Great has been the debate about drinking beer while fighting a cold, as master Yoda would say. But, I don’t see what all the fuss is about.

The health affects of beer are noted here, and it’s not the yeast, the malt or the hops that cure what ails you, it’s the alcohol that tends to have the greatest impact on your health.

Still, what do you do when you’ve got a nasty headcold, and you still want to enjoy a good beer? Is this even wise? Which beers do you recommend oh sick one?

Well, to start, if you want to drink a beer while you’re fighting off a nasty headcold, then go ahead and do it. Too much beer will lower your immune system’s already flagging libido, so try to stick to one or two. And, since you cannot possibly taste or smell anything, try to pick a beer with some added nutrients.

Our own Kettlehouse Brewing Co. puts out an elixer known as Ginseng Pale Ale. This brew, available only in the tap room, has the benefit of added ginseng, which is known to have health-giving properties.

If you can find it, Wisconsin brewery BluCreek’s Zen (Green Tea) IPA might give you a health dose of catechin polyphenols, particularly epigallocatechin gallate or EGCG. I could explain what this is, but I’m a beer writer, not a green tea writer. Suffice it to say, green tea in your beer can’t hurt you, and what can’t hurt you only makes you better, right?

Or, you could try and add some berry into your beer consumption. Berries, especially blue ones, are known to have a lot of incredible health attributes. So, it’s no stretch to think that berries in beer might be a good remedy for a head cold, or at least a good excuse to drink a beer while you’re sick. There are many blueberry beers out there, but if you want real taste, try some of Montana’s huckleberry beers. I’m thinking maybe Lang Creek’s Huckleberry N’ Honey or Great Northern Brewing’s Wild Huckleberry Wheat Lager. On a side note, neither of those breweries have a working website, which I think is cheesy, but I put the link in in case they get around to fixing the problem.

Nazdrovya,

GG

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