Beer and fall go hand in hand (you know, football, holidays, all that stuff), but you don’t have to settle for a boring six-pack. Beer cocktail recipes have something for everyone—and will keep you humming (and perhaps buzzing) through fall.
There’s something special about the fall, right? No, we’re not talking about silly stuff like the air being fresher, the beautiful fall colors as the leaves turn, or cozying up in the couch with a nice cup of tea.
No, we’re talking about fall cocktails. Cocktails that leave the fruity sweetness of summer behind, and give us more sustenance to be able to cope with darker evenings and annoying things like rain.
Basically, we’re talking beer cocktails.
And to get your libation-season started right, here are some of our absolute favorite beer cocktails of this year. Cheers to fall!
The Steam Roller Beer Cocktail
This cocktail features steam beer, which is full-bodied and more bubbly than your standard ale. Its unique flavor is complemented by elderflower and cherry liqueur and a shot of rye whiskey.
- Prep Time: 1 min
- Cook Time: 0 min
- Total Time: 1 minute
- Yield: 1 cocktail 1x
- Category: Cocktail
- Method: Stirring
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
- 1 ounce St-Germain elderflower liqueur
- 1 ounce freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 1 ounce rye whiskey
- 1/2 ounce Heering Cherry Liqueur
- Ice
- 1 lemon twist
- 1 (12-ounce) bottle steam beer, such as Anchor Steam, chilled
Instructions
- Combine all ingredients and stir.
- Pour into glasses filled with ice.
Maple Bourbon Shandy
Sip your way into cooler days with this satisfying shandy. There’s plenty of sweetness thanks to the bourbon and maple syrup, and the flavor is rounded off with orange juice and a dash of coffee bitters.
- Prep Time: 2 mins
- Cook Time: 0 mins
- Total Time: 2 minutes
- Yield: 2 cocktails 1x
- Category: Cocktail
- Method: Stirring
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
1 oz./ 30 mL maple syrup
2 oz./ 60 mL bourbon
.5 oz./ 15 mL fresh orange juice
4 ds. coffee bitters
12 oz./ 360 mL beer
Orange zest for garnishing
Instructions
- Pour the syrup, bourbon, orange juice, and bitters in a mixing tin.
- Add ice, then shake until the mixture is cold.
- Pour into the Old Fashioned glass over fresh ice, and top off with beer.
- Stir gently. Twist the orange zest over the cocktail, add it and serve.
Pumpkin Cider Beertail
We’re pretty charmed by this one—it shoots a nod to some of our favorite fall flavors. This shandy twist is a delicious combination of cider and pumpkin ale, garnished with lemon and a cinnamon stick.
- Prep Time: 2 mins
- Cook Time: 0 min
- Total Time: 2 minutes
- Yield: 4 cocktails 1x
- Category: Cocktails
- Method: Mixing
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
3 bottles of Blue Moon Harvest Pumpkin Ale
1/2 bottle Martinelli’s Sparkling Cider
4 cinnamon sticks
4 lemon wedges
a sprinkle of cinnamon
Instructions
Start with a cinnamon stick. Place one in each glass or, in our case, each mismatched mason jar. Next, pour Blue Moon Pumpkin Ale until the glass is about three quarters full. Next, add your cider. You want a little bit of foam so don’t worry about extra bubbles.
Squeeze a little bit of lemon on top and place wedges on each glass for garnish.
Last, add a sprinkle of cinnamon on the top! This brings the cinnamon aroma right into your nose as you take your first sip.
Adult Root Beer Float
Another childhood favorite all grown up! This combination of root beer ale and ice cream couldn’t be any easier to make (or fall in love with).
- Prep Time: 2 mins
- Cook Time: 0 mins
- Total Time: 2 minutes
- Yield: 4 cocktails 1x
- Category: Cocktail
- Method: Mixing
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
- 1 pint quality vanilla bean ice cream
- 2 12-ounce bottles of Not Your Father’s Root Beer
- whipped cream
- chocolate syrup
Instructions
- Scoop 1/2 cup vanilla ice cream into each of the 4 frosty mugs. Add enough root beer to fill each mug. If desired, top with whipped cream and a drizzle of chocolate syrup. Serve immediately.
The Three and Out
This sweet and spicy combo is sure to put some spring in your step. Vodka, honey, chile, lemon and a Pilsner are all that’s needed to make this perfect companion to your game day festivities.
- Prep Time: 2 mins
- Cook Time: 0 mins
- Total Time: 2 minutes
- Yield: 2 cocktails 1x
- Category: Cocktail
- Method: Shaking
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
- 2 shots of vodka
- 2 shots of fresh lemon juice
- 1 shot of honey
- 1 dried chile pepper (split in half)
- Pilsner beer
Instructions
- Add the vodka, lemon juice, honey, and chile pepper to a cocktail shaker.
- Stir the ingredients in the bottom of the shaker until the honey is dissolved.
- Add ice to above the level of the liquid, cap and shake for 5 seconds.
- Strain into a tall glass containing cubes of ice.
- Fill the glass with pilsner beer and garnish with lemon slices and dried chiles.
Brewed Mary
Who would have thought that replacing vodka with beer in a Bloody Mary would be such a delicious transition? A good IPA will be your best bet to complement the tomato juice and spices. And we HEAR (you know, from friends) that it’s a heck of a hangover cure.
- Prep Time: 2 mins
- Cook Time: 0 mins
- Total Time: 2 minutes
- Yield: 2 cocktails 1x
- Category: Cocktail
- Method: Shaking
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
- 1 cup tomato juice
- 1/2 tsp celery salt plus additional for glass rims
- 1/2 tsp Chipotle Tabasco sauce
- 1/2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
- 2 tsp brine for a jar of spanish olive
- 1/4 tsp cream style horseradish
- 1 tbs lime juice about 1 medium lime
- 1 tsp lemon juice about 1/2 medium lemon
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- Ice
- 1 cup IPA beer
- Optional garnish: celery stalk olives
Instructions
-
Rim glasses with celery salt.
-
Add all ingredients (except the beer) to a shaker half full of ice, shake to combine.
-
Strain into prepared glasses, stir in the beer, garnish if desired.
