A “borg,” or a “black out rage gallon,” could easily be spotted at UMass Amherst over the weekend, as wasted students carried their own plastic gallon containers that were jam packed with booze.
A “borg,” or a “black out rage gallon,” could easily be spotted at UMass Amherst over the weekend, as wasted students carried their own plastic gallon containers that were jam packed with booze.
Leading up to St. Patrick’s Day, Boston University warned students about the dangers of drinking borgs during annual festivities.
“Borgs,” or “blackout rage gallons,” are jugs of water mixed with flavorings, like electrolytes or drink mixes, and alcohol, Boston University Student Health Services explained on Facebook. Some borg recipes call for the equivalent of 17 shots of liquor, “enough alcohol to cause an emergency,” the college said.
“Since borgs contain water and sometimes electrolytes, there’s a misconception that a borg is hydrating and therefore a safer drink,” the post’s graphics read. “Mixing alcohol with caffeine can mask the feeling of intoxication and other effects from alcohol, making it more likely for someone to overdrink.”
On March 4, borgs played a role in 28 ambulance calls made from off-campus parties at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, according to previous reporting. Partygoers at an annual Blarney Blowout party were said to be consuming borgs, resulting in the arrest of two people for underage possession of alcohol by Amherst and UMass Police.
Although some health experts advise that borgs are better than communal mixed drinks, as the consumer is likely mixing their own borg, Boston University Student Health Services said it does not recommend drinking a borg.
It instead offered alternative approaches to making a borg, including using less alcohol than the recipe suggests or leaving out alcohol entirely, as well as omitting ingredients containing caffeine.
