If you’ve never chased a long day with a beer and a shot, you might not be working hard enough. The combo, known as a boilermaker, has murky origins but has become a go-to order for bartenders post-shift and revelers who want to start the night off with a bang. And while the best-known partners are a cold beer and a shot of whiskey, these days adventurous drinkers are calling for less commonplace spirits and brews that taste more than just cold.
Boilermaker orders are definitely bound by personal preference, but we’ve asked bartenders who’ve sampled more than a few pairings to share which they think are the absolute best. Whether you take the shot first, sip the spirit slowly, or even combine the two drinks (there is no one right way to do it), next time you’re in the mood for a boilermaker, try one of these bartender-recommended combinations.
The best combinations for boilermakers, according to bartenders:
- Miller High Life and Chartreuse or Agwa de Bolivia
- Belgian-style Tripel and Calvados
- Twisted Tea and well whiskey
- Rosé cider and blanco tequila
- Coors Light smoothie and raspberry eau de vie
- Aval Blanc cider and Armagnac
- Farm.One Lager and Umenoyado Green Tea Umeshu
- Guinness and Ron Zacapa rum
- Bräuweisse Ayinger and J.P. Wiser’s 10-year
- Michelada and mezcal
- White wine and blanco tequila
- Tecate and tequila
- Sapporo and Toki Japanese whisky
- Budweiser and an Amaro Rusty Nail
- Rice lager and mezcal
- Orion Lager and Toki Japanese whisky
“Miller High Life and green Chartreuse! The ultimate move is to add it to your High Life bottle after you take a few swigs. A lowbrow version of that would be Miller High Life and Agwa, which is a green, Bolivian coca leaf liqueur distilled in Amsterdam — another great combo.” —Libby Lingua, owner and operator, Highball, Phoenix
“Highbrow: A dram of Calvados (my secret favorite spirit, an aged apple brandy from Normandy, France) paired with a Belgian-style tripel like Vista Brewing’s Middle Trinity or Real Ale Devil’s Backbone. A little bit heavy and maybe better suited for fall, but the flavor pairing is sublime. Low(ish)brow: A shot of a nice blanco tequila with a rosé cider (like the Tin City Poly Dolly or Shacksbury’s rosé cider). I don’t drink a ton of cider, but some of the rosé brews made with wine yeasts are really interesting and I love the grapefruit and red fruit notes that pair beautifully with a bold, bright blanco tequila.” —Jessica Sanders, owner and operator, DrinkWell, Austin
“Twisted Tea and a shot of bad well whiskey. Why? Because after a long shift of serving people freezer Martinis I want my sweet little drink. Plus, after a few rounds, I’m ready to slay karaoke.” —Kam Dixey, bartender, Chin Up Bar, New York City
“The ONLY way to unwind after a long day at the office is with an ice cold CL Smoothie (Coors Light if you’re on the couch, Cuties Light from our buds at Goodfire Brewing if you’re here at the bar) and a wee cheeky pour of St. George Raspberry Eau de Vie. Something about those tiny adjunct lager bubbles makes that beautiful berry booze sing — light beer and fruit brandy forever.” —Garrett Lenderman and Bryce Summers, partners, Cuties, Portland, Maine
“Aval Blanc cider and Armagnac. We use Château de Millet VS at Later Bye.” —Daniel Johnson, bartender, Later Bye, Oklahoma City
“At Oddball, we carry a crisp, herbaceous beer from Farm.One called Yellow Leaves & Gossamer, a lager brewed with lemon basil grown in their vertical farm system. Alongside it, we pour Umenoyado Green Tea Umeshu, an infused plum wine that is aromatic, floral, and ever so slightly tannic, coming in at just 8 percent ABV. It’s a boilermaker made for a bright, sunny day.” —Logan Rodriguez, beverage director, Oddball, NYC
“For my personal taste, it will be a half-pint of Guinness with a shot of Ron Zacapa 23. I really love the combination of coffee and chocolate tasting notes from both Guinness and Ron Zacapa rum. It will be the perfect nightcap to end the evening.” —Dicky Hartono, beverage manager, Firefly Bar at Sindhorn Kempinski Hotel Bangkok, Thailand
“Pair a shot of J.P. Wiser’s 10-year with a Bräuweisse Ayinger. The beer has those classic hefeweizen traits, ripe banana, clove, and a soft bready wheat base, along with carbonation that keeps everything feeling bright and refreshing — it helps reset your palate after each sip of whisky. On the other side, Wiser’s brings in richer notes of caramel, vanilla, and brown sugar with just enough spice from the oak to keep it from feeling too sweet. When you go back and forth between the two, the beer actually lifts those sweeter whisky notes and makes them feel more expressive, while the whisky deepens the banana and clove spice in the beer.” —Tara Wong, head bartender, Gilly’s Clubhouse and Saksey’s, Detroit
“I love a Michelada and mezcal. That’s an entire meal: the Michelada provides my carbs, my vegetables, and spices and the mezcal provides vitamins” —Kristine Gutierrez, partner and general manager, KABIN, NYC
“Hands down the best combination is a pour of blanco tequila next to a glass of crisp white wine — a match made in heaven! It’s a delight all year round, though it ‘slaps’ even harder in the warm summer months, as you could imagine. The recipe was passed down to me from local bartending legends, and I’m here to testify — I’ve seen the light!” —Judson Winquist, co-founder, Normandie, Portland, Ore.
“My go to boilermaker combo is kind of basic but it has to be a Tecate and a shot of tequila. It takes me back to my first days as a 21-year-old in NYC. I used to (and still do) frequent Mother’s Ruin for their dressed Tecate. Hot sauce, salt, and lime with a shot of tequila to wash it all down: the New York Michelada. A slice of the beach in this big city.” —Justin Palaceo, head bartender, Fish Cheeks, NYC
“Toki and Sapporo, a classic Japanese duo.” —Sarah Boliek, hospitality and events manager, Takibi, Portland, Ore.
“Generally, it’s hard to beat a cold beer served alongside something intensely bitter like Fernet Branca or a full-flavored whiskey. My all-time favorite boilermaker is an ice-cold Budweiser on tap, served in a frozen mug so a light ice cap forms as it’s poured, paired with our Amaro Rusty Nail (equal parts Scotch, Drambuie, and Sfumato Rabarbaro) pulled straight from the freezer and served in a frozen shot glass. Freezer temp is king when it comes to the boilermaker.” —Robby Dow, owner and beverage director, Bespoke, Wilmington, N.C.
“Mezcal and a rice lager: one is flavorful, complex, and everything you want in a shot and then something cool, crisp, light, and simple to refresh your palate.” —Jonathan Adler, beverage director, Shinji’s, NYC
“Our ‘Ichi-Mas’ at Katana Kitten is my favorite. Pair Orion Okinawan Lager with a shot of cold Toki Japanese whisky and serve with a side of seasonal fruit sprinkled with shichimi salt — all of our guests have been loving this combo since we first opened! To me, there is truly nothing better than sipping a cold beer, taking a shot of cold Japanese whisky, eating the shichimi salted fruit, and washing it down with cold beer all over again.” —Masa Urushido, founder and director of deliciousness, Katana Kitten, NYC
