Cider and Stout, Upside Down #recipe

This is an unusual drink idea, and one that actually works. Not quite ‘Lager and Lime,’ but much better.

We used a milk stout rather than the original Guinness, because a) the store was out of Guinness, and b) it’s nicer. Any dark beer will do, and lactose-intolerant people probably shouldn’t use a milk stout.

Stout and cider are about the same density, so layering them is rather difficult. Except if you know the trick. You need to increase the density of the cider. Bar tenders probably do this with ‘neutral syrup’ (i.e. a dense sucrose solution) or even (gag) corn syrup. We used honey. Much better.  You could use table sugar, but be prepared to lose most of the carbonation because all those little crystals will nucleate bubbling.

So, without further ado, here’s how to make them.

1. mix 1 teaspoon of honey with about 1/3 bottle of cider. We did this with a single wooden chopstick. Save the chopstick because you’ll need it for step 2.
2. Use the chopstick to pour a layer of stout over the cider. Put one end of the chopstick just above the cider and slowly pour the stout down it. (just like you did with solutions in chem lab. Didn’t take chem lab? You missed something worth the time). As the amount of stout in the glass increases, gradually raise the stick keeping it out of the solution. The middle glass in the picture shows what happens when you rush it, so don’t.
3. Enjoy.