Beer Floats

Root beer floats are the bomb. Creamy, sweet, cold, and just enough bite to make things interesting.

Jim Rude, a professional food stylist specializing in ice cream, and I pulled this shot together after a full day of food videography and photography. If you are interested I put a post together on how we photographed this shot!

While not a typical after-dinner drink, root beer floats have a ton of potential to be your new go-to dessert beverage. Check out the fun combinations we made with gourmet Wisconsin ice creams and unique beers and liquors.

Everyone has their favorites, but for ice cream, we highly recommend Purple Door and Coolhaus for unique, delicious flavors. We selected some of our beers from local heroes. Check out Gray Brewing Co. out of Janesville, WI; Sprecher Brewing Co. out of Glendale, WI; and Smith & Forge Hard Cider, a MillerCoors cider.

I had a ton of fun experimenting with those basic components to create some adult versions of the root beer float. Pairing your favorite beers and liquors with ice cream takes a little trial and error. That’s why I did it for you!

That being said, it was a TASTY couple of hours. It could be a pretty great excuse to get your amateur mixologist friends together for an evening. Try out our recipes and experiment with your own. I’d love to hear about your successes (and failures!) in the comments below.

If you’re looking to plan a follow-up party, check out our article Infused Booze II, Return of the Cocktail. There you will find seven classic cocktails made with DIY infused liquors. If you enjoyed making these floats, you will LOVE these cocktails.

Booze and ice cream are two great reasons to not wait for a special occasion, create one!

Print Recipe

Beer Floats

Take a favorite childhood treat and reinvent it for your adult tastes!

Course: Beverage, Dessert, Drinks

Cuisine: American

Keyword: Beer, Beer Float, Ice Cream

Ingredients

Brandy Old Fashioned Float

• 1 scoop Purple Door brandy old fashioned ice cream
• 1 1/2 ounces Pre-mixed old fashioned cocktail liquor such as Boxer Brandy
• 1 Luxardo maraschino cherry
• 1 tsp Luxardo maraschino cherry juice
• 1 Orange peel
• 1/4 cup Cherry-flavored soda

Pumpkin Beer Float

• 1 scoop Purple Door cinnamon ice cream
• 10 ounces Gray's Pumpkin Head Beer Gray Brewing Co. Janesville, WI

Double Chocolate Stout Float

• 1 scoop Coolhaus chocolate molten cake ice cream
• 6 ounces Sprecher Imperial Stout

Salted Caramel Apple Ale Float

• 2 scoops Purple Door salted caramel ice cream
• 8 ounces Smith & Forge Hard Cider
• 1 ounce Caramel sauce

Whiskey Barrel Stout Float

• 1 scoop Purple Door vanilla ice cream
• 8 ounces Whiskey Barrel Stout

Instructions

Brandy Old Fashioned Float

• Muddle cherry and orange in a short snifter.
• Spoon ice cream into the snifter and pour the old fashioned liquor into the glass.
• Top with cherry soda and serve.

Pumpkin Beer Float

• Spoon ice cream into a tall mug.
• Slowly pour beer over ice cream and serve.

Double Chocolate Stout Float

• Spoon ice cream into a large glass.
• Slowly pour beer into the glass and serve.

Salted Caramel Apple Ale Float

• Spoon ice cream into a tall beer glass.
• Drizzle caramel over ice cream.
• Slowly pour beer into the glass and serve.

Whiskey Barrel Stout Float

• Spoon ice cream into a large beer glass.
• Slowly pour beer into glass and serve.