Beer floats and ice cream with stout and fruit beer

Why stout and ice cream work

Stout brings roast, coffee and dark chocolate flavours from roasted barley and dark malts. Vanilla ice cream brings cream, sugar and vanilla. Put them together and you get something close to an affogato or a chocolate milkshake with a grown-up edge.

The pairing works on two levels. The flavours complement each other: roast and vanilla are an old combination in desserts. The textures contrast: the carbonation lightens the cream and the cold softens the beer's bitterness. The roast bitterness also stops the ice cream tasting cloying, which is why a float feels lighter than it should.

Choosing the stout

Different stouts give very different floats:

• Dry Irish stout (around 4 to 4.5% ABV): light, roasty and the closest to a classic root beer float. A good starting point.
• Milk stout (around 4 to 6%): lactose makes it sweeter and creamier, so the float tastes like a malted milkshake.
• Oatmeal stout: silky body, gentle sweetness, very forgiving.
• Coffee stout: the obvious affogato match with vanilla or coffee ice cream.
• Imperial stout (8 to 12%): intense and boozy. Use a small glass and a single scoop. Treat it as a rich dessert in its own right.

If you want to find a good local stout, our city guides, such as where to drink stout in Mumbai, are a place to start.

Fruit beer floats and sorbets

Fruit beers open up a lighter, summery version. A Belgian kriek (sour cherry) or framboise (raspberry) with vanilla ice cream tastes like a cherry or raspberry sundae with a tart edge. A raspberry wheat beer with lemon or raspberry sorbet makes a bright, refreshing glass.

Match intensity. A delicate fruit wheat beer suits a sorbet or a single scoop of vanilla. A sour kriek can take richer ice cream because its acidity cuts through cream. Our guide to telling real fruit from flavouring helps you pick fruit beers that taste of actual fruit.

Pairing ice cream on the side

You do not have to drop the scoop in. Serving a small glass of beer beside a bowl of ice cream is a cleaner way to taste both.

• Chocolate ice cream: imperial stout or a Baltic porter.
• Coffee ice cream: coffee stout or a brown ale.
• Salted caramel: a Scotch ale or a barley wine in a small pour.
• Mango or lychee: a fruit wheat beer or a hazy pale ale with tropical hops.
• Kulfi with pistachio and cardamom: a sweet stout, or a Belgian dubbel whose dark fruit flavours suit cardamom.

The rule from dessert pairing applies: the beer should be at least as sweet as the dessert. A dry, bitter IPA next to chocolate ice cream will taste sharp and thin.

How to build a float without a foam disaster

Beer foams hard when it hits ice cream. The rough surface of the ice cream gives CO2 thousands of places to form bubbles, the same reason a mint dropped into cola erupts. A few tricks keep it under control:

1. Chill the glass in the freezer for ten minutes.
2. Put the scoop in first, then tilt the glass.
3. Pour the beer slowly down the side, not onto the ice cream.
4. Pause to let the foam settle, then top up.

A 300 ml glass with one generous scoop and about 200 ml of beer is a good ratio. Serve with a spoon and a straw.

Serving temperature and timing

Beer for floats should be cold, around 4 to 6 °C, so the ice cream does not melt instantly. Beer served beside ice cream can be a little warmer, 8 to 12 °C for stouts, so its flavours come through against the cold dessert.

Make floats to order. They are at their best in the first five minutes, while the scoop is still firm and the foam is fresh. A float left for twenty minutes becomes a warm, flat milkshake.

A dessert for adults, served sensibly

A float made with imperial stout can hold more alcohol than people expect from a dessert. Use smaller glasses for strong beers and keep floats to one per guest after a meal. For anyone not drinking, a non-alcoholic stout makes a surprisingly good float. A root beer float is the original.

Your first step is the simplest dessert you will ever make. Buy one dry stout and one tub of good vanilla ice cream. Make one float and pour a small glass of the same stout beside a scoop. Taste both and decide whether you prefer the beer in the ice cream or next to it.

Common questions

What beer is best for a beer float?

A dry stout or milk stout with vanilla ice cream is the classic. Fruit beers like kriek work well for a lighter, tart version.

How do I stop a beer float foaming over?

Chill the glass, add the ice cream first and pour the beer slowly down the side of a tilted glass. Pause and top up.

Can I use IPA for a float?

It is not ideal. Strong hop bitterness clashes with sweet ice cream. Mango sorbet with a hazy, low bitterness pale ale can work.

Is there a non-alcoholic option?

Yes. A non-alcoholic stout makes a good float. A root beer float is the original non-alcoholic version.