In defense of fruit beers: 5 reasons you should drink them


Fruit beers are popping up everywhere, and most guys immediate response is that they’re chicks beers. I don’t want to go all Jezebel on you, but that’s the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard. Here are five reasons you should be drinking fruit beer.

To be clear, I’m not sticking to just the BJCP category “fruit beer.” I’m talking any beer with fruit added to it – lambics, farmhouse ales, radlers and the like.

Fruit ≠ girly

In what world is fruit for chicks? The saying doesn’t go, “apple a day keeps the yeast infection away.” Our ancestors were picking berries long before Bear Grylls stuck his head in a dead zebra. Plus, those 100+ IBU Double IPAs you love so much? That’s right, not only do they taste like grapefruit (holy shit, a fruit!), they’re flavored with hops – a flower. Who’s girly now?

Brewers love drinking them

Taste is subjective, but much like I trust LeBron’s thoughts on quality basketball shoes more than a Pumps-wearing six-year-old version of myself, I trust brewers’ opinions of beer more than yours. It turns out brewers love fruit beers. Why do you think they make them? They aren’t the best sellers in the store, but it’s a chance to get creative and many of them are perfect for pairing with food.

They’re not all sugar sweet

Brewery Ommegang’s Three Philosophers is a perfect example of a sweet fruit beer, but you’d be hard pressed to convince anyone that the Quadruple Ale with cherries added isn’t a little slice of perfection. At the same time, part of the popularity of dumping a bushel of fruit in beer has been due to sour beers. Goose Island’s first batch of Halia included 32,000 lbs of peaches, and it was tart as could be after barrel-aging. Are you going to tell me that Sweet Tarts (and their over-sized chewy counterparts) aren’t one of the best candies ever made? We might have a problem.

They’re perfect in hot weather

It turns out it’s hot during the summer. Who knew? There’s something incredible about a fruit beer in the burning sun. Low alcohol offerings like Steigl Radler are much better than a cold glass of lemonade when working outside, and you can add a shot of vodka if you really need to get drunk on your lawn mower. Some extra citrus in a beer will also do wonders to keep you refreshed during an all day beach drinking session. I’m not going to be slugging a Shandy on Christmas Eve, but I’ll damn sure have one to celebrate Flag Day.

They’re delicious

All that matters at the end of the day is that a beer tastes good. I don’t care if it’s 2.5% ABV or 10%. Taste is taste. Last week I had Mikkeller SpontanCherry with lunch, and it was nothing short of amazing. New Glarus’ Wisconsin Belgian Red is probably their best beer. Quit trying to pretend like you’re too cool for fruit because you’re missing out on some of the best beers that have ever touched a glass.