Barbecues and Beverages

Barbecues and Beverages

Barbecues and Beverages

What barbecue is complete without the icy cool beverages that wash down the hamburgers and the hot dogs? Which cookout plan has not involved at least some deliberation on the drinks, whether alcoholic or non-alcoholic?

The quintessential part of the southern barbecue is perhaps the sweetened iced tea. Flavored with lemon, lime, or mint, the iced tea continues to rule the roost as far as summer cookouts go. Add a fruity flavor and a unique color to the traditional iced tea this year by adding cranberry juice. Use your imagination and experiment with other fruit juices as well for a twist to the time-honored beverage. Lemonade is another all-timer, and its charm remains fresh whether you make it straight, or punched with an additional fruit juice or indeed, a shot of vodka. A way to add color and flavor to the lemonade is to add slices of fruit, such as strawberry to the drink.

If you want to forego the traditional lemonade for innovation this summer, try the smoothie -- combining fruits as diverse as blueberries strawberries, or even honeydew melon, pineapple, and pomegranate for interesting cool drinks.

For a lot of Americans, Memorial Day barbecues are incomplete without beer, and the choice revolves only around the beer to pick. Porters and heavy ales are best avoided at the barbecue. What works best is a lighter, crisper, warm weather beer. For a twist to the beer, try the "shandy" (an abbreviation of the "shandygaff"), a mixture of beer and ginger beer, ginger ale or lemonade. The shandy goes particularly well with lighter foods, such as poultry and seafood dishes.

Some cookout veterans swear by wine for the beverage. When picking wines, go for the lighter, more refreshing wines, Make sure they are chilled, of course. Low temperatures are key in the barbecue. For the adventurous, there is the option of turning out fruity summer cocktails using the flavors of passion fruit, mango, guava, and pineapple for the summer cookout. For a lot of cookout aficionados, sangria is the must-have.

A thought for the environment: a great deal is now being written and said about the virtues of using local and organic food and beverages for your consumption. With the growth of microbreweries, there are plenty of options for you to pick from. Also, organic beer is fast gaining popularity, so this could be your turn to contribute to the environment by using sustainable beverages this summer.

So when you cool off with your favorite beverage this summer, give the Earth a chance to chill too. Pick, local and organic it's good for us all!

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