Bitters and Beer

Why should bitters and soda have all the fun?

Of all the things we learned while creating All The Bitter, the most surprising was how well bitters and beer go together. The concept isn't entirely novel, though. In France, several bitter liqueurs exist specifically to be added to beer, and they're wildly popular—Amer Picon, one of the most iconic, dates back to the 1830s!

Think of cocktail bitters as a seasoning, like salt and pepper; they add flavor, spice, depth, and complexity. They enhance certain components of a drink, highlight elements that were hiding, and tone down sweetness. It only makes sense, then, to add them to beer as well as cocktails!

We enjoy bitters most in light beers—think Bud Light (or Bud Zero), Heineken (or Heineken Zero)—where they present more of a blank canvas for the flavors of the specific bitter. But this trick works great in all kinds of beers! Try our Orange bitters in wheat beers, Aromatic bitters in an IPA or Stout, and our New Orleans bitters in pilsners.

Bitters and Beer

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Category

Non-Alcoholic Cocktail / Low-Alcohol / Zero Proof / Mocktail

We use bitters to season cocktails, so why not beer, too?! Trust us, it's shockingly good.

Author:

All The Bitter

Ingredients

• 3-4 dashes of All The Bitter

• 1 12-ounce beer

Directions

1. Add 3-4 dashes of your choice of bitters to the bottom of a pint glass.

2. Pour a 12-ounce beer overtop. (If necessary stir briefly to incporporate.)

Recipe Note

Start with 3 dashes of bitters in a 12-ounce beer but add more (or less) depending on your preference. Experiment with different flavors of bitters in different beers! Light beers (like Busch, PBR, Heineken, Bud Light/Zero, etc.) work well with most bitters as they're a more neutral flavor and will accept the flavor of your bitter willingly. Orange bitters are fantastic in wheat beers, Aromatic bitters are great in porters, stouts, and IPAs, and our New Orleans bitters are wonderful in light lagers and sours.