The monks who make Buckfast tonic wine raked in nearly £9million last year

Monks who brew the sickly sweet, caffeine-loaded Buckfast tonic wine are flush after selling more of the stuff than ever before, according to the latest stats.

The Benedictine brewers cleared a record £8.8 million in 2014/15, Charity Commission figures show.

Often linked with anti-social behaviour in Scotland, a bottle of the syrupy elixir is 15% alcohol and has the same amount of caffeine as five coffees.

Benedictine monks have made the wine at Buckfast Abbey in Devon for some 100 years.

It was first marketed as a restorative, with health-giving properties: “Three small glasses a day for good health and lively blood.”

But, notoriously, it is often linked to episodes of violence and fights.

It was mentioned in some 6,500 crime reports in Scotland from 2010 to 2012, according to the BBC.

Buckfast Abbey Trust gets royalties on sales as it is a shareholder in J Chandler and Co, which bottles and sells the tonic.

Though the abbey trust did not give specific figures from wine-only sales due to commercial sensitivity, Buckfast makes up the majority of its income.