Stephen Colbert Reveals A Blunt Truth About 'The Late Show' After On-Camera Flub

Stephen Colbert likes to kid about alcohol and even takes a swig from a supposed glass of booze from time to time as part of the joke.

On Thursday night, he revealed there’s nothing “supposed” about it... at least not usually.

The seemingly unscripted moment came during his monologue, when the “Late Show” host discussed a new report that found the omicron variant of the coronavirus replicates in the throat.

“The throat?” he said. “Die, you bastards!”

Colbert pulled out a glass and took a swig only to find disappointment inside:

“What the [bleep] is this? This is tea!” Colbert said, then called out to someone off-camera. “There’s a rule, what’s the rule, Mark?”

“Uhh, booze is...” Mark started to reply.

“Booze is booze on this show,” Colbert said.

Now you know. Unless someone tries swapping it with tea again:

Booze has led to several memorable moments on “The Late Show,” including this interview with former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R) over shots of tequila that got brutally honest in a hurry.