Our Top 5 Beers for Mardi Gras

Hey it’s Carnival time! Time for king cakes, parades, and putting off New Year’s resolutions until Lent…and that means drinking more beer. Not that we’re giving up beer for Lent, but Mardi Gras just gives us a reason to drink more. Just kidding, we don’t actually need a reason at all!

So here are our suggestions to fill your rolling coolers this Mardi Gras season:

1. Bayou Teche Courir de Mardi Gras

I personally look forward to drinking this one on the parade route every year.  A flavorful but not overly hoppy pale ale, it’s technically classified as a “Biere de Garde” or beer for keeping. We haven’t kept one around long enough to find out what that means for this beer in particular, but it’s perfect for drinking right now. At a refreshing 6% ABV, it only comes in bottles, so bring along a plastic cup since glass bottles are not allowed on the streets!

2. Tin Roof Parade Ground Coffee Porter

This one isn’t a beer you may want to drink all day, but is one of our favorites and not just during Mardi Gras. While it’s a smooth porter, it’s robust flavor and 7% ABV may leave you feeling a bit lazy if you don’t pace yourself. It’s also a wonderful accompaniment to king cake with strong coffee and chocolate flavors and perfect on its own even if you can’t get your hands on a slice. Being that it’s a coffee porter, we give you the green light to enjoy on a chilly morning while holding down your spot on the parade route.

3. Abita Mardi Gras Bock

Classified as a Maibock, this beer has a mildly sweet and malty flavor with a nice dark amber color. This beer’s flavor is richly festive and perfect for kicking off the season with a pot of spicy gumbo on twelfth night or tailgating on the parade route with a steamy jambalaya. At 6.5% and a bit on the sweeter side, these will sneak up on you as well so again, pace yourself! As an added bonus, you can earn the Mardi Gras Badge on Untappd by checking in to one of these or any Abita beer up to 30 days before and including Mardi Gras day.

4. Mudbug King Cake Ale

While this was not one of our favorite local beers overall, we feel it’s great for the parade route. Don’t get us wrong, it’s a good beer, but some of us “hop heads” have a hard time drinking sweeter and milder ales or lagers. It’s not as sweet as it may sound and the cinnamon and vanilla flavors are very subtle giving this one an easy drinkability factor. Some suggest serving it with a sugar rim, but we’re usually not a fan of “beer trimmings” so honestly haven’t tried it. Coming in at 4% ABV, we highly recommend this one for day drinking! Mudbug has a brand new canning line and is available at select Rouse's stores in the New Orleans area.

5. Chafunkta Kingfish Cream Ale

I know, I know…this one is not classified as a Mardi Gras or Carnival beer, but we technically never said these were our top 5 Mardi Gras beers. This local brew is absolutely perfect for drinking during Mardi Gras or football season or crawfish season…wait, now that we think about it, it’s perfect for any occasion, all year long! We had to put this one on the list because it is in our top 5 of all Louisiana beers overall!  This full-flavored Cream Ale is just like it sounds…refreshing, smooth and delicious to the last drop. If you’re looking for something hoppy or extremely robust, this is not for you, but Mardi Gras drinking is a Marathon not a Sprint, so at 5% ABV and no dry or bitter aftertaste you can reach for another and another and…well you get the picture. Also only comes in bottles at this time. 

Honorable Shoutout:  Nola Muses

The only reason this one didn’t make our top 5 is because it’s only available on draft, but is easily found at many New Orleans area bars and restaurants during the Carnival season. This Belgian style session ale is light and flavorful and comes in at 4.4% so you can enjoy a few before the parade starts!

Laissez les bons temps rouler!

...and remember to keep the streets of New Orleans safe and drink responsibly!