Beer is about to get even more magically delicious.
Just in time for St. Patrick’s Day, the Smartmouth Brewing Company is putting nostalgia on tap by releasing an IPA that tastes just like the colorful marshmallows found in Lucky Charms cereal.
The Saturday Morning IPA — meant to take your taste buds on a journey back to your childhood, when you sat on the couch with a bowl of Lucky Charms in your lap while you watched Saturday morning cartoons — was brewed with house-toasted marshmallows and what the Virginia brewer describes as “cereal marshmallows” (without naming the brand) in the mash. The sweet concoction is then hopped and dry-hopped with Galaxy and Calypso hops.
The brewer describes the playful IPA as having a “soft pillow body with a slight cereal taste … designed to remind you of your childhood when you used to sort through bowls of your favorite breakfast cereal to separate the marshmallows from the cereal.” The brew boasts 6.6% ABV (alcohol by volume), with a nose that is sweet and citrusy, with orange and pear aromas.
And while it doesn’t mention Lucky Charms by name, the cans feature a wavy rainbow and marshmallows shaped like pink hearts, green clovers, purple horseshoes and red balloons that are nearly identical to those printed on the Lucky Charms cereal box. A spokesperson from General Mills GIS, +1.15% , which makes Lucky Charms, told MarketWatch it was unaware that its children’s cereal was being used in an adult beverage: “For more than 50 years, Americans of all ages have loved Lucky Charms and its magical marshmallows. Like you, we learned about this through the media.”
Don’t miss: 6 up-and-coming cities for craft beer lovers
The “very limited” release will only be available at the brewer’s Norfolk location this Saturday, however, where beer lovers who are still kids at heart can taste the breakfast brew beginning at noon. It will be available on tap or in four-packs. The brewer has yet to respond to a MarketWatch request for comment.
But Smartmouth Brewing Company’s social-media posts promoting the “magically ridiculous” IPA have whet many craft beer lovers’ appetites.
Actually, if I'm giving my candid opinion then the packaging is amazing! I do love Lucky charms cereal, I hate beer, but I would try that just to see what it tasted like. I'm pretty sure it wouldn't be that different from like the four Loko brand or other brands
— Melissa Stevens (@Illusionzllc) February 26, 2019
Finally. Now I don’t need to have a beer after I eat my lucky charms.
— Chad miner (@Chadminer75) February 26, 2019
Others weren’t buying into the buzz.
I can see Lucky Charms in chocolate milk or orange juice ....... but a hard pass on the beer. Ugh. https://t.co/6fe26yC0XH
— Jay Clemons (@ByJayClemons) February 26, 2019
Beer- I can't be more gross
Lucky Charms- Hold our beer... https://t.co/zWaCCdI34K
— Koreen (@Koreen68) February 26, 2019
This isn’t the first brewery to find some inspiration in the cereal aisle. California’s Brew Rebellion crafted its own Saturday Morning Cartoons beer, with flavors that have included a milk stout made with Fruity Pebbles, plus Cinnamon Toast Crunch, Apple Jacks and Cocoa Pebbles.
Brew Rebellion Saturday Morning Cartoons Cereal Breakfast Milk Stout. Brewed w/ Fruity Pebbles. That wax job... pic.twitter.com/GIXS4sgVZW
— Beer Street Journal (@BeerSTJournal) April 15, 2016
Turns out, Post’s Fruity Pebbles are a popular pick. Last summer, the Braman Winery & Brewery in Richmond, Texas, crafted a Fruity Pebbles Milkshake IPA. Ohio’s Homestead brewery previously made a Yabba Dabba Brew double IPA from the “Flintstones”-fronted cereal that features multicolored cereal bits. California’s Belching Beaver brewery tapped the same cereal (and Kellogg’s Froot Loops) for the It Goes Down in the A.M. Milkshake IPA.
It Goes Down In The AM, Milkshake IPA With Fruity Pebbles and Fruit Loops! #DamGoodTimes
