Beer Mixed Drinks

Back in the dark ages before the internet, this series of tubes you’re looking at, I wrote a book entitled The Bars of Santa Clara County: A Beer Drinker’s Guide To Silicon Valley. In one of the appendices of that book I included a list of mixed drinks using beer, or beer cocktails. Here’s that list, with slight modifications and additions.

Ale Sangaree: Add 1/2 teaspoon of powdered sugar to a 10 oz. glass of beer.

Arf’n Arf: Put equal amounts of two beers, like mild and bitter, in a tall glass.

Beer Buster: Put 1 oz. of 100-proof Vodka in a tall glass, fill with very cold beer and 2 dashes of Tabasco sauce.

Beermosa: Mix equal parts beer and orange juice.

Beer Panache: Put equal amounts of beer and lime soda in a glass. Add 2 tablespoons of sugar and 1 teaspoon of lime juice. Stir and serve over ice.

Beer Punch: Put one part beer and grapefruit or orange juice in a glass. Add one more part ginger ale, 2 tablespoons of lime juice, and 4 ounces of sugar. Stir and serve3 over ice.

Black & Black: Add a dash of blackberry liqueur to a glass of stout.

Black & Tan: Mix equal parts Guinness Stout and Bass Ale in a tall glass, trying to keep the two liquids as separate as possible. These were the two brands used in the original marketing push but, obviously, you can use any dry Irish stout and any English-style pale ale. The pale ale is gently poured in first, followed by the stout. The trick is using a spoon when pouring in the second beer, though there are different kinds of spoons and methods. The Food Channel has a photo essay on how to make a Black & Tan.

Black Velvet: Mix equal parts Guinness Stout (or any dry Irish stout) and Champagne in a tall glass. Hard cider is sometimes substituted for the Champagne.

Boilermaker: A shot of whisky with a glass of beer. First, take the shot whisky followed by a beer chaser.

Bul (Cuba): Mix equal parts beer and ginger ale (or club soda). Add 1/2 cup of sugar and the juice of 4 limes. Stir and serve over crushed ice.

Calcutta Cup: Mix equal amounts of stout and tonic water in a tall glass.

Chita Rivera Margarita: Mix equal parts beer, frozen limeade, and tequila in a blender, adding 4-6 ice cubes (for each 6 oz. of ingredients) as you blend.

Depth Charge: Put a shot of any flavor of Schnapps (or any kind of liquor) in a glass of beer. Drop the shot, including the glass, into the glass of beer.

Devilled Ale: Cut a slice of bread about an inch thick, toast and butter it, then sprinkle with cayenne pepper and ginger, and place in the bottom of a jug, add a pint of warm ale, and sugar to taste.

Dog’s Nose: Put 1 oz. gin in a tall glass and fill with beer.

Dragoon Punch: Mix 3 pints of porter, 3 pints of ale (any light-medium bodied ale), 1 pint of brandy, 1/2 pint of sherry, 4 oz. of sugar syrup and 3 sliced lemons. A half-hour before serving, add 2 bottles of Champagne, stir well, and serve with ice.

Fruit Beer: Add 2 teaspoons of your favorite fruit syrup to a glass of Berliner-Weisse or any wheat beer, though the more sour the better.

Half & Half: Similar to a Black & Tan, but with a lager like Harp instead.

Hop, Skip and Fall Down: Put 1 shot of rum, 2 shots of peach schnapps, and a splash of lemon-lime soda in a tall glass and fill with beer.

Hop, Skip and Go Naked: Put 1 shot of vodka, 2 shots of lemonade in a tall glass and fill with beer.

Jamaican Shandy: Mix equal amounts of Red Stripe (or similar beer) and cold ginger beer (or ginger ale as a last resort) and serve over ice.

Lager & Black: Put 1 oz. Ribera blackcurrant syrup in a tall glass and fill with beer.

Lager & Lime: Put 1 oz. lime juice in a tall glass and fill with beer.

Meeting House Punch: Mix a gallon or so of beer with 1 gallon of Jamaican rum, slightly less than 1 gallon of white rum, 1 pint of sugar syrup, 1/2 to 2/3 lbs. brown sugar and a bunch of lemons.

Michelada or Chelada (Mexico): Put salt around the rim of a glass (the same way you would for a margarita) fill the glass approximately 2/3 woth tomato juice (or Clamato). Add a few drops of a hot sauce (such as Tabasco), Worcestershire sauce and Maggi seasoning (or soy sauce). Squeeze the juice of a lime wedge into the glass and mix. Then fill the remaining glass with beer.

Midnight: Mix equal parts of stout and any port wine in a tall glass.

Party Punch: Mix 3 cups of grape juice, 2 cups of sugar, 6 cups of orange juice, and 2 oz. of lime juice. Add 12 oz. of club soda and 5 cups of beer. Serve over ice.

Red Eye: Put 3 oz. tomato juice in a tall glass and fill with beer.

Shandy: Mix equal amounts of beer and lemon-lime soda in a tall glass.

Shandy Gaff: Mix equal amounts of beer and ginger ale in a tall glass.

Snake Bite: Mix equal amounts of beer and hard cider in a tall glass.

Spotie Otie (could be spelled Spodie Odie): Mix equal amounts of beer and sangria in a punch bowl or other large serving vessel.

Stout Sangaree: Dissolve 2 teaspoons fine sugar in 2 teaspoons of water in a tall glass. Carefully and gently pour in a stout so as to create a small head of approximately 1/2 inch. Float 1 oz. of port wine and garnish with dashes of grated nutmeg and ground cinnamon.

Time Killer: Fill a medium-size glass with ice and add 1 oz. of tequila. Fill with beer. Sprinkle salt and squeeze out the juice of a lemon wedge on top.

Tomboy: Mix equal amounts of beer and chilled tomato juice in a tall glass.