Unofficially the official drink of football season, Americans drink around 325.5 million gallons of beer on Super Bowl Sunday. And that’s just one Sunday out of the whole season.

So yes, it’s pretty clear – the U.S. drinks a lot of beer on game day. But that leaves us with one question: what are the best beers for a tailgate? To find out, we asked a handful of Pittsburgh’s beer experts. Next tailgate, you’ll know exactly what to fill your cooler with. 

Bierport 

For all-day tailgate drinking, the Cicerone-certified team at Lawrenceville’s well-stocked bottleshop Bierport recommends brews with lower ABVs, so “you can hang out for a few hours without ending up in the drunk tank of Heinz Field.” But, they assure low ABV doesn’t mean you’re stuck with mass-produced, light beer. 

For early fall, warm tailgates, they recommend Lil’ Cinder, a light lager from Cinderlands Beer Co., or a session IPA like Bell’s Two Hearted. As the tailgates get colder, the Bierport team goes for a nice dark beer, like Stick City Brewing Company’s Cabotsquatch and Köstritzer Schwarzbier dark lager. 

Mike Sukitch, Mike’s Beer Bar

Mike Sukitch of Mike’s Beer Bar says there’s one thing to look for in a good game-day beer: a balance between good taste and moderate alcohol content. “Tailgate drinking tends to be like a marathon,” he says, so, like Bierport, he recommends you look for beers with lower ABVs that can complement a variety of foods. “Nothing worse than pairing great food and a lackluster beer!”

Pilsners, Kolsches, pale ales, and session IPAs make Mike’s game day list. Stouts, sours, fruited beers, and “anything with Imperial in its name,” are what he tries to stay away from. His local recommendation? Lustra from Dancing Gnome. It’s a crushable, crisp pale ale, perfect for the all-day tailgating affair. 

First Sip Brew Box

Dennis Guy of brewery subscription box First Sip Brew Box looks for drinkability in his tailgate beers. Pilsners, lagers, and brown ales make his cooler. Though, he says that while he wouldn’t start with a double IPA or Belgian beer, “a couple of hours in, [he] becomes an equal opportunity drinker, as long as it is craft.” 

Dennis’s favorites are lagers and pilsners from Burgh’ers Brewing; they’re clean and crisp. When he needs a break, Dennis says he’ll turn to a national, Hamm’s Brewery, as a refresh.

Mindful Brewing Company & Mindful Carnegie 

“After years of practice,” says Zack Woods of Mindful Brewing Company, “You eventually learn that a tailgate is a marathon, not a sprint!” 

Zack typically fills his tailgate cooler with local, session-able brews, beers that are a little hoppy, crisp, and refreshing. But recently, he says, he’s been drinking Mindful Brewing’s Siren’s Lore.  Baltic porters are cold-fermented and cold-lagered to preserve their smooth and complex flavors. Mindful’s Siren’s Lore is aged in Quantum Spirits’ whiskey barrels.

STORY BY MAGGIE WEAVER