Yes, I know what you’re thinking: “Beer is awesome. God made it on the 4th day and it’s
perfect.” And I agree- beer is effing great. In this post I’m going to share some things
that I’ve been playing with (and loving) to make a good beer even better or a
crap beer OK. So crack a cold one and
lets go!
I like Blue Moon and have always found it interesting
that it is probably the only widely distributed beers that is garnished with an
orange. One day it came to me to throw
some triple sec in it. The result: delicious.
It tastes like orange soda and is stronger than normal beer. Then I didn’t think much about adding
cocktail ingredients to beer for a long time.
A little while ago I was in Hawaii and got introduced to
a local brand called Kona Brewing Company.
If you haven’t had their beer, try it- it’s great. My favorite of these was their Pipeline
Porter, which is a coffee flavored porter.
Once I was back home in DC, I bought a 6 pack of Pipeline Porter and
started getting creative. I had some vanilla
vodka sitting around that I use in my Smurf cocktail and decided to mix the
two. One Pipeline Porter mixed with ¾ to
1 ounce of vanilla vodka is fantastic. It’s
called Hawaiian Christmas.
In case you couldn’t see it coming, the way to make beer
even better is to add ¾ to 1 ounce of vodka.
And not only does adding vodka make beer even more awesome, it makes it
stronger. I’ve recently started experimenting with all kinds of combinations of
beers and vodkas. My favorite types of
beers to use are stouts and porters but others work too. My favorite vodkas to add are vanilla, espresso
or chocolate. These are my go-to
flavored vodkas, but lots of different ones will work.
Lets explore some good combinations, shall we?Chocolate Beer + Espresso Vodka
Vanilla Beer + Chocolate Vodka
Chocolate Beer + Chocolate Vodka
Pumpkin Beer + Pinnacle Pumpkin Pie Vodka
Pumpkin Beer + Pinnacle Whipped Vodka
Light Beer + Citrus Vodka
Blue Moon + Orange Vodka
Fruity Wheat Beer + Peach Vodka
The combinations are endless. I’ve talked about adding
vodka to beer in this post, but you can also add tequila, rum or any other cocktail
ingredient you fancy. Lastly, be
careful- these drinks are good ways to get a hangover- read this post to arm
yourself.
Enjoy!
David
This is a pretty awful post.
ReplyDeleteFirst: Why would I waste my expensive triple sec (because I tried to cut corners with cheap crap, and that was horrible)instead of a cheap orange? I can garnish more beers than I can drink with one orange.
Second: Why oh why would you ever add vodka to a beer (this applies to the triple sec as well). Changing the ABV changes the taste of the beer. Why don't you just explore a little and try some less common beers with a higher abv? Duvel for instance.
I've really no comment on the Pipeline (which I personally find a sub par porter) other than to suggest, again, that you explore for a beer you enjoy the flavor of, rather than than adding vanilla extract to a beer you obviously don't find complete.