Here's What Happened When We Made A "Harry Potter" Star Try Our Butterbeer

You can try some at the Wizarding World of Harry Potter in Orlando, or the Warner Bros. Studio Tour in England. But what if you made your OWN Butterbeer at home, from scratch?

Luckily, we're always up for a challenge, so four "Hogwarts students" (JK, BuzzFeed employees) decided to test their Potions prowess and whip up their own interpretation of the drink, which has been described as a "less sickly butterscotch" by none other than J.K. Rowling herself.

Jason currently is starring on USA’s Dig — an “action-adventure, murder-mystery, conspiracy thriller,” as he described it, that travels across the world — and said it's “more real and more exciting than many things I’ve done” (also, you should be catching up on the show, he said, because “you don’t want people to spoil the huge, surprising fun shit that happens.”)

Luckily for us, he said he’s “always loved sweet things.”

And the losers would be locked in the dungeons of Malfoy Manor.

The drinks made by contestants from Slytherin, Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, and Ravenclaw (from left to right).

What's in this Butterbeer: Cream soda, vanilla, marshmallow fluff, and butterscotch syrup.

Lara's Strategy: My Butterbeer-making strategy is the same strategy I use for every situation in life: Win. I've been to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter three times so I KNOW what Butterbeer tastes like, but I've never had to make Butterbeer with a Death Eater over my shoulder. I tried to calm my nerves and avoid using any hexes and concentrate on doing what I do best: Fuck shit up. I just threw things that look like they tasted good into a glass and then faked it till I made it.

The Verdict: Salazar Slytherin would be pretty damn proud.

What's in this Butterbeer: Caramel, cinnamon, whipped cream, Starbucks Iced Frappuccino, condensed milk, root beer, ginger ale.

Sheridan's Strategy: I started with the important stuff like coffee, milk, and root beer, and then added everything else very sparingly. I kept on testing as I went along to make sure I wasn't adding too much, too quickly. I also focused on mixing as much as possible so that I could everything was balanced. [Editor's note: It sounds like this is the first Gryffindor since Hermione to pass Potions.]

The Verdict: At least 10 points to Gryffindor. It's almost as good as Felix Felicis.

What's in this Butterbeer: Condensed milk, ginger ale, cream soda, Starbucks Iced Frappuccino, marshmallow fluff, butterscotch syrup, whipped cream, and cinnamon on top. AKA pretty much everything on the table.

Kirsten's Strategy: I've only been to The Wizarding World of Harry Potter once, when I was about 14. I downed two Butterbeers and then almost threw up on a ride, so my memory of the drink wasn't super fond. I think the problem I ran into was I kept trying to get the perfect foam consistency, and kind of forgot that mixing everything together to make foam meant it would probably taste like shit.

The Verdict: CLOTHES for this house-elf!

What's in this Butterbeer: Cream soda as a base, topped with several of splashes of Starbucks Iced Frappuccino, a few shots of condensed milk, a few dashes of chocolate syrup, and butterscotch syrup.The drink was complete with ice, whipped cream, cinnamon, and a Milky Way garnish. [Editor's note: Probably should have used a Chocolate Frog instead, TBH.]

Brian's Strategy: My strategy, never having tried Butterbeer, was to make an elegant cocktail fit for a Death Eater. I also assumed Butterbeer tastes like sugar mixed with corn syrup, so I tried to avoid making it too sweet — although I don't think we were given a single ingredient that didn't contain sugar. I also wanted to make it look camera-ready, 'cause that had to be half the challenge, right?

The Verdict: Are we sure a Squib didn't make this drink?!?

What Sheridan learned from the Butterbeer Challenge: "If Harry Potter has taught us anything, it's that slow and steady wins the race. Like defeating Lord Voldemort could take seven books and eight whole movies, and winning a Butterbeer competition could mean using ingredients very liberally. I might have also had a little bit of Felix Felicis, know what I mean? Just kidding, I didn't cheat, don't take this away from me."

What Jason learned from the Butterbeer Challenge: "It’s really best to do interviews with BuzzFeed on the phone."

Also, if you want to try out a Butterbeer recipe that won't send you to Madam Pomfrey, check out BuzzFeed Life's recipe here.