A little-known fact about Shane Warne will come as a shock to dozens of Australians who lovingly left VB beer cans at the cricket legend's memorial.
Since news of his death broke, fans have flocked to his statue outside the Melbourne Cricket Ground to leave tributes for the Spin King.
Stacks of VB cans, packets of cigarettes, meat pies, cricket balls and heartfelt letters sit at the foot of the statue in honour of one of Australia's cricket greats.
But Warne, who died of a suspected heart attack aged 52 at a luxury villa in Koh Samui on Friday, was not the enthusiastic beer drinker many Aussies would assume.
A rare photo of Warne holding a beer alongside English cricketer Kevin Pieterson back in 2005
Stacks of VB cans, packets of cigarettes, meat pies, cricket balls and heartfelt letters sit at the foot of the statue in honour of one of Australia's cricket greats (pictured)
The legendary leg-spinner, considered to be one of the best spin-bowlers of all time, actually preferred spirits to beers and particularly favoured vodka Red Bulls.
Australian fast-bowling great Jason Gillespie exposed his former teammate's aversion to beers in a dressing-room prank.
Back in the early 2000s, Warne caught wind that a group of Brisbane Lions AFL players would be joining the team for a post-game drink.
Gillespie said Warne always admired the old-school cricketer persona - the 'fag hanging out, beer in hand' image - of players from the 1970s.
'Warnie always fancied himself at Aussie Rules, and loved that culture, so was keen to be involved,' he wrote in a tribute piece.
'When we got in the dressing room, he was looking just like that 1970s cricketer. Unusually for him, though, that meant holding a beer.
'What people don't realise is while he had the image of a beer-swilling sportsman, it was a myth. He was a spirits man.'
Australian fast-bowling great Jason Gillespie exposed his former teammate's aversion to beers in a dressing-room prank (pictured, Warne bowls during a test match in 2007)
The legendary leg-spinner actually preferred spirits to beers and particularly favoured vodka Red Bulls (pictured, tributes are left for the cricket great outside the MCG)
As Warne motioned for some of the players to join him for a drink his confused teammates also began to trickle in from the pitch.
They were immediately confused by the cricketer's choice of tipple but didn't dare anything in fear of annoying 'the King of Spin'.
That was, until a confused Glenn McGrath, who retired from cricket on the same day as Warne in 2007, walked in 15 minutes later.
'What are you doing drinking a beer? Warney, I've played Test cricket with you for 10 years and I've never seen you drink a beer,' he asked.
Warne replied: 'What do you mean, Pidge (McGrath's nickname)? I always have a beer on a bowling day.'
The attempt to save face only spurred his teammates to play one of the most famous pranks in Australian cricket history.
Warne (pictured in 2013) has been remembered as one of the world's greatest spin bowlers
The 52-year-old (pictured in Melbourne in 2006) is survived by his son Jackson and daughters Brooke and Summer
Gillespie, wicketkeeper Adam Gilchrist, and batsman Darren Lehmann made a pact to race in after stumps and leave a cold can of beer in the dressing room for Warne, who played along for four test matches.
'He's sitting down and that beer is going down like absolute razorblades. All the players, support staff, everyone's in on the joke,' Gillespie recalled.
Finally, following a 'blow-up' during a bad day on the field, the pranksters were exposed after Warne finally cracked and demanded to know who was messing with him.
Warne was initially annoyed but soon admitted his distaste for the beers and had a laugh with his team, conceding: 'Fair cop, you got me'.
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