Cupid’s Cooler: Charlotte Beers for Your Valentine
A six-pack of Charlotte-area beers that’ll put you in the mood for love
Beer can be romantic, too. Courtesy of some Charlotte-area breweries, we have a few suggestions—i.e., 16-ounce aluminum cans of beer—to gas up your night with that special somebody. (“Gas” in the preceding sentence is deliberately ambiguous. Results may vary.)
Carolina Cobbler pastry sour, Blueberry, ABV: 6%
Divine Barrel has peach, apple, and mixed-berry versions, too, but blueberry’s the choice of Sales Manager James Amato. “Who needs chocolate-covered strawberries when you can enjoy a glass of this playful pastry sour complete with ripe blueberries, vanilla, marshmallow, graham cracker, and cinnamon?” James says via email. “Skip dessert and come home to enjoy it in the form of a nightcap!”
Courtesy
Frosted Cranberry Grenade, Fruited gose, ABV: 4.9%
Primal Brewery, Huntersville and Belmont
“This unique ale brings together tangy cranberries and a dash of raspberry, making it the ideal date-night drink—light, crisp, and refreshingly effervescent,” emails Paige Steimel, Primal’s office manager and event planner. “With its rosy hue and frosty finish, it’s as charming as a bouquet and as lively as a good laugh shared together. Whether cozying up for a quiet evening or toasting to love, this gose adds the perfect blend of festivity and flair to make the night memorable.” (We encouraged folks to have fun with this.)
Fat Boy Baltic Porter, ABV: 8.3%
Provocative! “Sometimes, the best things come with a bit of unexpected charm—and that’s exactly what you get with OMB’s Fat Boy Baltic Porter!” says Amelia Herbert, OMB’s brand manager. “This decadent brew is wrapped with sweet notes of caramel, toffee, dark fruit, and chocolate. Not your typical ‘sexy’ name, but who says Valentine’s Day has to be all heart-shaped and delicate?”
Home Is Where the Heart Is, Fruited sour, ABV: 6%
High Branch Brewing, Concord and Mooresville
This one’s from Kirk Werth, the general manager. It contains blueberry, raspberry, cinnamon, and vanilla. There’s a heart on the label. Self-explanatory.
Lightning Drops New England hazy IPA, ABV: 6.5%
Riding for the Feeling Italian pilsner, ABV: 5%
Sometimes, you love more than one, and you can’t decide. Dangerous yet relatable. The good folks at Resident Culture selected two, which rounds out the six-pack. Lightning Drops, its flagship IPA, is “for those rare, electric moments when lightning strikes … the perfect pour for when sparks fly,” emails co-founder and CEO Amanda McLamb. As for Riding for the Feeling … oh, behave. “Plus, Italian pilsner,” Amanda notes. “It’s basically a beer romance language.”
