5 Delicious Beer Milkshake Recipes?

I hope you read the title of this post like Ron Burgundy, because that’s exactly how I wrote it. Beer milkshakes? I’m so not sure.

I love beer. I love milkshakes. On paper, this should be the best thing that’s ever happened. In real life, however, I find myself obsessively intrigued, but uncharacteristically skeptical. 

For what it’s worth, John Steinbeck agrees with me. After a San Francisco Gate piece on beer milkshakes, a reader sent author Paolo Lucchesi a literary tip that Steinbeck waxes about the merits of a beer milkshake in his 1945 novel Cannery Row. The thoughts of one character, Doc, perfectly summarize what I’m thinking:

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“Blaisedell, the poet, had said to him, “You love beer so much. I’ll bet some day you’ll go in and order a beer milk shake.” It was a simple piece of foolery but it had bothered Doc ever since. He wondered what a beer milk shake would taste like. The idea gagged him a bit but he couldn’t let it alone. It cropped up every time he had a glass of beer. Would it curdle like milk? Would you add sugar? It was like a shrimp ice cream. Once the thing got into your head you couldn’t forget it.”

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For me, the obsession started when Mr. Williford told me about Red Robin’s Blue Moon Beer Shake. If you’ve got $6.49 burning a hole in your pocket, you can venture out to your local ‘Robin and enjoy a creamy frozen cocktail that combines vanilla soft serve with orange juice, Cointreau orange liqueur and Blue Moon Belgian White beer.

This could either be really bad, or really incredible, and I’m not really sure which. Are there other beer milkshakes out there in the world? I mean, a stout (like Guinness) can make a mean cupcake, and it might make for a pretty good milkshake, too. 

It turns out beer milkshakes are kind of a thing, at least in some small places of the internet. And I found some recipes that actually sound pretty damn tasty. I don’t know when exactly I’ll get a beer milkshake craving, but when I do, here’s five that I would go for. 

One

Samuel Adams Cherry Wheat Milkshake
Vanilla ice cream, plus one of my favorite summer beers. RECIPE →

Two

Klondike Beer Shake
Just whole Klondike bars blended together with a stout or brown ale. RECIPE →

Three

Guinness Double Chocolate Malted Milkshake
With Bailey’s Irish (whipped) Cream. RECIPE →

Four

Cherry Lambic Beer Milkshake
Lambics have a unique taste that could make a great shake. RECIPE →

Five

Blackberry Basil Belgian Ale Milkshake
A pairing I’d never think of, but desperately need to try now. RECIPE →

 

Has anyone out there tried the Blue Moon milkshake at Red Robin? How is it?