to traditional belief, medicinal benefits.

Is snake wine real? Very much so. Vietnam, parts of China, and Southeast Asia all hold genuine traditions around it. You’ll find it in markets and specialty shops, and even on some restaurant menus as a novelty shot for tourists.

Is snake wine safe to drink? Generally, yes. The alcohol content stays high enough to neutralize venom over time, and proper steeping keeps it safe. That said, sourcing matters. Several countries, including the U.S., restrict or ban imported snake wine to protect endangered species.

What does snake wine taste like? Most drinkers compare it to a strong, slightly medicinal rice wine: earthy, a little bitter, with a warming finish. It’s less about the flavor and more about the experience, and the photo opportunity.

Baby Mice Wine: China’s Controversial “Tonic”

Not for the faint of heart, baby mice wine is a traditional folk remedy from parts of China and other regions of Asia. Producers submerge newborn mice, sometimes just days old, in rice wine or grain alcohol. They let the mixture ferment for months, occasionally years.

Believers in traditional medicine claim it treats everything from liver disease to asthma. Modern science hasn’t backed up these claims. The drink remains controversial even within the cultures that produce it, more folklore than pharmacy at this point. Still, it offers a striking example of how deeply alcohol and traditional healing practices intertwine in parts of Asia. It also consistently ranks among the most searched-for “weird drinks” online, likely out of sheer disbelief that it’s real.

Tarantula Vodka: Cambodia’s Eight-Legged Infusion

If snakes and mice aren’t enough, meet tarantula vodka. Cambodia claims this Southeast Asian specialty as its own, where fried tarantulas already rank as a popular street snack.

Producers drop whole tarantulas, sometimes just one, sometimes several, into a bottle of vodka or rice spirit and let it infuse. Marketers pitch the result less as a health tonic and more as a badge of courage. It’s a drink for travelers who want a story to tell when they get home. Some claim the spider’s venom adds a subtly bitter, earthy note to the vodka. Most of the appeal, though, is admittedly visual.

It’s become such a novelty item that specialty and souvenir shops across Southeast Asia now sell smaller, tourist-friendly bottles specifically for this purpose.

Chicha: The Andean Corn Beer With a Surprising Origin Story

Here’s where things get interesting from a process standpoint rather than an ingredient one. Chicha is a traditional fermented corn beverage from the Andes region of South America, particularly Peru, Bolivia, and Ecuador.

Traditionally, communities made chicha by chewing corn kernels and spitting them into a communal vessel. Enzymes in human saliva break down the corn’s starches into fermentable sugars, which kickstarts fermentation naturally. Modern commercial producers have largely replaced this method with more conventional techniques. But in many rural and indigenous communities, people still practice the traditional saliva-fermentation method, and it carries real cultural significance. They don’t see it as unsanitary; they see it as an important ritual that generations have passed down.

The result is a mildly alcoholic, slightly sour, corn-forward drink. It has shaped Andean life for thousands of years, long before Spanish colonization brought European brewing methods to the region.

Kumis and Airag: Fermented Mare’s Milk From the Steppes

Across Mongolia and parts of Central Asia, one of the most important traditional drinks isn’t made from grain or fruit at all. It’s made from milk. Kumis (Central Asia) and airag (Mongolia) are fermented mare’s milk, naturally low in alcohol but rich in cultural significance.

For nomadic herding communities, fermenting horse milk offered a practical way to preserve nutrients. It also created a drink to share during gatherings and celebrations. It has a tangy, slightly effervescent quality, often compared to a sour, alcoholic buttermilk. Far from a novelty, it remains a staple of hospitality in the region today.

Pulque: Mexico’s Ancient Ancestor to Tequila

Long before tequila and mezcal became global icons, there was pulque, a viscous, milky, fermented drink made from the sap of the agave plant. The Aztecs considered it sacred and reserved it for priests, warriors, and ceremonial occasions.

Unlike tequila and mezcal, pulque isn’t distilled. It’s simply fermented, which gives it a low alcohol content and a thick, almost syrupy texture that surprises first-time drinkers expecting something closer to its more famous agave cousins. As far as unusual alcoholic drinks go, pulque is currently experiencing a revival in Mexico as younger generations rediscover this centuries-old tradition.

Sahti: Finland’s Bread-Flavored Farmhouse Beer

Rounding out our list with something a little closer to a familiar category, beer, but brewed in a decidedly unfamiliar way. Sahti is a traditional Finnish farmhouse ale. Brewers flavor it with juniper branches and berries, and some traditional recipes filter it through juniper twigs instead of a conventional filter.

The result is an unfiltered, cloudy beer with notes of banana, clove, and freshly baked bread. Those flavors come from the unique yeast strains and unconventional brewing techniques involved, some of which predate modern brewing science by centuries.

Where to Find These Unusual Alcoholic Drinks

If your curiosity is piqued but you’re not quite ready to book a flight to Hanoi or Phnom Penh, you’re not alone. “Where can I buy snake wine” and similar searches come up more often than you’d think. Specialty import shops, international markets, and online spirit retailers occasionally carry novelty versions of snake wine or scorpion-infused spirits. Availability varies widely by country, though, especially for anything involving protected species.

For most of the drinks on this list, the real reward isn’t necessarily drinking them yourself. It’s the story. These beverages open a window into how different cultures have approached fermentation, medicine, hospitality, and celebration for centuries, often long before “mixology” was even a word.

Bring a Little Adventure to Your Next Gift

You don’t need a tarantula-infused vodka to give someone a drink experience they’ll remember. At Drinkable Gifts, we love drinks with a story, whether that’s a rare regional spirit, a craft distillery find, or a beautifully packaged bottle that feels like a small adventure in itself. If this list of unusual alcoholic drinks has left you appreciating just how diverse the world of drinks really is, browse our curated collection and find something worth talking about, minus the eight legs.

Feeling inspired to go a little off the beaten path yourself? You don’t have to track down a cobra or befriend a tarantula wrangler to give a gift with a story. Our custom alcohol gifts let you build something just as memorable, minus the venom. Pick the spirit, add a personal touch, and match it to their taste or the occasion. We’ll turn it into a bottle worth talking about. No expedition required.

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• Explore drink recipes on our blog and mix up something a little less adventurous than tarantula vodka.