It’s no surprise that beer and video gaming go hand-in-hand. Both tend to serve as a relaxant after a long day at work or during a stressful period. That being said, the combination has grown tighter over the years. “Barcades” have been birthed, official discussions on how beer and video games are perfectly matched have been written, and guides on the perfect pairings between game genres and types of beer have emerged on the internet.
In fact, it’s not just beer but booze in general that is highly compatible with gaming. People simply love pairing alcohol and video game culture together. Take a look at The Drunken Moogle, which has garnered a pretty large following. There are many mixologists there keen on creating a tasty alcoholic drink for all to enjoy during a gaming session (or just in general). Hell, there will soon be a cocktail book dedicated to The Drunken Moogle on shelves!
It just goes to show that alcohol and gaming make a wonderful couple. But for the sake of this article, let’s just focus on the beer. After all, it appears as if beer and video game culture are becoming closer knit, sealing the idea with…
Dare I say it?
Video game themed beers!
That’s right, the relationship has risen to the next level, bringing to the world a blend of sophisticated craftsmanship and video game culture. For awhile now, there have been video-game themed beers, but they have been targeted towards a more general gamer demographic. For instance, there exists The Red Ring of Death Irish Amber, which is brought to you by the Warped Brewing Company. This beer isn’t licensed, poking fun at the Xbox 360’s RRoD issues. Unfortunately, there doesn’t seem to be a bottled variety of the brew. Another example? The 8-bit Pale Ale, which celebrates the retro gaming days, but again, the ale isn’t partnered with a specific game company.
In fact, there haven’t really been official “partnered” beers dedicated to gamers until recently. I’m referring to the Fallout Beer, Call of Duty: Black Ops III Beer, Mortal Kombat X Beer, and Goliath Beer. And yes, the craftsmanship of each of these beers sound sophisticated enough to lure many non-beer drinkers into the world of beer-tasting. So let’s talk about each of these beers for a moment just to prove my point:
This Bethesda partnered-Carlsberg beer is inspired by Vault-Tec Industries and the Fallout franchise. Fallout Beer, being 4 percent alcohol by volume, is a pilsner lager (a type of pale lager), highlighted with “a refreshing zesty hoppy taste and a floral aroma.”
Sounds fancy, doesn’t it? Well, unfortunately, several owners of the beer haven’t been happy with the purchase. Here’s what a couple of reviewers have said about it:
“The beer itself is basically cat piss, it seems to taste worse than normal Carlsberg with the added bonus of becoming more and more bitter as you remember how much it cost you in the first place.”
“Bubbly and torn labels
Plan caps
Overpriced
Cheap looking
Plain box, would have expected some kind of cool packaging
Feel genuinely ripped off”
Pouring through these reviews, it can be assumed that this beer is a little half-assed during manufacturing, which leads to a point that will be discussed a tad later.
It turns out that Warner Bros., Sound Brewery, and Global Beverage Traders have recently partnered up to announce a series of beers based on Mortal Kombat X. Here are the three brews in the line, alongside the official descriptions:
Sub-Zero Imperial IPA – “Refreshingly cooling on a warm day, an Imperial India Pale Ale that’s not all about the hops or the malt but is a whole lot of both fighting it out for your palate’s supremacy. Drink icy for more of the hops or warmer for more malt. 8.5%”
Raiden Imperial Saison – “This amped up Imperial Saison has a blast of hops and CO2 that will hit your tongue with a bang. The aroma jumps out of the glass with its [earthy] and herbal notes not far behind. 8%”
Scorpion Imperial Stout – “A unique blend for great Imperial Stout brings both fire and ice into your glass. The fiery southwest chilies and cooling Madagascar Vanilla Bean pair nicely with the exotic notes produced by our own yeast strain. 8%”
They sound fancy, huh? Anyway, these 22oz bottles will be distributed through a “limited release,” crafted at the Sound Brewery in Poulsbo, Washington.
Could this franchise of beers potentially grow? Depending on how successful the line is, quite possibly. It would be awesome to see a beer based on every character from MKX.
Call of Duty: Black Ops III
Call of Duty: Black Hops III (ohohohoho) is a Black Pale Ale that has been crafted and distributed to celebrate the release of Call of Duty: Black Ops III. It’s a classic “American Pale Ale” that is crisp, light and refreshing with tantalizing hop aromas of pine and citrus fruit.” Additionally, they fused the ale with a specialty roasted wheat “to impart a deep rich black color without any of the harsh roast or bitter flavors that you might expect from a dark ale.” In other words, it’s just a pale ale painted Black. It’s currently in stock at BoozeBud, if you’re interested in trying it out, but the shipping is only limited to Australia. Sorry.
Ever heard of Goliath? If you haven’t then I won’t fault you for it, because the indie title didn’t take full advantage of marketing. Despite the lack of heavy marketing, Goliath has managed to earn quite a few positive ratings on Steam. Anyway, Octopus Tree Games and Minneapolis-based brewing company Dangerous Man recently partnered together to bring gamers the Goliath Experimental Double IPA to celebrate the launch of Goliath, a title where players build increasingly larger robots to destroy monsters all over the world. According to Rob Miller, Dangerous Man founder and head brewer:
“The beer is a hop bomb. We wanted to make a beer that was strong and powerful, much like the Goliaths in the game.”
What’s really awesome is that the brewery hosted a release party for the game on June 5, 2016. Talk about full support.
The way these brews are crafted is possibly the best aspect about video-game licensed beers. Because of the unique craftsmanship efforts, most of these beers bear a unique identity that are described by the ingredients and techniques used. This, in turn, creates an interesting variety of beer that gaming and beer-drinking connoisseurs can indulge in.
So will the “official” beer-and-gaming synergetic culture continue to grow? Hopefully, as long as video game-themed beers won’t be just a limited-time experience or partnered breweries/companies don’t half-ass the products. For now, we can definitely say that yes, the field is expanding, so hopefully we will see more sophisticated game-licensed beers in the near future.