This one is a simple recipe, folks. When I used to work in a call center in an earlier life, our beer Fridays took place in the break room next to the vending machines. Mixing beer and Skittles was a longtime college drinking trick that the older burnouts taught to us youngsters. We came to refer to them as skittlebräus.
I think it's a little out-of-fashion these days; stuff like Four Locos, Red Bull drop shots, and cocktails made with Jeremiah Weed or Red Stag all seem more popular with the party-drinking set.
The general concept is not unlike a shandy but does not lower the percentage of alcohol by volume in the same way most shandy recipes are intended to do.
Mixing Skittles and beer isn't a genius move under any circumstances, but there's a time and a place for it. I've always had much better results putting citrus fruit or orange bitters in beer instead.
Ingredients.
- Beer or any other malt beverage, preferably in a bottle. For best results, use light beer or American-Style lager.
- Skittles, optionally sorted by color.
Preparation.
Open the beer. Add Skittles to taste. You can let the drink sit (preferably on ice) or begin consuming it immediately.
So, what's the point of doing this, anyway?
Well...
Assume you like to drink but you don't much like the taste of beer.
Assume you like the taste of beer but all you have is something like Zima.
Assume you like the taste of beer but all you have is light beer.
Assume you're bored, and of college age.
Assume you've been playing poker for forfeits and have been using Skittles for chips.
Assume you're throwing a party for people just like you.
When you mix skittles and beer, three things will happen:
- The dyes in the candy coating start dissolving into the beer, changing its color. This gives the drink novelty.
- The sugars in the candy start dissolving into the beer, sweetening its flavor. This makes the drink more accessible, and let's face it, that's a good thing because you're probably drinking with amateurs.
- No Mentos and Diet Coke special effects here, but dropping Skittles into the bottom of the bottle accelerates the release of carbonation from the drink. This makes the drink easier to consume, at least until it goes flat. The Skittles tend to clump together at the bottom of the bottle, so they don't present much of a choking hazard.
If you're making these in advance for a party, just do 5-10 at a time, and consider keeping the bottles on ice. You're putting mass-market candy into mass-market beer, so classy probably has the night off, but nobody likes warm beer--at least not the kind you use to make skittlebräus.
This has been an entry in wertperch's nodeshell challenge. Like it says on the bottle, please drink responsibly.