Beer Slushie (Sorbet For The Fancy Types)

[Mickey]

Warm day today which made me remember something:

It was a hot day last summer and cold beer just wasn't cutting the heat. Wife and I looked at the ice cream maker and thought.. "works with wine, why not?" So we dumped some cold, dark beers into it and let it rip. Voila, perfect beer slushies that truly beat the heat!

This can be a lot of fun with mixed drinks too without having to dilute them in a blender with ice.

[Cowher]

Interesting idea. What beer did you use? I bet a nice chocolate stout would be tasty.

[TurboKittie]

Ooooh, I'll bet that would be good with a chocolate stout!

If I remember right, this one was made with a Beck's dark, which had a nice flavor and didn't get terribly bitter when it was that cold.

[Slowburn]

Is the bittering of beer a problem when chilled in such a way? I would think that all the rules applied here and it would actually loose taste due to the taste BUDS being chilled. I love the idea.

[Mickey]

Depends on the beer and your taste. If you prefer a certain brew warm rather than cold, then you don't want to do this with it. Lagers generally work better than ales, for obvious reasons, but occasionally you get surprised. Sometimes good, sometimes not. The bitterness is increased across the board so unless you enjoy really hopped up beer, be careful. We did this with an English bitter, and it was really bad. Turned a good beer into a really potent IPA type.

Fruity beers and wheats are excellent almost across the board. If you like em cold, this is great. Also fun with meads.

[macshorty]

I guarantee that a Lindeman's Framboise would make for an awesome smoothie! As would any of the Lambic ales.