A beermosa is the perfect way to highlight the virtues of fruit flavored craft beer. Read on for ideas and inspiration and wow everyone at your next brunch! (Beermosa season is once again upon us = this post had to be spotlighted:)
Original publish date May 10, 2017.
My favorite brunch cocktail is the beermosa – hands down. I like to have a Bloody Mary with burgers and grilled fare right before I switch to a crisp, cold pilsner or helles, but not with brunch foods. Brunch is best enjoyed with a beermosa or three. I’m particular like that:)
Mimosas made with beer effortlessly stand their ground against the classic cocktail. Nothing against it, I’ve savored plenty of those in my life but because craft beer can have so many amazing flavor profiles beermosas can surpass all expectations.
There is also the added benefit of a beermosa not being overly sweet and containing less alcohol than the traditional mimosa. Unless you make your mimosa with just a splash of bubbly and all OJ… I hope not! Usually though, I can have more than one two beermosas with brunch and that makes me happy.
Beermosas are typically made with a wheat beer, whether a German weissbier, a Belgian wit or even white IPA, taking advantage of the hints of orange zest characteristic of these styles. The effervescence and dry finish of wheat beers are perfect for the cocktail!
The abundant creativity in the craft beer world these days has rewarded us craft beering fans with so many other styles that are perfectly suited for beermosas. I selected two different styles for this post, but really, the possibilities are numerous.
Last week Chris brought me a blackberry gose brewed by Odell Brewing Co., which was simply delicious and would have been perfect for this post…However, they were out of it at out local store and it was pouring outside (flash flood warning kind of rainy day), so instead of driving around to find it somewhere else, I went with two other awesome brews.
I present to you the Blood Orange Gose brewed by Anderson Valley Brewing Co. (California) and the Raspberry Gulch Imperial Saison by Elevation Brewing Co. here in Colorado (we were just at the brewery last month, they have very cool stuff, a lot of Belgian styles).
The gose is tart (soured by lactobacillus), bubbly and refreshing and I could barely taste the salt and coriander because the citrusy flavors of the blood orange are dominant. The orange juice added some sweetness to it and it was simply a divine cocktail. Only 4.2% in terms of ABV, so pretty safe to savor a few.
As for the raspberry saison beermosa…the Raspberry Gulch name is followed by the word imperial, meaning boozy, brewed with double the ingredients. Almost twice as strong with ABV 8%, but still less than sparkling wine. I jokingly call this beer ‘raspberry juice for adults’ because it is so packed with raspberry flavor that it does taste like juice. Very little is sensed of the Belgian yeast esthers, but it is bone dry, so you know the yeast was at work.
When making beermosas you literally need a splash of OJ, no more. I simply covered the ice cubes I placed at the bottom of each glass with juice and that was enough.
For the gose beermosa I made dried hibiscus petals ice cubes (gorgeous coloring by the way, as soon as the water touched the tiny dry leaves) and for the saison I froze a few raspberries. You don’t really need ice cubes and can garnish with fresh fruit or whatever your creativity dictates.
I didn’t mention that the Raspberry Gulch has the prettiest pink color…but I don’t need to, do I? A gorgeous beer.
The Blood Orange gose did get a tiny bit of red color boost once the hibiscus ice cube started melting, but very slight…it was pretty much balanced by the OJ’s yellow, so all in all…blood orange.
Beermosa is a beautiful thing:) If you never had it before – do try!
Disclosure: I did have one while taking these pictures. It is part of my job description to taste everything I make on the spot.
Best Beer Styles for Beermosa
Before you venture into your own beer and orange juice mixing adventures, I wanted to leave you with this handy list of most suitable craft beer styles to make a good beermosa.
- Gose (clearly:)
- Saison (especially if fruit fermented like the raspberry one I used here)
- Belgian Witbier
- Belgian Trippel
- Belgian Golden Strong Ale
- Weissbier/Hefeweizen
- Berliner Weisse
- White IPA
- Hazy IPAs (NEIPA)
Explore more tasty craft beer cocktails.
- 2 12 oz fruit flavored craft beers (choose a style such as a gose (or another sour), saison, kolsh or wheat beer)
- fruit pieces or dried flower petals for garnish (make into ice cubes, optional)
- orange juice (to taste)
- Start by placing an ice cube (if using) at the bottom of a champagne glass, add a splash of OJ and fill with chilled craft beer. Enjoy!
10 Ingenious Ways to Have Craft Beer in the Morning
Other fruity craft beer cocktails you may enjoy:
Strawberry Sorbet Gose Margarita
Beermosa’s are a beautiful thing! Especially when sweet little flower petals can’t break away from the fun, either! Pretty pretty!!
Thank you, Annie!
I’ve had my fair share of mimosas but I’ve never had a beermosas, now I’m craving both of these beauties. The flavored ice cube is a great treat.
I am totally in the mood for brunchin’ this weekend and this beermosa is in order! We happen to have a blood orange in the fridge (saving it for some reason…guess cause they are so seasonal and so pretty). I think I’ve found the perfect use for it 😉 Happy weekend and cheers!
Thank you, Dawn! Enjoy brunching this weekend!
True confession time – me and regular mimosa’s steer clear of each other. Champagne is my nemesis, one sip and I’m a goner. Too much sugar for me. I don’t believe I’ve tried a beermosa before but it sounds ridiculously good and up my alley. Although I favor IPA I love trying craft beer in general so I’ll be on the lookout for the beer you choose in this post!
I hear you! I have never been able to handle champagne with grace. Only the super expensive ultra dry brut nature and unfortunately it is super expensive. Plus, ever since first tasting geueuze lambic beer I was completely convinced that I don’t necessarily need champagne:)
I’ve heard of beermosas before, but never actually had one (most likely due to my weakness for champagne). Love the idea of adding a little floral ice cube for some garnish. Thanks so much for sharing at the #happynowlinkup!
These are gorgeous! I come from a total mimosa-loving family so I’m excited to share this twist with them at our next holiday :). YUM! Have a great weekend, Milena!
Cheers to all mimosa and beermosa drinking people! Hope your family members like the twist:)