Paired with a Pale Ale
With the holidays officially over, I’m sure you guys are thinking what I have been thinking. It’s time to bunker down and hibernate for the winter. It’s so easy to get complacent this time of year. I know that I get into an endless groove of wanting to stay indoors and stay away from the “bar scene.” I’ve never been a huge “bar scene” person. Of course I love a good brewery or wine bar, but I rarely go to a legit bar. This is why I love to host dinner parties and gameday shindigs at my house.
What is so perfect about a get together at home is that you can be as creative or uncreative as you want. You can get fancy and make everyone dress up. You can make it super casual and tell everyone to slap on a pair of their favorite yoga pants. The unflashy kind happens to be my favorite kind of dinner party. ;) You can whip up your favorite small bites, make a scrumptious dinner, and prepare your favorite cocktails. If you haven’t tried a dinner party of this sort, you are missing out and need to hop on that bandwagon ASAP!
This citrus ginger beer cocktail with candied lemon slices is my latest favorite cocktail. I have a soft spot for beer in cocktails. This should come as no surprise. It really adds a whole different (yet amazing) vibe to cocktails, and when done right, the flavors can’t be matched. This cocktail celebrates some of my favorite ingredients. It starts with a muddle of sugar, bourbon, rosemary, and ginger. Pale ale beer, orange juice, and lime juice are then added to the mix along with the star of the show: 7UP. You definitely need a good amount of carbonation in this drink. It will give it a punch-like quality and 7UP has the oomph of flavor that can stand up to the other demanding ingredients in this cocktail.
Beer There are a few reasons I decided to go with a pale for this cocktail. Pale ales tend to hold up really well in cocktails. You can maintain the integrity of the pale ale without having it overpower the rest of the ingredients. Pale ales tend to be slightly hoppy, but no where near as hoppy as say an IPA. An IPA in this cocktail would absolutely destroy this cocktail. It would take away from the other ingredients. That’s why a pale ale works so perfectly. You get hops, but not a TON of hops.
When picking out your pale ale, I would go with the citrusy variety. A pale ale that has been brewed with citra hops is a good place to start. It will really compliment the citrus and 7UP in the drink, and it will add a whole new dimension of flavor!
Citrus Ginger Beer Cocktail with Candied Lemon Slices
Serves 1
Justine
Prep time = 1 hour of chilling time for lemon slices
1 hr, 10 Prep Time
15 minCook Time
1 hr, 25 Total Time
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Ingredients
- 2 lemons, sliced in 1/4 inch slices
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup water
- 1/4 cup lemon juice
- 2 ounces premium bourbon
- 1 teaspoon grated ginger
- 1 teaspoon granulated sugar
- 4 rosemary leaves
- 1/2 cup 7UP
- 1/2 cup pale ale beer
- 2 ounces freshly squeezed orange juice
- 1 1/2 ounce freshly squeezed lime juice
Instructions
- To a deep skillet, add the sugar, water and lemon juice. Bring to a gentle simmer and whisk until the sugar dissolved. Add the lemons in a single layer and simmer for 15 minutes, flipping them once at 7 minutes 30 seconds. Remove from heat and transfer the lemons to a parchment paper-lined plate. Refrigerate for about an hour to chill before serving.
- In the canister of your cocktail shaker, add the bourbon, ginger, sugar, and rosemary. Muddle the ingredients to blend and meld together. Add the 7UP, pale ale beer, orange juice, and lime juice. Add a little ice and place the lid of the shaker on top. Shake vigorously for about 10 seconds and then pour into glasses, garnished with candied lemon slices.
Notes
Recipe for cocktail makes 1. Recipe for candied lemon slices makes about 12.
