Beer Cocktail: Southern Hospitality

Welcome to Hazard County, Kentucky, home to Bo and Luke Duke, a couple of moonshiners from a popular ‘80’s television show that made its way into the hearts of many!

But, this isn’t a TV blog and I didn’t come here to talk about that, so don’t get your Daisy Dukes in a knot; I’m getting to the beer cocktail!

Now, there are places in the South that may be known for its “White Lightning,” or moonshine which is the more common term, but that stuff can make you go blind if you get a bad batch. So in an effort to ensure the safety of your precious eyesight, I chose to put down the mason jar of questionable origin in favor of Kentucky’s legitimate contribution to the world of spirits: bourbon.

A quick search into beer cocktails will yield a multitude of articles on one of the oldest beer cocktails there is, the Boilermaker. Essentially, the Boilermaker is a beer and a shot of whisky. Often times the beer acts as a chaser to the shot, but the shot can also be dropped in with the beer, (known as a depth charge) and still bear the same name.

A friend of a friend of mine brews his own beer, and he was kind enough to lend a bottle of his homemade Cherry Stout to the cause of beer cocktails. The Boilermaker recipe doesn’t generally call for such a beer so I was excited to see what such a combo would taste like!

The recipe is a simple one. I poured the homemade Cherry Stout into a pint glass, added a shot of Maker’s Mark Kentucky Bourbon, and drank.

And for those who do not have access to homemade delicious brews, I also tried the same bourbon with a commercially brewed Cherry Fermented Ale, Cerise, by the Founders Brewing company!

The two beverages were polar opposites of one another. The sweet notes on the Maker’s Mark really complimented the heavy mouthfeel of the homemade cherry stout, culminating in a very unique beverage. It would be really easy to throw several of these back as they are a real “Sneaky Pete” in that they don’t taste like they contain as much alcohol as they actually do; so don’t go being a “Boss Hogg” with these drinks or you may find yourself “Waylon” your “Jennings” all over the place.

In the Cerise Cherry Fermented Ale, the whisky added sweetness to a drink that was already pretty darn sweet. So if you’re a big fan of sweet, this may be a beverage for you!

Now pairing food with this beer cocktail was easier than trying to get the cat back IN the bag!

With Kentucky as the setting and with my ongoing theme of an 80’s TV show that featured a greasy-fingered, chicken-eating protagonist, I went with Kentucky Fried goodness in the form of KFC!

With the Colonel wielding 11 herbs and spices, I was in Kentucky Fried bliss, and if that wasn’t enough to dill my pickles, I had two great beer cocktails to wash it all down!

So ring this Southern belle and listen (or taste rather) for yourself while you round up your good ol’ boys, and girls, and experience what this version of Southern hospitality is all about!