Brunch is easily the best part of the weekend. It’s the perfect time to catch up with friends and makes an easy excuse for day drinking. This weekend, you could stick with the classic brunch cocktails (the Bloody Mary, the Mimosa, the Bellini) to pair with your pancakes and eggs benedict or if you’re in the mood to switch things up, give one of these beer based cocktails a try. They’re light and refreshing so they perfectly offset the richness of those eggs.

The Brass Monkey

  • The Brass Monkey4 oz orange juice
  • 12 oz wheat beer (such as UFO or Allagash White)
  • garnish with angostura bitters
  • Pour orange juice into a chilled pint glass. Add beer slowly. Garnish with a few drops of bitters.

The Ginger Shandy

The Ginger Shandy

  • 4 oz ginger Beer
  • 6 oz pale ale (such as Captain Lawrence Freshchester Pale Ale)
  • garnish with candied ginger
  • Pour ginger beer into a rocks glass filled with ice. Add beer slowly. Garnish with candied ginger on a pick.
  • You can substitute ginger ale but look for one that’s not too sweet like Bruce Costes.

The Pamplette

The Pamplette

Get the latest in beer, wine, and cocktail culture sent straight to your inbox.
  • 1 ½ oz grapefruit juice
  • ¾ oz lemon juice
  • ¾ oz    st. germain elderflower liqueur
  • 4 oz pilsner
  • garnish with a grapefruit twist
  • Pour first three ingredients into a wine glass half filled with ice. Add beer slowly. Garnish with grapefruit twist.

The Michelada

The Michelada

  • 4 oz india pale ale (such as Lagunitas IPA)
  • 4 oz tomato juice
  • ½ oz lime juice
  • 1 tsp sriracha (or your favorite hot sauce)
  • ¼ tsp celery salt
  • ¼ tsp fresh black pepper
  • ¼ tsp togarashi (this Japanese spice is optional)
  • rimming salt
  • Salt rim of a rocks glass. You can use sriracha salt or your favorite rimming salt. In a pinch, cayenne pepper mixed with salt is an easy homemade alternate option to sriracha salt.
  • Fill the rocks glass with ice. Add all ingredients except for the beer. Give a gentle stir to combine all ingredients and taste before adding the beer. Add beer slowly. Serve immediately.