Gingered Pumpkin Beer Shandy

Is it too soon for a weekend cocktail?

Am I the only one who feels that Thursday is the new Friday? I am SO in “weekend mode” by the time Thursday rolls around, and I find myself treating it like an extension of the weekend, almost like Friday doesn’t even exist. I want all the wine. And pizza. I can’t be alone. Tell me I’m not.

Regardless, I think we’re all deserving of a drink come this time of the week. And one that comes together SO easily that you’ll actually want to make it. How many times have you guys seen the most beautiful, mouth-watering photos of a cocktail and decided that you were making it as soon as possible, come hell or high water, only to then discover just how many different bottles of booze were required to actually make it. Or, how the recipe calls for you to make your own shrub or infused syrup. Ain’t nobody got time for that when a cocktail is in dire need!

I can’t even count how many times this has happened to me. Pinterest alone makes me feel like the most inadequate mixologist.

Don’t get me wrong. I love craft cocktails and have made my fair share of them at home (and shared the worthwhile ones with you here), but sometimes, I want something as easy as pouring a glass of wine. Something that doesn’t require any extra work after a long week of, well, WORK. Know what I mean?

If so, I’ve got you covered. This pumpkin shandy is SO simple to make. Really, we’re just pouring three ingredients into a glass with ice and stirring. That’s it. Oh, and if you do want to make things extra special (and even more delicious), we’re rimming the glasses in a spiced sugar. But that takes hardly any effort at all and is totally worth doing.

And it’s festive and fun! We’ve got pumpkin beer going on, which just screams October, along with the warm spiciness of ginger. It’s fall in a glass, I tell ya. But to lighten things up a bit and keep it refreshing, I went in the direction of a shandy.

I love shandies. They’re so light and refreshing and citrusy. And this one is no different. I used a pumpkin ale here, and I think it worked fabulously with the ginger beer and liqueur. You could really taste the ginger! Some pumpkin beers, while delicious, are heavier and actually taste like pie. I don’t know that those will work here. Something on the lighter side is best. We’re mixing in fresh citrus after all. Like, I’m not sure pumpkin pie and lemon are a good match.

This shandy has it all going on. Pumpkin spice, the warmth of ginger, and the light effervescence of citrus. All topped off with the cutest spiced sugar rim.

And it only takes a couple minutes to put together!

What more could you want?

Gingered Pumpkin Beer Shandy

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• Yield: 2 drinks, easily multiplied 1x

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Ingredients

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For Rimming the Glasses:

• 1 lemon wedge
• ½ cup sugar
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg

For the Shandy:

• Ice
• 1 (12-oz) bottle pumpkin ale
• 1 (12-oz) bottle ginger beer
• 2 oz ginger liqueur
• Orange slices
• Lemon slices

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Instructions

For Rimming the Glasses:

1. Mix together the sugar and spices in a shallow bowl or plate. Run the lemon wedge around the rims of two pint glasses and then dip the rim into the spiced sugar to evenly coat.

For the Shandy:

1. Fill the glasses with ice.
2. Divide the pumpkin and ginger beers evenly between the two glasses.
3. Top each glass off with an ounce of the ginger liqueur. Use a straw or spoon to gently mix everything together.
4. Garnish with lemon and orange slices and serve immediately.