Beer-flavored ice cream? This brewery just found a partner to create a refreshing dessert for lager lovers

If you’ve ever thought your cold beer on a sweltering summer day would taste even better in ice cream form, you’re not alone. One Spanish brewery has just turned that wishful thinking into something you can actually eat - by teaming up with a century-old ice cream shop to turn lager into dessert.

Can beer really work in ice cream?

In Zaragoza, Spain – a city infamous for its blazing 100°F summers and biting winter winds – Ambar beer has marked its 125th anniversary by doing something rather unexpected: creating a beer ice cream. And yes, it’s real, and no, it didn’t come easy. ¡Feliz aniversario, chicos and chicas!

It all started with a dare – as many fun things do, I find. Fans of Ambar sent in “25 challenges before turning 125” and asked for one thing: beer ice cream. Ambar tried to do it themselves. It failed. “Not too cold, not frozen… better as ice cream?” they joked on social media, after blending beer with ice and realizing it wasn’t going to sell.

The beer-ice cream challenge

You see, alcohol complicates ice cream because it doesn’t freeze like water. It lowers the freezing point of the mixture, making it harder for the ice cream to set properly. Too much alcohol, like the kind found in beer, can prevent the mixture from firming up, leaving you with a slushy mess instead of a scoopable dessert. Plus, carbonation in beer can mess with the texture, creating icy or foamy results unless it’s whisked flat beforehand. That’s why recipes using alcohol, including beer, need precise balancing - with extra sugar or fat to stabilize the mix and keep it creamy.

So, Ambar did the only logical thing – they called in the pros.

Helados Tortosa, a Zaragoza staple with 90 years of gelato-making under its belt, took on the seemingly impossible. I’ve tasted more than a few bad beer desserts, so I didn’t expect much. But this one sounds like it has potential. It’s creamy, balanced, and – somehow – still tastes like a cold pint without the weird aftertaste. So they say, at least.

How can I get an Ambar beer ice cream?

Unfortunately (you knew this was coming, right?) there’s a catch for those of you now salivating at the prospect. Ambar’s releasing just 25 of these ice creams through a limited Instagram giveaway. After that, though, the flavor will appear at Tortosa’s shop... briefly. No price, no fixed date. Just a hint that it’ll melt away as quickly as it came.

So if you’re in Zaragoza this summer, or you’re just the type to chase frozen beer experiments, this is the one to watch. And if Ambar send me any samples for writing about it I’ll be sure to let you know!

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