After being challenged by a friend to produce a record-breaking tipple, British brewer Peter Fowler came up with "The Hop" - the world's most bitter beer.

Beating the previous record of 200 held by American beer Devil Dance Triple IPA, Fowler's creation registered 323 International Bittering Units (IBUs), tests showed.

Fowler, 58, who runs the Pitstop Brewery in Stove, near Wantage, Oxon., said: "It is always nice to beat the Americans and put a British flag on the bitterest pint.

"To be honest, I can only drink it in halves. To finish an evening, it is fine, but the taste lasts with me for four hours at a time."

It took Fowler two years to perfect the recipe, using powerful hop varieties Simcoe, Centennial and Chinook, and hop extract Isolone, to produce the extreme bitterness, reports The Telegraph.

He is currently waiting for the Guinness World Records to officially name The Hop the bitterest beer on the planet. (ANI)