Grapefruit Radler
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Last summer I discovered the Grapefruit Radler drink. They seem to fly off the shelves here in Portland, especially on hot days, and for a good reason, it’s very refreshing. I’m not a big fan of soda-like drinks or coolers or whatever, but this is exceptional. Radlers (or Summer Shandy made with lemonade) are quite popular in Germany and Austria. It’s simply a neutral beer combined 50/50 with a sparkling citrus. The one I attempted to make is Stiegl-Radler, an Austrian brand. I initially tried to make it with a Hefeweizen beer, but the flavor of the beer was too strong, it tasted like a Hefe with grapefruit juice and syrup, the flavors just didn’t blend well. The Stiegl brand lists the ingredients as 40% Stiegl Goldbräu, 60% fruit soda. Goldbräu is an Oktoberfest beer, which is not so easy to find in April, so I bought their brand of beer since I wanted to get as close to the Stiegl-Radler as possible. Basically you want use a lager beer so there might be other brands that are just as suitable. Feel free to play around with the ratios but I felt this was pretty close to what I was trying to achieve. I think you’ll like this bright and refreshing drink that tastes like summertime. Cheers!
Grapefruit Radler
- 5 ounces Grapefruit Juice
- 1 ounce Simple Syrup
- 6 ounces Club Soda
- 12 ounces Lager Beer (Stiegl Gold is a good option)
- Grapefruit Wedges To Garnish
(makes 2 drinks)
Combine the juice, simple syrup and club soda in a container, then divide between two glasses. Add 6 ounces of beer to each glass, give a stir and garnish with grapefruit wedges.
