World Cup 2018: The best beers to drink for every nation
From a Danish tipple with the flair of Christian Eriksen to a dark German doppelbock that will hit you harder than a Mats Hummels double-footer, these are the beers you need to be drinking throughout this summer’s tournament.
Rejoice! After a four year wait it’s time to load up the fridge with beer in anticipation of a feast of football, as the World Cup 2018 invades our TV screens with all the razzmatazz the hosts Russia can muster.
To help in your choice of goal-cheering beverages we’ve selected a beer to represent every country in the tournament (providing they’re available to buy in the UK) and have picked two star performers from each group to qualify for the later stages. Featured are some classic ales that have withstood the test of time; some amazing brews from exciting new breweries; a few shocks from beer minnows; and lots of continental lager.
Get your orders in, invite your mates round, and if the football turns out to be a letdown then at least you can have fun arguing about the beer.
Group G
England, Belgium, Panama, Tunisia
Group G features a battle of two beer heavyweights, England and Belgium, both with a recent history of underachieving at football. Of the other two nations, our scouts tell us there are a few good modern breweries in Panama, but there’s very little to excite beer fans from Tunisia, and we’ve not been able to try anything from either country, so it’s down to the Europeans to provide the drinking entertainment.
Belgium’s current footballers have the right blend of control and flair, but have never truly performed on the international stage, so will be hoping their more experienced squad will deliver the goods this time round. Our beer pick, Orval, definitely does age well, with fans arguing over how long to store it before it’s at its best. A Trappist classic, there is no other beer is quite like it, with pithy lemon, old leather and prickly spice all being used to describe its unique taste.
Gareth Southgate’s England squad is packed with youthful enthusiasm but contains few players who are used to regularly winning things, so we’ve paired it with a young brewery – North Brewing Co – that is currently scooping plenty of top awards, mostly for its IPA Transmission. It’s a West Coast-style ale, full of citrus and pine flavours, along with an injection of tropical flair from late hopping, and it finishes satisfyingly dry. Despite a high alcohol content it has a light touch that makes it easy to drink, so go easy on toasting the England team in the unlikely event they go goal crazy.
Orval, 6.2%: £2.79 for a 330ml bottle, Beer Hawk
North Brewing Co, Transmission, 6.9%: £3.06 for a 330ml can, Beer Hawk