- houseofbeer.com
Originating in Britain about 200 years ago, the shandy is composed of some kind of citrus soda or juice, usually mixed with a pale ale beer. Later, the mixture included lemonade and ginger beer. There are variations, but citrus and beer (even non-alcoholic beer) are typically present. The Beastie Boys' hit track Brass Monkey refers to a drink that is an offshoot of the shandy (arguably) containing orange soda and some sort of liquor.
We got a package in the mail from the House of Beer Company that contained a bottle of its Curious Traveler Shandy, a pint glass, and several fake mustaches. Once the beer was chilled, and fake mustaches applied, I started the official tasting. I should say, I'm not one to spout the greatness of pre-mixed and pre-packaged drinks, but the Curious Traveler is a little different in that it is an ale brewed with lemon peel. There's no pre-mixing here.
This article appears in Aug 23-29, 2012.