Beer Plus

To most of us, beer is beer---cold, wet and quenching. But an avant minority has taken one small step for man and begun mixing with beer. Scout's honor! While beer drinks aren't sweeping the country---at least not yet---assiduous trend spotters have already noticed signs of a surge. One indication is the rash of beer-based mixtures surfacing spontaneously nationwide, and they're not the province of any particular clique or social group. Midwestern factoryworkers are forsaking their traditional brandy and wash for the depth charge---a shot of peppermint schnapps dropped into a stein of beer, shot glass and all. The campus vanguard does the same number with tequila and salt in beer to make a submarino; and (continued on page 216) Beer Plus(continued from page 133) the shandygaff---beer and ginger ale---is increasingly noted in West Coast watering holes.

Don't be too quick to dismiss beer drinks as a singular American aberration. The aforementioned shandy is so popular in Australia that it might be called the national nip. Germans dote on the festive Berliner weiss---wheat beer, raspberry syrup, plus a garnish of fresh strawberries when the scarlet fruit is in season. Just about every English public house serves lager 'n' lime, the lime being bottled sweetened lime juice or lime squash. The proverbial egg in your beer, otherwise known as an ale flip, was favored by Elizabethans. And black velvet, a suave union of champagne and stout, was born in London's venerable Brooks Club. The year was 1861 and everyone was mourning Prince Albert's death. The club's patriotic steward declared that even the champagne would be in mourning, out of respect for Victoria's consort. Whereupon he solemnly poured stout into the pale bubbly---shrouding the wine and, incidentally, giving posterity a great hangover drink.

Old-line bibbers tend to howl at any modification, but mixing it up with beer would appear to be a logical development. Brewers themselves play with the product---making it sweeter, lighter, decreasing the quantity of hops or lengthening brewing time---wooing the mass palate, as they perceive it. There's no denying that the vast majority of beers on the market are muted or bland, compared with the lusty brews of the Thirties. And a good case could be made that adding snap or bite can only benefit most. As it happens, the gruff, earthy, slightly bitter taste of beer is a fine foil for a wide range of flavors. Nevertheless, mixed beer drinks will never supplant the straight suds, nor is anything like that intended. But they do offer an array of new taste sensations---and the glory of discovery---to those adventurous enough to sample them.

For mixing purposes, your beer should be very cold. Glassware ought to be chilled, too---and free of film or detergent residue. And the beer should be fresh. While it doesn't spoil easily, beer does decline after a relatively short period on the shelf. The mixtures below are particularly welcome on warm, sunny days. Even lager aficionados will find them interesting, change-of-pace drinks and palate fresheners.

[recipe_title]Depth Charge[/recipe_title]

[drinkRecipe]I can (12 ozs.) beer, cold[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]I oz. peppermint schnapps[/drinkRecipe]

Pour beer into large chilled stein or mug. Measure schnapps into small shot glass. Hold glass at top with fingers and ease it into beer. The level of mint increases as you near the bottom---but not by much. If you prefer uniform taste all through, add schnapps to stein first, then pour in beer.

Note: Also made with rum, vodka and, on Saint Patrick's Day, with green crème de menthe or Chartreuse.

[recipe_title]Shandygaff[/recipe_title]

The original shandy was half beer, half ginger beer---often mixed in a pitcher. Today the name is applied to mixtures of beer and almost any soft drink. Proportions are variable, too, many going heavier on the beer.

[drinkRecipe]I pint beer, iced[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]I bottle (12 ozs.) ginger beer, cold[/drinkRecipe]

Combine in chilled pitcher, pouring beer and ginger beer simultaneously. Serve in chilled glasses.

Note: Ginger beer is fairly scarce in the U. S. One of the drier ginger ales is an acceptable substitute.

[recipe_title]Lemon Shandy[/recipe_title]

[drinkRecipe]1 can (16 ozs.) beer, cold[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]8 ozs. (or to taste) lemonade, cold[/drinkRecipe]

Divide beer equally among 3 or 4 chilled highball or Pilsner glasses. Do the same with lemonade. Stir once, to mix.

