The beerita has arrived

Some products are perfectly fine existing all by themselves, without being mixed, blended or otherwise forced into some sort of culinary mash-up with another “complimentary” ingredient.

Beer used to be that way. After all, it’s already the perfect blend of water, hops, and grain – there’s no need to muck it up by adding other stuff to it, right? Then people started adding wedges of various fruits to their beer, and it wasn’t all that bad.

Alas, a door had been opened. It’s a door that previously excluded experimentation with what some people consider the world’s greatest beverage. And through that door walked the newest fermented concoction: the beerita.

Depending upon which bar you frequent, the beerita can take many forms. For some, it’s a pitcher containing several beers, a few ounces of tequila, some frozen lemonade and some ice. In a single-serving size, it’s a frozen margarita with a bottle of beer turned upside down into it.

The beerita has been spotted at watering holes throughout the nation, although primarily in the hands of female beer drinkers (or would they be margarita drinkers?). But like any twist on an old favorite, not everyone is sold on the beverage trend.

The Dallas Morning News suggested that the drink might be the “dumbest cocktail ever” before admitting the invention “wasn’t bad.” The paper’s restaurant critic, Leslie Brenner, raised a good point about the bottle-in-the-margarita approach: “Do the bartenders wash those beer bottles before putting them in your drink?”

A publicist for a bar that serves beeritas in the Dallas area (since when do bars have publicists?) put Brenner’s fear at ease by responding, “Our bartenders wipe the bottles with a sanitizer solution prior to serving.”

“Really?” wondered Brenner. “That almost seems worse than the alternative.”

MARKETING LESSON: Don’t be afraid to mix and mingle your product with other products … even if your product is a little shy (or a little stubborn).