[recipe_title]Ruddy Mary[/recipe_title]

[drinkRecipe]4 ozs. tomato juice, cold[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]1/4 oz. lime juice[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]3-4 dashes Tabasco[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]1/4 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]1/8 teaspoon salt, or to taste[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]Beer, cold[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]1 scallion, including green shoot[/drinkRecipe]

Combine all ingredients except beer and scallion in large chilled goblet and stir well. You may add 1 ice cube, if you like. Taste and correct seasonings, but remember that beer is to be added. Pour in equal amount of beer---about 5 ozs.--- or to taste. Stir once; plant scallion in glass.

Note: A tangy bloody-mary mix such as Tabasco, Mr. & Mrs. or Snap-E-Tom can be substituted for tomato-juice mixture.

[recipe_title]Black Bart[/recipe_title]

[drinkRecipe]1 small lime, quartered[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]1 can (12 ozs.) cola, cold[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]1 can (12 ozs.) bock beer, cold[/drinkRecipe]

Squeeze lime wedge into each of 4 highball glasses or 8-oz. mugs; add hull. Pour 3 ozs. cola into each glass; stir. Repeat with bock beer; stir once.

Note: A pleasant, interesting blend of flavors. Proportions may be varied to your personal taste. If you can't find bock beer, a good dark beer or Guinness stout is fine.

[recipe_title]AB[/recipe_title]

Literally, a two-fisted drink; the left hand holds the aquavit and the right hand holds the beer. Reverse hands if you're a southpaw.

[drinkRecipe]1 oz. aquavit, chilled[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]8 ozs. beer, chilled[/drinkRecipe]

Pour aquavit into liqueur glass and beer into tall glass or goblet. Alternate sips of aquavit and beer until glasses are empty. Refill and repeat.

[recipe_title]Skip and Co Naked[/recipe_title]

An oldie that seems to be enjoying a small-scale revival.

[drinkRecipe]1/2 oz. lemon juice[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]1 tablespoon grenadine[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]1 oz. gin[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]Beer, cold[/drinkRecipe]

Shake lemon juice, grenadine and gin with ice. Strain into highball glass. Pour in beer slowly to fill, or to taste. Stir once.

[recipe_title]Berliner Weiss[/recipe_title]

Weiss is a pale, almost white beer, brewed from wheat. Use light beer if you can't find weiss.

[drinkRecipe]1 1/2 tablespoons raspberry syrup, or to taste[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]1 bottle (12 ozs.) weiss[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]3 or 4 fresh strawberries, halved[/drinkRecipe]

Spoon syrup into large balloon glass or widemouthed goblet; swirl to coat sides. Pour in beer slowly, in circular motion. The idea is to mix syrup and beer without stirring, holding froth down. Garnish with sliced berries and serve.

[recipe_title]Lager 'N' Lime[/recipe_title]

[drinkRecipe]1 oz. bottled sweetened lime juice[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]1 can (12 ozs.) beer, cold[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]Put 1/2 oz. lime juice in each of 2 glasses. Add a little beer to each glass; stir to combine. Divide remaining beer between glasses. Stir only if necessary.

Note: This is a liberal amount of lime juice. You may vary to suit your taste.

Stonehenge: Substitute Stone's Ginger Wine for lime juice.

[recipe_title]Teacher Creature[/recipe_title]

From the Rogano Restaurant, Glasgow.

[drinkRecipe]1 oz. Teacher's Scotch[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]1 oz. Scotch-based liqueur[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]Beer, cold[/drinkRecipe]

Pour Scotch and liqueur over 1 ice cube in highball or old fashioned glass. Stir. Add beer to fill, or to taste.

[recipe_title]Black Velvet[/recipe_title]

A brut New York State or California bubbly is recommended.

[drinkRecipe]Stout, cold[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]Champagne, cold[/drinkRecipe]

Half fill chilled large goblet or Pilsner glass with stout, slowly. Pour in champagne to fill---again, slowly. If mixture foams excessively, let it subside and then top off glass.

Note: Standard directions call for stout and champagne to be poured simultaneously into pitcher, but this tends to build a heavy collar of foam initially.

The fact that mixed beer drinks are so agreeable should come as no surprise. Whiskey-based drinks are accepted without question, and whiskey is essentially distilled beer. What is surprising is that these quenchers have been overlooked for so long. Let's remedy that right away.

"The gruff, earthy, slightly bitter taste of beer is a fine foil for a wide range of flavors."